Childhood Inspiration,
and a Career She Pictured First
Masami Nagasawa was only twelve years old when she won the Grand Prix at the 5th TOHO Cinderella audition, beginning her career in the most public way available to a child. That same year, she landed her first acting role in a major film production. Since then, she has become one of Japan's leading actors, starring in many hit films, TV shows, and stage productions, earning accolades from critics and fans along the way.
Although her career began so young, the moment that inspired her to pursue acting came even earlier. We sat down with Nagasawa to hear her story: what drew her to acting in the first place, how she overcame the struggles of her twenties, and the power of entertainment as she sees it today.
The moment she discovered acting, and a paradox
Nagasawa was in the sixth grade when the TOHO Cinderella audition named her the youngest-ever Grand Prix winner. But the seeds of wanting to become an actor had been planted before that.
“I loved TV dramas as a child. If there was a show I really liked, I'd watch it every week. I still have a very vivid memory of a theater company coming to my elementary school and putting on a live performance for us. It had such a strong effect on me; I felt like someone had stepped straight off the screen and stood right there in front of me. I remember staring at them, completely fascinated, thinking, ‘How did they do that?’”
Nagasawa was a shy child, though—so shy that, in the company of strangers, she would often hide behind her mother and let her do the talking.
“I was so drawn to the idea of expressing something through performance…but I had no confidence I could actually do it myself. It was a bit of a paradox, having such strong yet opposing feelings in me as a child.”
If she can picture it, she can make it happen
Throughout her career, Nagasawa has always believed that if she can picture herself doing something, she can find a way to make it happen.
“I'm the type of person who moves toward whatever ideal, or whatever version of myself, I've already imagined in my head. Even the first time I stood on a stage, the main reason I could make myself do it was that I had already pictured myself standing there. It made me think, ‘Okay, I can try this.’ It’s been the same with other kinds of work too. If I can imagine myself doing it, I’ll give it a try. I think that's how my career has been built: on top of all those little steps.”
In her early twenties, however, the image of herself as she pictured it did not always line up with reality.
“I was very lucky with the work that came my way, and I'm grateful for that. But the ideal I had in my head for myself, the ability I actually had at the time, and the path in front of me that I was supposed to choose…none of it quite lined up, and it left me frustrated.”
What helped her through was something her mother told her.
“She said, ‘If you work as hard as you can, the work will never betray you.’ It made me realize that as long as I put care and effort into my work, it would eventually come back to me in some form. But the way it would come back to me was beyond my control, so really the only thing I could do was keep going. That’s how I made it through a really tough time.”
Sincerity cultivates good luck
Nagasawa followed her mother’s advice, giving it everything she had. And those years of working through her doubts eventually did come back to her as something positive, just as Mom predicted.
She recalls a seasoned actor once telling her that eighty percent of an actor’s career is luck. Nagasawa agrees, but at the same time, she believes luck is something a person can cultivate.
“I think it comes down to how much sincerity you can bring to the job in front of you. And being honest with the people creating alongside you. That’s equally important. When you do that, I feel like the scale of your luck, and your connections with other people, start to move in a better direction.”
Nagasawa comes across as someone who approaches every project with an unmatched level of sincerity. But, when asked about this mindset, her response was surprisingly straightforward.
“The truth is that I just try as hard as I can on every project. That’s all it is.”
It was a casual remark, but there was a clear sense of resolve behind her words.
Film and theater are, in many ways, team efforts. Directors, actors, and crew all come together, each bringing their own expertise to realize a single vision. That, Nagasawa says, is one of the great joys of a collaborative art form. For her, acting is not a competition against anyone.
“For me, the goal is to give audiences something one of a kind, something they'll enjoy and keep loving for years to come.”
Entertainment is energy for life
So what does entertainment mean to Nagasawa?
“Every time I experience a new work of art, it feels like I’ve added another drawer to myself. These drawers get deeper too; you can open them later and reveal something new about yourself, and the way you experience the world. I find it fascinating how a film itself can become its own ‘language.’ You can say, ‘It was just like that movie,’ and with one reference, you and another person can share a whole set of images or feelings. I think every single work has its own rich culture.”
The inspiration she felt as a child made her who she is today. That's exactly why she wants to pass that same inspiration on to the next generation, and to young actors who might still struggle with picturing themselves up there on the stage.
“Life is about finding new ways to make your own life more enjoyable. I think entertainment's greatest power is that it gives you that energy, that inspiration, to experience joy in a more creative way. I’ve received so much of that energy over the years. So now, as an actor myself, I hope I can pass on some of that power to people of every generation.”
Actor Masami Nagasawa
Born in Shizuoka Prefecture in 1987, Masami Nagasawa won the Grand Prix at the 5th TOHO Cinderella audition in 2000 and made her acting debut the same year in the film Crossfire. Her first leading role, in Robot Contest, earned her Newcomer of the Year at the 27th Japan Academy Film Prize, and Crying Out Love, in the Center of the World brought her Best Supporting Actress at the 28th. She has since stayed at the forefront of film, television, and theater, becoming the first actor in the history of the Blue Ribbon Awards to win Best Actress two years in a row, for The Confidence Man JP: Princess and MOTHER.
