Sayo Yoshida reveals the difficulty of playing a role that neither denies nor confirms infidelity.

I had heard that the day of the interview was called “interview day” and several companies were there on the same day. When I arrived before the appointed time, I encountered another news crew shooting. Although it was a normal office entrance, the scene looked like something out of a fashion magazine. Saya Yoshida, who I will introduce to you here, is a former model. She has had a successful career as a model, appearing in magazines and advertisements. “I’m sure many of you will say, “Oh, I’ve seen her before.

This time, the photographer worked with her as a model a few years ago. “He said, “Since you’re here, why don’t you tell them about it? He replied, “I’m sure you’ve worked with quite a few people, and I was an assistant at the time, so there’s no way I’d remember. Indeed, …….

Well, I guess it can’t be helped. Then, what a surprise!　She walked into the interview room and said, “It’s been a while! The first thing she did was to call out to the cameraman. The expression on her face was a complete change from the cool and cool look she had during the shoot. She looked so cute, as if she had just found someone she knew in a tense scene (as a side note, I’m sure the photographer was even more enthusiastic about the shoot).

(As an aside, the photographer must have been even more enthusiastic about the shoot.) I felt that this was one of the reasons why she has had such a successful career as a model, and not just because of her looks and qualities. I was expecting her to be tall because of her background as a model, but she is surprisingly petite at 160cm. “Do people ever tell you that you look different in person than you do in your photos? That’s right.

The interview started when I told her, “Yes, I’m often told that!　It was hard for me to talk to you because you looked so cool, but you are surprisingly friendly and easy to talk to. I guess I look difficult to get to know in photographs.

Recently, there are many people who work as both models and actresses from the beginning. Recently, many people have been working as both models and actresses from the beginning. However, she has been working as a model for about 10 years, so she started late as an actress. It may be difficult for her to feel comfortable in a situation where she has a certain level of career as a model but is new as an actress.

“The atmosphere on set is completely different depending on the film, so it’s always exciting and a lot of fun. I have a certain image of the woman I want to be when I work as a model. In my work as a model, I always had a certain image of a woman that I wanted to portray, or rather, I tried to incorporate that image into myself before shooting, so in a sense, I was close to acting. In a way, it was almost like acting. I feel that this experience is now being utilized in my work as an actress.

When I read her profile, there was something I really wanted to ask her. Actually, she had worked as a shrine maiden right after graduating from high school. I have not heard of many models or actresses who have worked as shrine maidens. I wondered if it was easy to become a shrine maiden.

“It’s not like I was chosen for any special reason, it was just a job I got after graduating from high school, after going through an exam and interview. I myself thought it was a special job from the outside, so I was surprised when my high school teacher recommended it as a place to work. After I got the job, I was up at 4:00 a.m. and left for work at 6:00 a.m. I had a very regular life.

At that time, I had already started modeling on my days off, so it was a special time for me to work as a shrine maiden in a sacred place for a short time. Even now, when I get a job or take on a challenge, I always try to remember to be grateful, and I feel refreshed when I go to visit a shrine.

With such a beautiful shrine maiden, I’m sure she was the talk of the town at …….

“It’s not like that at all (laughs). (Laughs) But there were a few times when I was walking along the path and someone asked me to take a picture, and when I tried to take the camera, they asked me to join them. But I had to decline because I was working.

(ABC TV, TV Asahi), which is based on a manga of the same title by Keiku Hagiwara. (ABC TV, TV Asahi), based on a manga of the same title by Keik Hagiwara. The theme of this work is “sexlessness” among couples who do not have children. When the original manga was first serialized, it attracted attention for its shocking theme and realistic portrayal of married couples.

“I had read the manga even before I was chosen to appear in the drama. My friends who are married also talked about it, and they were excited about how realistically it portrayed the daily lives of married couples, such as the moments when they feel casual happiness or when their feelings cross each other. I’m not married yet, so I can’t speak irresponsibly, but it’s a sensitive subject, so it’s not hard to understand why Jun (Junsu Jun: Marika Matsumoto) would have this problem (sexlessness) all by herself.

