Celebrating 25 Years of Kamiki Ryunosuke

Known as Ryu, Ryuchan, and the newly coined Kamisama, Kamiki Ryunosuke is the Japanese actor to look out for.  Starting his career at 2 years old, he has over 100 projects to his name. At 27, he's already completed 25 years in the industry. He announced the Debut 25th Anniversary Project as a thank you to all the fans who have supported him over the years.  And here are all the celebrations:

The celebrations  officially kicked off in June with the launch of his youtube channel called "RyuTube", a pun on his name. Some uploaded videos include him among other things  playing video games, doing  improvs and and fact checking his wikipedia page.

To commemorate Kamiki Ryunosuke's 25th anniversary debut, the  interview 《250 questions 250 answers》was held in collaboration Modelpress x Amuse Mobile where he answered 250 Questions. some of the answers with translations can be found here.

The book Kamiki  "Omote Kamiki / Ura Kamiki" was released on 25 Sep 2020 .  it will showcase the two sides of Kamisama as an actor, as well as a regular 27 year old man. The limit edition of the book includes a DVD containing interviews of people Kamisama has worked with before as well as an interview of his mother. For those who purchased the book, there was an online talk show  and private story time on 3rd and 4th October in which fans had the opportunity to talk to Kamisama one on one via video call. For a more detailed information on the book, read this or this.

Kamiki Ryunosuke 2021 calendar is the fourth part of the celebrations. Photographed by Ninagawa Mika, the calendar is themed "12 Novels". Each month has Kamisama portraying a different character from a different novel. The novels were picked from  suggestions on twitter where fans and even celebrities tweeted the characters they want to see Kamisama as. The characters "The Life of an Amorous Man" (as Yonosuke), "No Longer Human" (as Oba Yozo), "Mysterious Weather at Yanaka's Retro Camera Store" (as Imamiya Ryuichi) and "Hamlet" (as Ophelia) have been made public while the rest remain a mystery. The calendar is set to be sold on December 25, 2020, to signify the 25 years.

He has also decided to tackle new fields for his 25 year, here are a few other fields he has dabbled in during this year:

He challenged his first radio show "Kamiki Ryunosuke no All Night Nippon 0 (ZERO)" started in back in October. It is a live broadcast on every Sunday starting at 3am JST. This is the first time he has become a radio host. The show is live in Japan at this address.	He has been frequenting many online university festivals. He also appeared in Nakai Masahiro no Kinyoubi no Smiletachi he,  there he discussed his experience working as an actor with Nakai Masahiro, with whom he made his drama debut in "Good News". The video is free to watch here if you're in Japan. Some snippets translated here.

Kamisama once expressed a desired to photograph Satoh Takeru, and that wish manifested itself in the most unconventional way possible. He became the photographer for Satoh Takeru's 2021 official calendar. In This hilarious interview, Satoh-san claims that whatever Kamisama wishes, will somehow come true. The behind the scenes footage of the shooting has been uploaded on Satoh Takeru's official Youtube page.

He also made his directorial debut this year with the MV for the song "I Treasure You" for Amuse's 15 Anniversary Super Handsome Live. An annual year end concert held by Amuse where they perform songs, little skits and musicals to thank their fans for their support through the year. Here is a rendition of Sakurazaka sung beautifully by a younger Kamisama.

These are all the celebrations so far but as fans have pointed out, it feels more like a celebration year than a week or a month. For fans this has truly been a Kamiki Year.

Now that we know how we are celebrating, we should also know who we are celebrating. If you're asking yourself who is Kamiki Ryunosuke and why should I care about his 25th anniversary, then my dear reader, I give you a few more moments of calm sanity before you discover who Kamisama is, and start to frantically look for his old dramas online not caring whether they have been subbed or not. 

Kamiki Ryunosuke is an actor/ voice actor originating from Fujimi City, Saitama Prefecture. He began his career at the tender age of 2 because his mother had been pondering why he was born into this world, and to keep a concrete proof of his existence, she decided to audition him at the Central Group talent agency, an agency specializing in child actors.

This is his first work. A CM for a toybox. He is only 2 years old. Isn’t he adorable? Unlike many child actors, his mother did not push him into this industry. After he made his debut in the drama, his mother told him he could stop. During an interview ages ago, when asked what acting means to him, Chibi Ryu-chan replied that acting to him is everything.	Kamisama grew up in a loving household consisting of his parents, his grandparents, and his older sister. He had a dog and a cat at different points in time. Since he was a sick child, he would have to be constantly be taken care of by his mother and grandmother. Between him and his father, he claims the latter is more childish. his sister has two children. His grandmother passed away this year.

cr:@yaotohme

Kamisama has a very polite disposition. This stems from growing up in a loving household as well as the three Kamiki Family mottos which he follows.: Be charming in character. Listen to an opposite opinion first, even if you are against it. The boughs that bear the most hang the lowest. He is also super hyper and carefree. if you want to see how much just watch Takeru No Plan Drive on youtube. He is an otaku and also a man of many hobbies, he would rather not marry then give up on his hobbies.

