How TV Stations Became a “Comfortable Space” for Celebrities who Bring their Child Along

On October 20, Yu Aoi appeared on “Premium Talk” of “Asa Ichi” (NHK). Yu Aoi is in NHK’s TV series “Boogie Woogie”. It was her first drama appearance after giving birth.

She gave birth to her first child, a baby girl, last August, and had to take her eldest daughter with her to the filming at NHK Osaka Broadcasting Station.

 

When MC Daikichi Hanamaru talked about the fact that a day-care center was built inside NHK in Osaka because the main character, Sakura Ando, was a mama-san heroine in the series, Aoi said,

“Thanks to Sakura-chan’s work on ‘Manpuku,’ NHK in Osaka has such a space and a lot of other things, so I was able to take some of that down.”

Ando is also known for an episode in the movie “A Certain Man,” released in 2022, in which she suddenly went home during filming, shocking her co-stars Satoshi Tsumabuki and Masataka Kubota. According to her, she wanted to see her children so much that she jumped on a train from the nearest station and had a family “hot pot” dinner.

 

Ando, who won the “Japan Academy Award” for best supporting actress for her role in the film, revealed that she is still struggling between acting and child rearing. The smiling face of her husband, Tasuku Emoto, who was in the audience, and the sight of soon-to-be-married announcer Asami Mizuto, who sobbed as she listened to the episode, were also much talked about.

“It was shortly after that that Mizuto-chan announced her marriage to actor Nakamura Rinya. Mr. Ando’s episode was certainly moving, but it was a mystery at the time why Mizuto-chan cried so much, and the netizens were all over the place saying, ‘Maybe she’s working too much.’”

“But later, when Mizuto’s marriage to Nakamura-san was announced, female viewers of the same age group seemed to sympathize with her, believing that she was crying because she was thinking about balancing work and family, and eventually having a baby. If this had happened more than 10 years ago, the public might have criticized Ando for being selfish or saying that this would not be possible in ordinary society. It is a sign that TV stations and viewers have become more tolerant.”

A female producer at a commercial TV station said with deep emotion. She continues, 

“The declining birthrate and the aging of the population are also major factors. It took some time, but the world has become kinder to actors and TV personalities with children. Even so, I think TV stations are still behind the curve.”

 

As for entertainers with young children, many of them come to TV stations with their children in tow.

“Most TV stations have been accommodating people with children for quite some time. If a private dressing room is provided, there is no problem as long as the manager or valet takes care of the child during the recording.”

“Naturally, there are many people who breastfeed in the dressing room. But none of the co-stars or staff members seem to see this as a problem.”

 

It seems that the TV industry as a whole, including local stations, has finally become a comfortable place to work.