Japanese filmmaker Fukada casts queasy gaze on J-pop idols; new movie shows why pop stars forgo sex and relationships


Director Koji Fukada and cast member Kyoko Saito pose during a photocall for film -- Love On Trial -- presented as part of Cannes Premiere at the 78th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France, May 22, 2025. -- Photo: REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier

CANNES, France (AFP): Exploitative contracts that force young female Japanese pop stars to forego relationships and sex are at the heart of director Koji Fukada's latest film, which has premiered in Cannes.

The 45-year-old director said he was inspired by a news report about a Japanese "idol", as the starlets are known, who was sued by her management agency after breaking a "no dating" clause.

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