However, since they live together and know each other well, I think they need to talk to each other clearly about what they are thinking in order to solve their problems. I think it’s important to let your thoughts and worries out, even if you can’t solve them right away. Sometimes you don’t know how you really feel or what path you should take until you talk about it with others.

The theme of “sexlessness” among married couples may be inseparable from this theme. In this work, there are many descriptions of “adultery.

“As for Tachibana, I feel that the fact that she was able to transform her experience of infidelity into her own strength and kindness is her charm. Her comments and attitude toward Mayama show that she doesn’t want him to go through such a painful experience because of her own infidelity. Saori (Saori Adachi: Wakana Sakai), who is the adulterous partner of Takeyori (Junsu Takeyori: Hiroyuki Ikeuchi), also acts the way she does because of the difficulties and worries she has to live with.

But I think there is a certain charm in being a woman who has experienced such things, and I think that is what attracted Takeyori to her. In this work, I neither deny nor affirm adultery. The relationships and emotions between the characters are portrayed in a realistic and sensitive way, and I hope you will see that in my work. However, I myself am in the camp that wants to believe in the love between Jun and Takeyori. I want them to get along!”

I think she knew that she couldn’t avoid the themes of “sexlessness” and “infidelity” when talking about the drama. And although it may sound trivial, there was a part of me that was expecting an answer to my question. Without fear of being misunderstood, the answers I received were very serious and well-mannered. But that is “Sayo Yoshida”.

For example, unique and outrageous roles get a lot of attention. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that the actress playing the role has to be like that. This time, too, if she made an eye-catching comment, it might attract attention. But I won’t do that. This is a challenge for me because I have a career as a model. The challenge is to be confident in your own way. I felt a good sense of pride and grace. It doesn’t have to be right now. I would like to see Sayo Yoshida play a dirty role someday as she gains more experience as an actress.

Five questions for Sayo Yoshida

Q1What are you proud of?
A1Being liked by animals.
I had to force myself to come up with this one!　I’ve never thought of anything I could be proud of, but I think I’m rather well-liked by stray cats and such (laughs). I’ll leave it at that.

Q2What is your favorite music on your playlist right now?
A2Kirinji “Aliens
I like the way it wraps up my sad feelings. I make a playlist according to my mood of the day. It’s not that I’m feeling sad right now (laughs). (laughs) I guess it’s because we’re in a season where sad feelings are appropriate.

Q3 What works have influenced you?
A3The TV drama “Kirakira Hikaru
Eri Fukatsu, who played the lead role, is still an actress I admire. It’s a work that deals with human life and death, and the women in it are strong, but also have shadows and weaknesses, and are very attractive. When I think about it now, I feel like it was the starting point of my acting career, because I wanted to be in a film like this someday.

Q4What do you do every day?
A4Love my cat.
I have three cats at home. The first time I brought home two stray cats that lived near my house, and the third time I got a newborn kitten from a neighbor’s cat friend. Each cat has a completely different personality, so it’s fun to see how they react to each other.

Q5 What is your favorite type?
A5 Someone who is sincere.
Ideally, we should support each other through both good and bad things. I want to be sincere not only with my partner, but also with myself.

Sayo Yoshida
Born on February 8, 1990. Born in Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture.
Made her modeling debut after graduating from high school. She has been active in fashion and beauty magazines such as “CLASSY.”, “InRed”, “BAILA”, and “VoCE”, as well as in advertising. My Boss! My Boss!” (TBS) in 2021, and made her acting debut in “Koi wa Bessatsu de” (TBS). (TBS) in 2021, and is currently appearing in “Do You Still Vow Love? (ABC TV/TV Asahi) as Akira Tachibanano.

Photography: Gaku Kato
Interview and text by Yuko Kawaii
Hair&Makeup：Komo Komatsu（ROI
Stylist: Kanae Goto
Composition: SUPER MIX