Crowned "The Friendship King" of the industry in a recent variety show, Kamisama has many friends and he keeps making new ones. He has a group of friends called Kamiki-gumi, who shoot short films for fun and Kamisama is the director there. Kamisama cannot drink, so when he hangs out with his friends he seriously plays and drinks his banana juice while his friends drink. he has a tendency to call his friends 12 o' clock sharp on their birthday. Everytime there is an earthquake, the people he mails are Yamada Ryosuke and his parents.

If you want to know more about Kamisama, check out these people: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Now that we have some background on him, let's take a look at his portfolio, shall we.

Good News is his debut drama. If you watch it you will see what a natural performer he was from a younger age. After this drama, his mother told him, he could quit acting if he wanted to but he had already fallen in love with acting by than. The drama is being subbed right now.	2001, his innocent, and expressive voice was discovered by Hayao Miyazaki, and he made his debut as voice actor for the movie "Spirited Away". The highest grossing movie in Japan. His cute appearance also inspired many artists to draw characters after him.	In 2003 he starred in Bayside Shakedown 2, which to date is the highest grossing live action movie in Japan. The following year he won his first award for Dad's Backdrop. He worked on a few more award-winning projects and won a few more awards.

From 1999 to 2001, he starred in more than a dozen TV dramas such as “Namida o Fuite " and "Mukodono”, and was touted as a genius.

In 2011, he won his first international award as well as the first international festival nomination for the movie Kokoro no Ito. He learned sign language and the piano for this role. He is immensely popular in SK and China and has quite the fan base there.	In 2015, his first book titled "Kamiki Ryunosuke's Master's Cafe: The Fulfillment of Masters' Dreams" was released. The book version of Kamiki Ryunosuke's popular "Master's Cafe" series in the magazine "AnAn". He also won his second award in SK	In 2017, he starred in the award winning anime "Kimi no Nawa", the highest grossing Japanese movie of all time. He won an award for voicing the main character. He also won multiple awards for his portrayal of Hanyu Torao in Keji Yugami.	From 2018 to 2020, He appeared in multiple awarding projects. He won an award for Sangatsu no Lion. He made his theatrical debut with the stage play "Beautiful: The Woman Who Met with God".  He won an Elan D'or Award for completing 25 years in the industry.

If you are curious about what he is up to now,  check out 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

A few of his works that I would like to recommend:

Tantei Kazoku is a drama about a family of detectives. The drama is the type you have to suspend a bit of disbelief for but if it's your cup of tea, it is hilarious. If nothing else, Kamisama as the Chibi no-nonsense detective is ^^.	Shizumanai Hone is a work I keep going back to even after many years. The plot is simple yet the bonding between the two main leads is so real.	Kaze no Garden, Kamisama plays Gaku, who has an intellectual disability.  He is the titular character who connects everyone. In each episode he explains the flowers and their language. A heartbreaking must watch.

Ruri no Shima Hatsu Koi is a story about young love. It encapsulates the attraction and confusion that preteens start to feel when they become aware of the opposite gender.	In Blackboard, he plays an abused child trying to protect his little sister from going through what he had. A thorny child who has given up all hopes from adults yet still innocent at heart. Just beautiful and heartbreaking.	11 Nin mo Iru! is a simple basic family drama. It's nice to watch. Kamisama's comic timing is so on point. He also reunites with Hirosue Ryoko, his co-star in Tokyo Tower. They have great chemistry, click here.

Gakkou no Kaidan is a drama with innumerable flaws. But his monologues in the drama are empowering, enlightening and just excellent. If you like eccentric characters like Yamaneko, You'll enjoy this. Same goes for his brilliance in Nounai Poison Berry. His line deliveries are legendary.	Forutuna no Hitomi is the full fledged romance that Kamisama wanted to do for awhile. Personally, I think he has better chemistry with older actresses, It is predictable but also gut wrenching. Kamisama, like Seungho-sunbaenim, has this ability to suck you into his characters and get you to care for them even if the script is lacking.	Tetsu no Hone is a psychological thriller. It is truly humbling to see him go toe to toe with some of experienced cast. Though he did prove that in Keiji Yugami by handling his own with Asano Tadanobu. It is a  riveting  psychological drama. This was the second psychological thriller I watched after Henshin, another psychological thriller you should check out.

For more drama information: 1, 2, 3.

These character are merely the tip of the iceberg. Kamisama actively tries to play different roles, and the the perception that he only acts as a psycho will be broken as soon as you see the diversity of his projects. you will discover what a versatile actor he is.

With Kazoku Game being rebroadcasted, his Hontoni Atta Kowai Hanashi (2001) episode remastered and re-released for the 2020 special, it has truly been a Kamisama Year.

We congratulate Kamiki Ryunosuke for his 25th Anniversary and hope he continues to bless us with is performances for many more years to come.

Source: His Wikipedia page.