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Synopsis
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It's 1929 Japan. Nine year old Chiyo and her older sister, daughters of a poor fisherman from Yoroido, a small fishing
village on the coast of the Sea of Japan, are sold to brokers and taken to the ancient Japanese capital of Kyoto — Chiyo
to an okiya (geisha house) and her sister to a brothel. Chiyo, unusual because of her translucent gray eyes, is
expected to train as a geisha to pay off her debts. But one thing stands in her way: the beautiful though treacherous
geisha Hatsumomo (Gong Li). Because of Hatsumomo's conniving and her own attempt at running away, now seen as a bad
investment, Chiyo's forced to stop her geisha training and become a simple maid within the okiya. Sad and depressed
with her life and its direction, a chance encounter with the "Chairman", Iwamura Ken (Ken Watanabe), turns everything
around, filling her with hope and inspiration. Renewed, and with the help of Mahema (Michelle Yeoh), another geisha and
rival of Hatsumomo, Chiyo, now Sayuri (Zhang Ziyi), begins her ultimate rise to become the most successful geisha in
Kyoto's Gion District — all the while desiring to be loved by the man she's always loved.
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Cast & Crew
 Picture Gallery
News
Zhang Ziyi And Michelle Yeoh Featured In V Life Magazine
May 27, 2005
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Zhang Ziyi and friend Michelle Yeoh
(Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,
Memoirs of a Geisha) are featured
in this month's issue of V Life magazine.
Both have short interviews in the issue and discuss Memoirs, their most recent film together. There is a longer article
about Ziyi and the growing success of Chinese films and film industry in general.
Zhang Ziyi on Memoirs of a Geisha in V Life:
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"Working on Memoirs was wonderful because Michelle and I had more time to have conversations. There's still pressure,
but this time it's more about the language barriers. We did hair and makeup in the same trailer every day, so we had many
opportunities to talk and catch up on everything that's been happening since Crouching Tiger. We were like girlfriends,
all of the girls, just talking and laughing all the time."
"Rob (Marshall) was very patient. Everyone had their interpreters on the set - Chinese for me and Gong Li, and Japanese for
Ken (Watanabe) and Koji (Yakusho) - so it was very hectic. If he didn't have enough patience, I can't imagine how this would
have worked. Like Zhang Yimou (Hero),
he's always thinking about his actors and looking out for them, protecting their emotional well-being. I think that is why
anyone who has ever worked with Rob is so appreciative of him."
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Zhang Ziyi and Michelle Yeoh from this month's issue of V Life:
Launched in March 2003 by Variety magazine, an
immediate hit within the entertainment community, V Life chronicles the people and passions of entertainment.
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Memoirs of a Geisha Filming Ends
January 31, 2005
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Memoirs of a Geisha (aka Sayuri)
— a Columbia Pictures / DreamWorks Films /
Spyglass Entertainment feature film adaptation
based on author Arthur Golden's exotic and enthralling
best-selling novel of the same name, directed by Oscar nominated
director Rob Marshall, produced by
multiple Oscar award-winning filmmaker Steven Spielberg
and starring British Academy Award nominee Zhang Ziyi,
Michelle Yeoh,
Gong Li,
Ken Watanabe,
Kaori Momoi,
Youki Kudoh and
Koji Yakusho, among others —
officially ended filming with a press conference this afternoon at the Imperial Hotel Tokyo
in Tokyo, Japan. Final scenes were completed over the weekend in Kyoto, the film's setting.
Beginning second from the left, Rob Marshall (director), Gong Li (Hatsumomo), Kaori Momoi (Mother), Michelle Yeoh (Mameha),
Ken Watanabe (Chairman Iwamura), Koji Yakusho (Nobu), Youki Kudoh (Pumpkin) and Suzuka Ohgo (Chiyo/Young Sayuri); Michelle Yeoh;
and Gong Li at today's press conference:
Screen captions from the broadcast of Fuji TV's showbiz news
program 'FNN Super News'. Cast and crew from the film in attendance; Rob Marshall and Gong Li; Michelle Yeoh and Ken Watanabe;
Koji Yakusho as Nobu; Kaori Momoi as Mother; Youki Kudoh and Suzuka Ohgo:
More screen captions from 'FNN Super News':
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Unfortiunately, in order to keep a prior commitment in Eastern Europe, the film's star, Zhang Ziyi, was not able to attend today's
press conference or after-party. Producer Steven Spielberg was also unable to attend. Both sent video messages to be played
at the press conference.
Memoirs of a Geisha, scheduled for release in Fall 2005, depicts the life of a poor girl from a small Japanese fishing village sold to a geisha
house in Kyoto, Japan during the Great Depression, her ultimate rise to become the most successful geisha in Kyoto's Gion District and her unending
desire to be loved by the man she's always loved. Expected to be a strong Oscar contender, Memoirs of a Geisha will
have its world premier in Japan and will be released internationally in December 2005.
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Links
IMDb/Memoirs of a Geisha
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