Keiko Kitagawa

Keiko Kitagawa

Keiko Kitagawa at the Tokyo International Film Festival in October 2015
Native name 北川 景子
Born (1986-08-22) August 22, 1986
Kobe, Japan
Occupation Actress
Years active 2003–present
Agent Stardust Promotion
Height 1.60 m (5 ft 3 in)
Spouse(s) Daigo (m. 2016)
Website official.stardust.co.jp/keiko

Keiko Kitagawa (北川 景子 Kitagawa Keiko, born August 22, 1986) is a Japanese actress and former model. She was an exclusive model for the Japanese Seventeen magazine from late 2003 to mid-2006, and quit modeling when she left the magazine. Her first acting role was Sailor Mars in the Sailor Moon live action show Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (2003-2004), and after her role in the film Mamiya Kyōdai, she left modeling to concentrate on acting. She has appeared in several films, including The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006) and Handsome Suit (2008), and has played leading roles in the TV Dramas Mop Girl (2007), Homeroom on the Beachside (2008), Buzzer Beat (2009), Lady Saigo no Hanzai Profile (2011),[1] and Akumu-chan (2012).

Biography

Personal life and career

Kitagawa was born on August 22, 1986 in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and has a younger brother.[2] She grew up in Kobe, and lost many friends in the Great Hanshin earthquake in 1995.[3] As a child, she wanted to be a doctor, but by the time she reached high school she was uncertain as to whether she could do that, and not sure what to do in the future.[4] At around this time, she was scouted by a talent agency, and she decided to try the entertainment world. Her parents were initially opposed, but they gave their permission, on two conditions: that she give up if she was making no progress within a year, and that she put her studies first and graduate from university.[5] She has kept the second half of the promise, graduating in commercial science from Meiji University in Tokyo in March 2009.[6]

The one year time limit did not prove to be a problem. Within a week or so of joining an agency, she had been selected as both a model and an actress.[7] She was chosen as Miss Seventeen 2003,[8] which led to her working as a model with the Japanese Seventeen until she graduated from the magazine in September 2006.[9] In the latter part of the run, she had her own regular feature, "Keiko's Beauty Honey".[10]

As an actress, she was given the role of Rei Hino in the live action television series of Sailor Moon, which began her acting career. Her first significant film role was in Mamiya Kyōdai, and as result of the influence of the director, Yoshimitsu Morita, she decided to concentrate on acting rather than modeling.[7] She initially concentrated on films, including the leading roles in Cherry Pie and Dear Friends.[10] In late 2007, she had her first leading role in a TV drama, in the late-night drama Mop Girl.[10] In 2008, she was given the role of the heroine in Homeroom on the Beachside, Fuji Television's Monday 9pm drama for the summer season. As this is the headline drama slot for a major network, it represented a major step forward for her career.[7]

She moved to Tokyo when she started working as an actress and model, and has lived there since. She traveled to California for the filming of The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, and returned there to study English for a couple of months early in 2006.[11] At this time, she started a blog, which she continued until June 2007; the blog was deleted in July 2007.[12] From May to December 2007, she wrote a column entitled Keytan Hakusho for the Japanese weekly television listings magazine Weekly The Television.[10] ("Kii-tan" was her nickname at elementary school.[13] "Hakusho" means "white paper".) She started a new blog at the end of May 2008, shortly before her role in Homeroom on the Beachside was announced.

She describes herself as a stay-at-home person, and likes watching DVDs, listening to music, and reading books. When asked what she would do if the world was going to end tomorrow, she said "read books".[7] She also likes swimming, particularly backstroke.[3] She has a pet (male) cat, called Jill.[14]

At present, she is managed by Stardust Promotion.[10]

She has appeared in the films Mizu ni Sumu Hana (2006), Mamiya Kyōdai (2006), The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006), Cherry Pie (lead role) (2006), Dear Friends (lead role) (2007), Sono Toki ha Kare ni Yoroshiku (2007), Southbound (2007), Heat Island (2007), Handsome Suit (2008), Orion in Midsummer (2009), I'll Pay (2009), After the Flowers (lead role) (2010), and Matataki (lead role) (2010), and Elevator to the Scaffold (2010).[10]

She appeared in the TV dramas Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (2003-4), Mop Girl (lead role) (2007), Homeroom on the Beachside (2008), Buzzer Beat (2009),[15] and Moon Lovers (2010).[16]

She married Daigo on 11 January 2016.[17]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2006 Mamiya Kyōdai Yumi Honma Supporting role
Mizu ni Sumu Hana Rikka Mizuchi Main role
The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift Reiko Minor role
Cherry Pie Kiyohara Main role
2007 Dear Friends (film) Rina Takahashi Main role
Sono Toki ha Kare ni Yoroshiku Momoka Katsuragi Supporting role
Southbound Youko Uehara Supporting role
Heat Island Nao Supporting role
2008 Handsome Suit Hiroko Hoshino Main role
2009 Orion in Midsummer Shitsuko Arisawa/Izumi Kuramoto Main role
I'll Pay reporter (cameo) Supporting role
2010 After the Flowers Ito Main role
Elevator to the Gallows Mikayo Matsumoto
Matataki Izumi Main role
2011 Paradise Kiss Yukari Hayasaka Main role
2012 Magic Tree House Jack (voice) Main role
2013 Nazotoki wa Dinner no Ato de Hosho Reiko Main role
Roommate Harumi Hagiwara Main role
2014 Judge! Hikari Ota Main role
Dakishimetai Tsukasa Main role
Akumu-chan The Movie Ayami Main role
2015 Ai o Tsumu Hito Satoko Kobayashi Main role
No Yona Mono no Yona Mono Yumi Main role
Hero Chika Asagi Main role
2017 Hamon Yuki
I Want to Eat Your Pancreas Kyōko (present days)

