“Father of the Galactic Railroad” Director Narushima Izuru on Bringing Miyazawa Kenji’s Family Story to the Big Screen

Scene from Ginga tetsudō no chichi (Father of the Galactic Railroad). Miyazawa, played by Suda Masaki, intently writes stories to read to his ill sister, Toshi. (© 2022 Ginga tetsudō no chichi Production Committee)

Masajirō (Played by Yakusho Kōji) returns from a business trip on learning of his first child’s birth. His own father, Kisuke (played by Tanaka Min), and wife Ichi (Sakai Maki) share in the joy. (© 2022 Ginga tetsudō no chichi Production Committee)

World-class dancer Tanaka Min plays Kenji’s grandfather, Kisuke. (© 2022 Ginga tetsudō no chichi Production Committee)

Kenji, whose ideas were hard for others to grasp, often clashed with Masajirō. (© 2022 Ginga tetsudō no chichi Production Committee)

Kenji reading his work to his sister Toshi (Mori Nana) in her hospital bed. The scene helps audiences rediscover the power of Kenji’s works when read aloud. (© 2022 Ginga tetsudō no chichi Production Committee)

Kenji, who wrote Sero hiki no Gōshu (Gorsch the Cellist), also played the cello. He loved music and was also Hanamaki’s greatest record collector. (© 2022 Ginga tetsudō no chichi Production Committee)

This is star Yakusho Kōji’s first role alongside Suda Masaki. (© 2022 Ginga tetsudō no chichi Production Committee)