I think high school is a place where you can try things you can't do." Interview with Inori Minase, who plays the heroine Jun Naruse in the film version of the anime "The Heart Wants to Cry. Interview with Inori Minase, who plays the heroine Jun Naruse!

The golden trio of Tatsuyuki Nagai (director of "Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai"), Mari Okada (screenwriter), and Masaga Tanaka (character designer), who created an unprecedented hit late-night anime, have created a new emotional experience. The golden trio of director Tatsuyuki Nagai, screenwriter Mari Okada, and character designer Masaga Tanaka of "Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai" created a new sensation. The film version of the anime "My Heart is Screaming" is based on a completely original story. is a coming-of-age ensemble drama that begins when a high school girl, who has been silenced from speaking due to a childhood experience, is appointed to the executive committee of a school event. The heroine, Jun Naruse, is played by Inori Minase, an up-and-coming young voice actress. When we asked Inori how she took on the unusual role of the "heroine who can't speak," we found out more about the appeal of the work.

─ ─ "Kokosasake" ("My heart is crying out to you!") (hereafter "Kokosake"), it turned out to be a very wonderful work. What was your impression of the work and the character Jun Naruse before you auditioned for the role?

Mizuse: The main heroine of a work is bright, energetic, and curious, like the sun in the moon and the sun. But when I saw the visual of "Kokosake", I thought that this heroine was not the sun but the moon. I auditioned for the role of Jun, but I had never played a character who seemed quiet from the outside. I thought that I had to approach the audition with a new voice and play. When I heard that I passed the audition, I felt a lot of pressure. It was a big title and I was the heroine. And since the audition ended without much of a response, I wasn't sure what they saw in me that made me sound like Jun. So I decided to work with the director to create Jun's voice through postrecording.

───Jun is a child who gets a stomach ache when she tries to speak, and she is unable to speak. It seems difficult to play a character who is in pain and unable to speak, but how did you think about it?

Mizuse: I could create emotions similar to sadness or anger, but it was difficult to do so because I could not emit pain during recording. Sometimes I would consult with Director Nagai and ask him to record various patterns and then make a decision later. The voice I came up with for the order was the kind of voice that a person who does not normally produce a voice would produce, a voice that is not used to producing. It is a kind of voice that is not used to being used to speaking, and it is a kind of voice that is not used to being used by people who do not usually speak. I always thought that since I don't get to speak on a daily basis, the way I speak would be clumsy.

Mizuse──You sounded as if your stomach was really hurting, and above all, your voice sounded as if your heart was in a lot of pain.

Minase: It was a feeling that was hard to imagine, so I compared it to everyday life. I wondered what I would think if I suddenly couldn't move my next leg when I was walking normally, and I imagined what it would be like if I suddenly couldn't do something that was normal for me. The breath is also a unique aspect of the play. Jun claps when he is happy and expresses his emotions through his breathing. There were several different ways of expressing happiness, such as continuous exhaling or breathing in small increments like a dog. It was like I was working with the director to create the appropriate sounds one by one. I would be happy if you could pay attention to that as well.

─ ─ The realistic conversations between the characters are also a highlight. What was the atmosphere like at the recording studio?

Minase: The script was written as if it were an everyday conversation, so I was impressed by how everyone was working without getting too defensive. We didn't have any discussions about the play, and we just naturally responded to the lines that came out during the recording. But actually, when I was chosen for the role of Jun, I was worried that my voice would stand out from the other members of the cast. My voice is high-pitched and anime-like, and I had never done such natural acting before. But I tried to act in a natural way, so I hope I got along well with the cast.

───In the film, Jun is chosen to be a member of the executive committee of the "Community Friendship Exchange Party," but as he gets involved with fellow committee members Takumi Sakagami, Natsuki Nito, and Hiroki Tazaki, he gradually changes. What is your personal favorite scene in which you played this change?

Mizuse: I would have to say the scene where Jun "screams". It was also the scene where Jun let out everything he had been carrying around, so I really put my heart and soul into the scene. Until then, he had been shouting only inside his mind, so it had been a long time since he had expressed his feelings to others. It is a common thing for ordinary people, but Jun didn't even have anyone to express his feelings to. The scene in which I shared my feelings with him was a very important time for me. I gave it my all, and it is my favorite scene in the movie.

─ By the way, what kind of high school student were you?

Minase: I was a high school student until two years ago, so there are not many differences between now and then, but I was the type of person who says what I mean even though I am seen as calm. Whenever there was a school event, I enjoyed participating in it, so if we were to put on a musical like Jun's class, I am sure I would have been very happy about it. It is a high hurdle for a high school student to do a musical, but I think high school is a place where you can challenge yourself to do something you would not have been able to do before. Seeing Jun, Takumi, and the other students in this production grow in stature and take on the challenge of a musical, I thought it was very adolescent.

This is a film that will remind anyone who sees it of their high school days . What kind of people do you want to see this film?

Minase: I would like elementary school students, junior high school students, and other children younger than high school students to see this film. Some may think, "High school is such a fun place," while others may wonder, "Is it a place where you are swept away by so many emotions? Some kids might think, "What a place to be swept up in so many emotions. If I had seen this movie when I was in junior high school, I might have wondered if high school was a place of challenges. I hope you enjoy the splendor of accomplishing something together in three short years.

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Inori Minase

Born in Tokyo in 1995. Her main roles in anime include "Is Your Order a Rabbit? She has also played the roles of Chino in "Ojiki-no-Ugi-nasai-da? Yuki Takeyari". She is a member of Sony Music Artists.

The Heart Wants to Scream
Director: Tatsuyuki Nagai Screenplay: Mari Okada Character Design / Chief Animation Director: Masaga Tanaka
Cast: Minase Inori, Uchiyama Koki, Amamiya Ten, Hosoya Yoshimasa, Fujiwara Keiji, Yoshida Yo
Production: A-1 Pictures
Distributor: Aniplex
Roadshow from September 19 in Japan

(Reporting by Tomoko Omagari)