Japanese boy wins Best Actor award at Cannes

CANNES, France (AFP) - A teenage boy from Japan, Yagira Yuuya, won the Cannes film festival's Best Actor award for his role in the movie "Nobody Knows" by director Hirokazu Koreeda.

The film, which had its world premiere at Cannes before release in Japan in July, is based on a real-life story from 1988 in which four children born of different fathers who never went to school were abandoned by their mother and left to fend for themselves.

When tragedy struck, not a single resident in the building was aware of their existence.

"For 15 years I never stopped thinking about this," Koreeda told AFP in an interview at Cannes. "I wanted to show children surrounded by irresponsible adults. The oldest, who is 12, is the only person in the story to show a sense of responsibility right up until the end. This touched me."

The youngster, who was not at the ceremony as he had to fly home for exams, plays the oldest of the four children, who are aged between four and 12 in the film.

The youngster won ahead of several adults widely expected to scoop the prize -- Australia's Geoffrey Rush (news), the star of "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers", or young Mexican newcomer Gael Garcia Bernal, who plays Ernesto "Che" Guevara in "The Motorcycle Diaries."

Cannes win usurps football dream

(Reported by BBC News)

Teenage actor Yuuya Yagira says his victory at the Cannes Film Festival has persuaded him not to pursue a career as a footballer. Yagira, 14, took the best actor prize for his role in Nobody Knows, about children abandoned by their mother.

"I was previously unable to decide between a soccer player or an actor, but now I am convinced I should work hard as an actor," he said. Yagira missed Saturday's ceremony because he returned home to sit exams.

He landed the part in his first audition, and said he acted in the movie just the way he was told by director Hirokazu Koreeda.

"I am very happy although I wondered if it is OK to be given this big award," he said.

Real-life story

Speaking to journalists in Tokyo, he said he had received messages on his mobile phone from friends congratulating him on his success.

Yagira was picked by a jury led by Pulp Fiction director Quentin Tarantino. The main Palme d'Or prize went to Michael Moore's documentary Fahrenheit 9/11.

He plays the oldest of four children in the film, which is based on a real-life story.

"If adults watch the movie, I want to tell them, 'Don't abandon kids, don't treat them like a toy," he said.

Tokyo film critic Reiko Kubo said Yagira deserved his award. "When I saw the movie, I thought the director had made a very good choice in casting - but his age and inexperience made me doubt if he could win the best actor award," she said. "It turned out the judges have an eye."

Cannes Best Actor Misses Show for Exams

(Reported by the Associated Press)

TOKYO - Yuuya Yagira, winner of the best actor prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival (news - web sites), missed the awards ceremony because he had more pressing business: exams at his junior high school in Tokyo.

The 14-year-old, who won the award for his role in the Japanese film "Nobody Knows," was handed the crystal trophy Wednesday by Hiraokazu Koreeda, the film's director.

Yagira plays the eldest of four siblings who takes charge of the family when their mother leaves. The film opens in Japan in July.

"It's my first trophy or award ever. I couldn't be happier," Yagira told a news conference. "I want to become a fine actor."

Asked where he plans to put his trophy, the teen replied: "Can I take it home?"

In a separate news piece we found this at the teen idols discussion group:

At the post-awards press conference, the director gave his impressions:

"This prize is deserved, because we worked for a year with the children, and I think that you can see their progress in the film during that year . . . I chose Yagira at an audition. What made me choose him was his eyes. Yagira is at middle school and he had to return to Japan to take his exams. I just telephoned him to tell him the good news, and he was very happy. He thinks he failed his exam, but he hopes that with this prize, his teacher might be more understanding."

May 25, 2004,