contemporary Japan

Looking for a Story

/ sayuri.kirishima / Lascia un commento
Originally posted on Instagram → [view post]

As the first followers slowly began to arrive, I found myself asking a simple question: what story did I really want to tell?

At that stage, the Fuka project was still in its early days. Images were being published regularly, ideas were taking shape, and new characters were appearing. Yet the overall plot remained uncertain. I had several pieces of a puzzle, but I still didn’t know exactly what the final picture would look like.

Rather than forcing a direction, I decided to leave room for inspiration. Sometimes creative projects need time to grow naturally, and I hoped that sooner or later the right idea would arrive. Here is an example → [view post]

Even without a clear storyline, a few important pillars were already supporting the world of Fuka.

The first was Fuka herself. From the beginning, she was imagined as a young woman with a passion for photography, someone who enjoyed observing the world around her and capturing small moments through her camera. Photography was not simply a hobby; it was the lens through which she experienced life. Here is an example → [view post]

Originally posted on Instagram → [view post]

Originally posted on Instagram → [view post]

The second pillar was the friendship between Fuka, Kyoka, and Sayuri. The three characters quickly became the emotional center of the project. Their different personalities created opportunities for conversations, shared experiences, and future adventures.

Another important element was mystery. I knew that I wanted the story to contain unanswered questions and hidden truths. At the time, however, this idea was still evolving. I could feel that mystery would eventually become an important part of the narrative, but I had not yet discovered its final form.

Below is a small sequence of images related to the mystery: image 1, image 2 and image 3.

The fourth pillar was the connection with contemporary Japan. From the beginning, I wanted Fuka’s world to feel alive and connected to reality. Seasonal events, daily life, cultural traditions, and even sporting events taking place in modern Japan could become part of the narrative, helping to create a world that felt authentic and familiar.

Originally posted on Instagram → [view post]

As I continued exploring different possibilities, another piece was added to the puzzle.

A new character began appearing in some images: Tetsuya.

At first, his role was not fully defined. He was simply another presence within Fuka’s world. Over time, however, Tetsuya would become much more important. His arrival opened the door to new relationships, new emotions, and eventually a romantic dimension that would add another layer to the story.

The destination was still unclear, but the foundations were slowly taking shape.

新しい同僚と出会った日。
人と出会うのは、やっぱり少し特別。
知らない誰かが、少しずつ日常に入ってくるのが好き。

Fuka 🌸

Originally posted on Instagram → [view post]

Giving Fuka a Place to Belong

/ sayuri.kirishima / Lascia un commento

Despite that first small travel sequence, I still had not completely decided what direction Fuka should take.

At the beginning, I experimented with ideas connected to contemporary Japan — moments, events, and atmospheres that could immediately feel linked to the present day.

One of the first inspirations came from topics such as the 2026 Winter Olympics (Here is an example → [view post]). I liked the idea of placing Fuka inside a recognizable modern context, almost as if she were quietly observing the changing mood of Japan through her camera and daily life.

Originally posted on Instagram → [view post]

For a while, I imagined the project moving in that direction:
a blend of urban exploration, current events, and fragments of contemporary Japanese culture.

Here is an example → [view post] and another one → [view post]

But something still felt incomplete.

The images were visually interesting, yet Fuka herself had not fully emerged as a person.

For that reason, I started thinking more carefully about who Fuka actually was.

I wanted her to carry something personal and emotionally real from the very beginning. That is why I decided she would come from Osaka — the same city as the woman I love. It felt natural in a way I cannot completely explain. (Here is an example → [view post]). Little by little, Fuka stopped feeling like a simple fictional character and started becoming connected to memories, emotions, and fragments of real life.

Originally posted on Instagram → [view post]

At the same time, I wanted her to have a profession capable of bringing her close to mystery and forgotten stories. That was how the idea of Fuka working with ancient archives and historical documents was born. An archivist moving through old papers, hidden records, abandoned photographs, and incomplete stories felt perfect for her atmosphere. Not a detective in the traditional sense, but someone quietly standing near mysteries without fully realizing it yet. (Here is an example → [view post])

In this way I was able to set up a sort of daily life for Fuka. (Here is an example → [view post])

In the end, however, I did not want Fuka to be alone. So I introduced the first supporting character: Kyoka, her longtime friend, also originally from Osaka.

Originally posted on Instagram → [view post]

From the beginning, I imagined Kyoka as a recurring presence during Fuka’s quieter moments — the person accompanying her during walks through the city, small trips, cafés, and ordinary afternoons. While Fuka often observes the world with curiosity and silence, Kyoka was created to bring balance: more instinctive, more intuitive, and naturally drawn toward the hidden side of things.

Their relationship was never meant to feel dramatic. What I wanted instead was the feeling of two people who have known each other for years, capable of understanding each other even during moments of silence. And slowly, through these small interactions, the world around Fuka started feeling alive. (Here is an example → [view post]).