Television

Year Title Network Role Notes
2003 Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon CBS/TBS Sailor Mars/Rei Hino Main role; Tokusatsu drama based on the manga/anime Sailor Moon
2007 Mop Girl TV Asahi Momoko Hasegawa Main role
2008 Taiyo to Umi no Kyoshitsu Fuji TV Enokido Wakaba Main role
2009 Buzzer Beat Fuji TV Riko Shirakawa Main role
2010 Hostess with a Pen MBS/TBS Rie Saito Main role; special drama; based on a true story of Rie Saito
Tsuki no Koibito Fuji TV Ōnuki Yuzuki Main role
2011 Lady: Saigo no Hanzai Profile TBS Kazuki Shōko Main role
Nazotoki wa Dinner no Ato de Fuji TV Reiko Hosho Main role; special drama
Kono Sekai no Katasumi ni NTV Suzu Main role; television movie
2012 Akumu-chan NTV Mutoi Ayami Main role
Mi o Tsukushi Ryoricho TV Asahi Mio Main role
2013 Dokushin Kizoku Fuji TV Haruno Yuki Main role
2014 Mi o Tsukushi Ryoricho 2 TV Asahi Mio Main role
Hero Fuji TV Chika Asagi Main role
2015 Tantei no Tantei Fuji TV Rena Sasaki Main role
2016 Kuroi Junkai TV Asahi Shōko Kasahara Main role; special drama
Ie Uru Onna Nippon TV Machi Sangen'ya Main role
Hippocratic Oath WOWOW Makoto Tsugano Main role

Radio

Books

CD

Awards

References

  1. ↑ "出演者". www.tbs.co.jp. Retrieved 2015-11-19.
  2. ↑ Kitagawa, Keiko (2006-02-26). "初メキシコ". 北川景子のBlog♪Blog♪Blog♪ (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2006-03-20. Retrieved 2007-04-04.
  3. 1 2 Kitagawa, Keiko (2007). 北川景子写真集 Dear Friends (in Japanese). Kadokawa Media House. ISBN 978-4-04-894906-4.
  4. ↑ Kitagawa, Keiko (2006-02-28). "Ms. ティッシュー". 北川景子のBlog♪Blog♪Blog♪ (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2006-03-03. Retrieved 2007-03-19.
  5. ↑ Wakayama, Aya. "Six Elements of Woman". J Nude. Asahi Shimbun. Retrieved 2007-03-19.
  6. ↑ 北川景子、卒業は家族と事務所のおかげ. Daily Sports Online (in Japanese). 2009-03-26. Archived from the original on March 27, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-26.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Hidaka, Ikuko (2008-07-04). "Keiko Kitagawa". Nikkei Entertainment! (in Japanese). Nikkei BP Sha. pp. 20–23.
  8. ↑ "Cast & Staff". Cherry Pie website. Cinemusica. Retrieved 2007-03-21.
  9. ↑ Kitagawa, Keiko (2006-09-15). "ＳＥVＥＮＴＥＥＮ 卒業". 北川景子のBlog♪Blog♪Blog♪ (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2007-06-18. Retrieved 2007-03-19.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Keiko's Blog". Retrieved 2010-03-24.
  11. ↑ Kitagawa, Keiko (2006). Stylish Street Book ハリウッドへ行っちゃった！ (in Japanese). 　SDP. ISBN 4-903620-01-8.
  12. ↑ The blog was the source for a lot of the information in this article, and the links now reference the copy on the Wayback Machine.
  13. ↑ Kitagawa, Keiko (2006-12-13). "Should I cry? Should I die? Or go crazy and then fly-". 北川景子のBlog♪Blog♪Blog♪. Archived from the original on 2007-01-02. Retrieved 2007-05-29.
  14. ↑ Kitagawa, Keiko (2007-10-19). "Keytan Hakusho 19". Weekly the Television (in Japanese). Kadokawa. p. 90.
  15. ↑ "山ピー＆北川景子の明大卒コンビで月９". MSN産経ニュース (in Japanese). 2009-05-22. Retrieved 2009-05-22.
  16. ↑ "キムタク月９は「月の恋人」　篠原、リン・チーリン、北川景子". 中日スポーツ (in Japanese). 2010-03-24. Retrieved 2010-03-24.
  17. ↑ 北川, 景子 (2016-01-11). "ご報告" (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-01-11.
  18. ↑ 第５５回ザテレビジョンドラマアカデミー賞〜受賞者メッセージ〜. Weekly the Television (in Japanese). Kadokawa. 2008-03-07. p. 31.
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