Yusuke Iseya

Multihyphenate Yusuke Iseya enjoyed a prolific modeling career in his native Japan, before transitioning to narrative feature work, initially as a supporting actor in indigenous arthouse films that occasionally traveled abroad, including (most memorably) director Hirokazu Koreeda's universally-acclaimed spiritual fantasy After-Life (1998), as well as Akihiko Shiota's juvenile delinquency drama Harmful Insect (2001). That exposure led to a successful television career for Iseya on Japanese daytime dramas; in 1998, Iseya shifted gears altogether by traveling to the United States and enrolling in New York University film school, which he reportedly funded with modeling monies; a debut directorial effort soon followed, the 2002 Kakuto, as did additional on-camera roles in Japanese films including Honey and Clover (2006) and Sea Without Exit (2006), as well as a voice assignment in the anime feature Tekkonkinkreet (2007). In 2008, Iseya took his first steps toward projects originating outside of Japan with a prominent role as a visually-impaired man in Fernando Mereilles's thriller Blindness, starring Julianne Moore and Mark Ruffalo - a Canadian-Brazilian-Japanese co-production.

~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide