She has even acted as a dead body ...... but her steadiness has another side to it

KURODA Yoshiko

Actress, KURODA Yoshiko, 27, performs in the movie, “Oninaki-no-machi,” (directed by MIYASAKA Takeshi) that comes out this spring. Her acting work ranges from movies and TV dramas to theatre and modeling. Her principle, she says, is “I will do anything!” Kuroda is a sound actress with a down-to-earth approach in the seemingly flashy and volatile Japanese entertainment business.

Having learnt to play piano and flute as a child, and having been active in chorus singing at school, music has always been there with her. Her love of singing, helped by her mother’s passionate support, led her to pursue a singing career. She had auditions when she was 15 years old, and although she failed at the final hurdle, she picked herself up, telling herself, “I’ve got to learn more. More lessons!” She felt a sense of failure, but she is a girl who turns everything, even her mistakes, into positives. This attitude helped her decide to try her skills in the entertainment business.

Kuroda studied singing and acting at university, and began to get jobs in dramas, movies and theatre. The path has not been smooth, but she moved on gradually, once even playing the role of a dead body in a TV drama. Lying on her stomach on the riverside naked, she had chicken pox two weeks later. “It was hard!” she says, but she showed her actress spirit.

“I need to see the world I’ve never seen before,” Kuroda thought one day, and she subsequently decided to acquire a Personal Life Support Care Qualification two years ago. She now visits the home of a handicapped person who lives alone, and helps do daily chores such as cleaning, washing dishes, doing laundry, cooking and grocery shopping. It is the other side of her life. But she says again, “I will do anything!” she says reaffirming the actress spirit in her.

Since she started participating in personal life care work, she has come to realize the importance of basic communication between people in everyday situations. “It is really plain and simple. But because of its simplicity, we tend to forget how important it is,” Kuroda says. “I needed to do this, to build up her career as an actress.”

She writes the words (for songs) to keep herself inspired by what she feels about everyday life. She loves to sing and she is always humming. She values meeting people and building connections to extend her career rather than having audition after audition. Kuroda feels strongly that “other people’s support has brought me to where I am now.”

“I would like to go international somewhere down the road,” she says about her dream. She believes that she does not have to stick only to Hollywood, and she dreams of co-starring with actors and actresses from Asian countries such as Korea or China. If her wishes come true, she would want to play a role of a Japanese person as she is Japanese herself. She has already taken the first step on the ladder towards her dream by self-studying English. Kuroda says she always seeks “great works.” To that end, she is ready to start whatever she can do.

http://blue.ap.teacup.com/kuroyoshi/

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