Rinko Kikuchi
| Rinko Kikuchi | |
|---|---|
|
Kikuchi at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival, February 2015 | |
| Native name | 菊地 凛子 |
| Born |
Yuriko Kikuchi January 6, 1981 Hadano, Kanagawa, Japan |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Height | 1.69 m (5 ft 6 1⁄2 in) |
| Spouse(s) | Shōta Sometani (m. 2014) |
| Website |
www |
Rinko Kikuchi (菊地 凛子 Kikuchi Rinko) (born Yuriko Kikuchi (菊地 百合子 Kikuchi Yuriko); January 6, 1981) is a Japanese film actress. She is the first Japanese actress to be nominated for an Academy Award in 50 years, for her work in Babel (2006). Kikuchi's other notable films include Norwegian Wood (2010), which screened in competition at the 67th Venice Film Festival and Guillermo del Toro's science fiction action film Pacific Rim (2013). For her role in the drama film Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (2014), Kikuchi received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Female Lead.
Early life
Kikuchi was born on January 6, 1981, in Hadano, Kanagawa, the youngest of three children. She was discovered by a talent agent on the street at the age of 15.[1]
Career
Kikuchi made her debut in 1999, under her birth name, Yuriko Kikuchi, with the Kaneto Shindo film Will to Live. Soon after, in 2001, she starred in the celebrated Kazuyoshi Komuri film Sora no Ana (空の穴), which was featured at several international festivals, including the Rotterdam Film Festival. In 2004, Kikuchi appeared in the well-received Katsuhito Ishii film The Taste of Tea, which was selected for the Cannes Film Festival.[2]
In 2006, Kikuchi was chosen by Japanese film producer Yoko Narahashi for the Alejandro González Iñárritu film Babel,[3] where she played Chieko Wataya, a deaf-mute teenage girl, for which she received international attention[2] including a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.[4] She won several awards, such as the National Board of Review Award for Best Breakthrough Female Performance (tying with Jennifer Hudson) and the Gotham Award for Breakthrough Actor.
Kikuchi is the fifth actress in Academy Award history to be nominated for an award for a role in which she does not speak. She has appeared in two of Mamoru Oshii's films: The Sky Crawlers (2008) and Assault Girls (2009). Kikuchi starred in Rian Johnson's second film, The Brothers Bloom (2009), which was her first full English-language feature. Though she plays a main character, she only speaks three words; her character is said to only know three words of English.
In 2010, Kikuchi was cast as Naoko in Tran Anh Hung's adaptation of Haruki Murakami's novel Norwegian Wood. In March 2011, she was added to the cast of 47 Ronin, the first English-language adaptation of the Chushingura legend, Japan's most famous tale of samurai loyalty and revenge.[5] Kikuchi described her villain character to the American version of Glamour as "a real bitch."[1] In 2013, she starred in the Guillermo del Toro film Pacific Rim, having improved her English by watching the American television series The Voice.[1] In 2014, Kikuchi starred in Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter, directed by David Zellner.
Personal life
Kikuchi married Shōta Sometani on December 31, 2014.[6][7][8]
Filmography
Film
Television
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Bakayaro! Special 2 | |
| 1999 | Kawaii dakeja Dame kashira | |
| 2001 | Chura-san | |
| 2001 | kokiku | |
| 2002 | The Private Detective Mike Hama | |
| 2003 | Uchu ni Ichiban Chikai basho | |
| 2003 | Ai to Shihonshugi | |
| 2004 | Ryu | |
| 2009–10 | Liar Game 2 | Ryo Katsuragi |
| 2010 | Moteki | Naoko Hayashida |
| 2014 | Gu-Gu Datte Neko de Aru | Chikako |
| 2015 | To Give a Dream | Mikiko Abe |
Awards and nominations
References
- 1 2 3 Carlson, Erin, "We ♥ Rinko," Glamour, September 2013, p. 363.
- 1 2 "Midnight Eye interview: Rinko Kikuchi". Retrieved 2007-02-14.
- ↑ Corkill, Edan. "From Hollywood to Hirohito". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2014-02-05.
- 1 2 "OSCAR.com - 79th Annual Academy Awards - Nomination". Retrieved 2007-02-14.
- ↑ "Keanu's "47 Ronin" has A-List Japanese Cast". Retrieved 2011-03-02.
- ↑ http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-12-31/actress-rinko-kikuchi-actor-shota-sometani-marry/.82792
- ↑ http://www.nownews.com/n/2015/01/01/1563169
- ↑ http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2015/01/329813.html
- ↑ "ANORE INC.". Retrieved 2007-02-14.
- ↑ "Brody and Kikuchi in Bloom - ComingSoon.net". Retrieved 2007-02-14.
- ↑ "Oshii Casts Oscar-Nominated Kikuchi for Sky Crawlers - Anime News Network". Retrieved 2008-07-05.
- ↑ "Rome Film Review: ‘Last Summer’". Retrieved 2014-12-03.
Further reading
- Morris, Jerome C. "Exposed! Interview with Rinko Kikuchi". Asian Cult Cinema 55.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rinko Kikuchi. |
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