Millennium Actress

Guide Note

Millennium Actress is the second movie by Perfect Blue director Satoshi Kon. It is about a director making a documentary about the life of a famous actress where reality and cinema become blurred. Currently, distribution rights of this movie outside Japan belong to DreamWorks SKG. ¹

Fast Facts

1. Alternative Titles: Sennen Joyuu
2. Release Date(s):
   • July 28, 2001 (world premiere at Fantasia Film Festival 2001) ²
   • September 14, 2002 (Japan) ²
   • September 12, 2003 (USA) ³
3. Director: Satoshi Kon
4. Screenwriter(s): Satoshi Kon, Sadayuki Murai
5. Producer: Taro Maki
6. Distributors:
   • The Klockworx Co. (Japan)
   • Go Fish Pictures (USA)
7. MPAA Rating: PG
8. Run time: 87 minutes
9. Awards: Won Best Animated Film in the Fantasia Film Festival 2001 ⁴

Plot Summary

When Genya Tachibana is asked by Studio Gin'ei to make a documentary in commemoration to the studio's 70th anniversary, he travels to a secluded home in the mountains to interview Chiyoko Fujiwara, the studio's leading lady from the 1930s until the 1960s. As the actress tells the story of her life, Genya and his cameraman find themselves immersed within her story depicted by the movies she had done during her career.

Cast

• Shozo Iizuka as Genya Tachibana
• Miyoko Shoji as old Chiyoko Fujiwara
• Fumiko Orikasa as young Chiyoko Fujiwara
• Mami Koyama as adult Chiyoko Fujiwara
• Kouichi Yamadera as Man of the key
• Masamichi Sato as young Genya Tachibana
• Masaya Onosaka as Kyoji Ida
• Shoko Tsuda as Eiko

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Anime | Spirited Away

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