Yu Ishizuka, right, and director Tsuyoshi Shoji (Shinya Monma)
For his short film The Fish With One Sleeve, director Tsuyoshi Shoji wanted to cause a stir by casting a trans woman for a trans role.
In Japan, Shoji said many transgender roles are played by cisgender actors who feel comfortable with their gender identity at birth, providing less employment opportunities for transgender actors.
Transgender characters end up being portrayed either comically or tragically in many cases, and they are only shown as people who are different from others in society, the openly bisexual director said.
On the current film scene, trans actors have few opportunities to represent their communities, while they tend to be portrayed with overblown drama.