Shoko Nakagawa in short film Nanase Futatabi

Multi-talented idol Shoko Nakagawa (25) is expanding her repertoire even further, taking on her first directorial duties for a short film. The piece is a prologue to Kazuya Konaka's "Nanase Futatabi," which is based on Yasutaka Tsutsui's classic sci-fi novel of the same name.

Nakagawa is known for doing many things, including singing, acting, and drawing manga, but this is her first time directing. She is said to be a big fan of Tsutsui's works, so she was excited to take on the project. The short is about 7 minutes in length, leading up to the story in the feature-length film. Sei Ashina (26) stars in both, playing a young woman with the ability to read minds, who bands together with others possessing similar powers to fight against an organization that is trying to eliminate them.

Filming for the short film took place earlier this month. In an unusual move, the distributor Toei has decided that the prologue will be screened right before the actual movie, so that audiences don't miss out on that part of the story. "Nanase Futatabi" will open in theaters on October 2.

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