Japanese director Nanako Hirose, who trained under Palme d’Or winner Hirokazu Kore-eda at his Tokyo-based film collective Bunbuku Inc., has unveiled her second feature, Between Two Lovers, a romantic drama centered on a married woman who pursues a simultaneous relationship with a female lover — and proposes that all three live together. The film is set for release in Japan on Nov. 27.
The film stars Masami Nagasawa (Our Little Sister) as Uta, a picture book creator described by the filmmakers as “selfish, cunning — yet utterly lovable.” Tasuku Emoto (Kobikicho no Adauchi) plays her husband Morio, an attentive and domestic man torn between his wife’s wishes and traditional family values, while Shizuka Ishibashi — who is set to headline the NHK Morning Drama Series Blossom this fall — takes on the role of Junna, Uta’s lover and editor.
Hirose says the film “was born from the idea that there should be more diverse forms of family in the world.” She says the premise first came to her during the pandemic and she has spent the years since developing and writing the screenplay.
Nagasawa, who recently won the best actress prize at the 49th Japan Academy Awards for Dollhouse, says of her character: “Within Uta-chan’s seemingly conflicted actions lie a mix of ideals, reality, and a sense of justice. Even so, her honesty and authenticity continue to draw people in.” Emoto described the project as “a story about love, brought to life by characters who are clumsy, yet full of longing.” Ishibashi called her character “clumsy and prickly like a hedgehog,” yet carrying a “childlike softness inside.”
Hirose built her career as an assistant director within Bunbuku, the creators’ collective that Kore-eda (Shoplifters, Monster) founded in 2014 alongside filmmaker Miwa Nishikawa (Under the Open Sky). The company has served as a launchpad and incubator for emerging Japanese directors, with Kore-eda mentoring younger filmmakers from script development through production. Hirose’s directorial debut, His Lost Name, starring Yuya Yagira, premiered in the New Currents competition at the Busan International Film Festival in 2018 and played at festivals internationally.
Between Two Lovers first attracted industry attention at the script stage, winning both the CJ ENM Award and the ARRI Award at the Asian Project Market (APM) within Busan’s Asian Contents & Film Market in 2023.
The film is a Japan-Taiwan co-production, with Taiwanese cinematographer Yao Hung-I — who shot several of Hou Hsiao-hsien’s later works as well as Huang Xi’s Missing Johnny — handling the photography, alongside Taiwanese lighting director Hsiao Hung-Yi. Filming took place in September and October of last year, and the film is already complete. Popular Japanese singer-songwriter HIMI composed the score, marking his first time scoring a full feature.
The project was developed by Bunbuku and is being produced and distributed by K2 Pictures, the Tokyo-based company launched in 2023 by former Toei producer Muneyuki Kii. K2 has positioned itself as a disruptor in the Japanese film industry, eschewing the country’s traditional production committee model in favor of a fund-based financing structure aimed at returning more profits to creators and attracting both domestic and international investment. The company’s directorial roster includes Kore-eda, Nishikawa, Takashi Miike and Shunji Iwai, and its K2P Film Fund I has drawn investment from some of Japan’s biggest financial institutions, including MUFG Bank and the Development Bank of Japan. Kii serves as executive producer on Between Two Lovers, with Daiju Koide producing.
