ODDTAXI director, Baku Kinoshita, and screenwriter, Kazuya Konomoto, come together again for a fascinating original film called The Last Blossom. In a lonely cell, an inmate suffers in the night alone, but his solitude is interrupted when a balsam flower comes to life, ready to discuss with him the life he’s led so far. Bringing to screen another fascinating, human story spoken through the lens of a non-human, director Baku Kinoshita, producer Ryoichiro Matsuo, and producer Hirofumi Ito sat down with Anime Trending to discuss the details behind this special film.
This interview was conducted through an interpreter and has been edited for clarity. Questions by Gracie Qu, James Mizutani, and Melvyn Tan.
Anime Trending: How did the idea for The Last Blossom (Housenka) develop?
Baku Kinoshita: After ODDTAXI, I wanted to work with the writer Kazuya Konomoto again, so that’s where it started. If you think back to episode four of ODDTAXI, you might remember that the narration is actually what moves the story along, and that’s actually very in line with Konomoto’s style — the verbal story progression. That’s why I thought Konomoto would be a great person to work with on The Last Blossom.
What were your reactions and thoughts on the movie participating in Annecy 2025’s Feature Film Competition?
Baku Kinoshita: It’s going to be a simple comment, but I do remember being ecstatic and very happy. I’m not sure if your audience knows, but Annecy is the mecca of the anime world, so being recognized at such a high level, on such an international stage made me very happy.
Ryoichiro Matsuo: From a marketing perspective, participating in the Annecy International Animation Film Festival served as a kind of “reimportation” for this project. As part of that strategy, we submitted the film to Annecy’s Work in Progress program in 2024, aiming to generate buzz both in Japan and internationally. While we hadn’t originally set out to target Annecy specifically, we were incredibly grateful that the film was ultimately nominated for the competition section in 2025 and had its world premiere there.
As an original work with no existing source material, we didn’t have a pre-established fan base. That’s precisely why we wanted to see how audiences would respond on an international stage
Baku Kinoshita on Creating The Last Blossom
The film has been screened for folks at the Annecy Film Competition, but has yet to be widely released. What do you want viewers to keep in mind when they watch the movie?
Baku Kinoshita: There’s actually a lot that I want the viewers to keep an eye out for. But I’d say due to the scale of our movie and the fact that it’s slice-of-life, we worked hard to make sure that the beauty of life could be properly conveyed in this shorter length, and I hope the audience and viewers will appreciate the beauty of living after watching this film.
How soon after ODDTAXI did the team begin working on The Last Blossom since several members of the ODDTAXI team worked on The Last Blossom, such as Konomoto-san, the screenwriter?
Baku Kinoshita: Timing-wise, ODDTAXI was in 2021 and we did ODDTAXI: Into the Woods in early 2022, so we had a six-month break. By the time we hit Fall 2022 and Winter 2022, we entered production on The Last Blossom.
Your previous directorial work, ODDTAXI, was a TV series. What was it like working in a feature film environment for your second directorial project?
Baku Kinoshita: The overall difference between working on a series versus a feature-length film is the number of cuts in a series. In a series, there are a lot more cuts and moments. But as a human being, it’s hard to pay attention to every detail in a series. Meanwhile, for a film, there are fewer cuts, so I can actually pay attention to all the counts and all the beats. It’s at a quantity that I can personally take a deeper look at.
Working as both the director and character designer, how does that make your responsibilities more unique as compared to being just a director or just a character designer?
Baku Kinoshita: I would say that with those combined roles, I see myself as someone who creates a “moving manga.” Obviously, wearing two hats means my responsibilities are a lot more.
In an interview with Variety, you mentioned Martin Scorsese and Takeshi Kitano as two of your directorial influences. Switching to your role as a character designer and illustrator, who are some of your biggest influences?
Baku Kinoshita: It would be Will Sweeney from England. He’s an illustrator.
Also, it would be One Piece by Eichiro Oda.
Ryoichiro Matsuo and Hirofumi Ito on Producing The Last Blossom
Do you have a specific person or type of collaborator as a goal to work with in your creative projects?
Ryoichiro Matsuo: I’ve pretty much produced feature films only, and as a feature film producer, I like to look for the director, meet up with them, and then figure out if there’s anything interesting we can make together. Goal-wise, I don’t have anyone in particular on my radar.
Hirofumi Ito: Since I am a producer on the business side, I don’t have a specific person in mind. My strength is that I have a master’s degree in law. The combination of a law background and a producer makes me one of the few people with that knowledge in the Japanese entertainment industry.
So you are the goal for other people!
For both of you, how did the writing of The Last Blossom stick out to you in comparison to the other projects you’ve worked with?
Ryoichiro Matsuo: I’ve produced a lot of original works, but I would definitely say that The Last Blossom is probably one of the most unpredictable stories out of all of my works. It has the most unpredictable script. For me, for an original work, that is something I look for and consider to be very important.
Hirofumi Ito: For me, it’s how Kinoshita’s storytelling is — it’s the script and the visuals. To have both at star quality, it’s like capturing lightning in a bottle. It’s because that combination for The Last Blossom is so stellar that the movie is as special as it is. That’s what really sticks out.
When it comes to The Last Blossom, are there any significant differences between being a producer for an anime movie in comparison to being a producer for an anime series? Please describe those differences.
Ryoichiro Matsuo: It’s important for me to think about how people see The Last Blossom in this age of streaming. First and foremost, it’s important for people to experience the movie in theaters and to experience the film in a focused environment where it could truly leave them with something in their hearts. That’s how I view a feature versus an anime series.
Hirofumi Ito: My answer might be a bit similar to what Matsuo-san said. When it comes to a feature film, we’re asking our audiences to get on a train or a vehicle, get to the movie theater at a specific time, and then go back. We’re asking our audiences to take time [out of their schedule] versus streaming these days.
On the other hand, the difference between marketing is slight. For the feature film, you use the visual, sound, and promotional aspects to create as much excitement as possible. On the TV side, as you know, there are 12 episodes, and we’re chasing the streaming where we can say, “We need to pump this episode up with promotion!” and things like that. In both cases, promotions are important, so I don’t think the marketing promotion is too different from a production perspective for an anime series or a movie.
In ODDTAXI, the cast are all anthropomorphized animals, and in The Last Blossom, one of the main characters is a talking flower. What do you think it is about non-human characters that make them so good at telling very human stories?
Baku Kinoshita: I feel that Konomoto’s writing just captures the human essence so much. When you have an animal or plant saying it, it actually helps us humans really listen and accentuates the meaning. It’s a combination of great dialogue visuals that reflect the human experience in a way that you [people] don’t expect.
Why the balsam (Housenka) flower? What special meaning does that flower have in comparison to other flowers?
Baku Kinoshita: Touch-me-nots (Housenka) burst open with a sharp pop when you pinch the seed pods behind their flowers. That sudden, snapping sensation—the pachin—is central to the film’s theme and reflects the life of the protagonist, Akutsu.
Is that why the fireworks are such an important theme in the visuals?
Baku Kinoshita: Yes!
In the preview we watched yesterday, the sequence with the fireworks is timed with the music and made us think, “Oh, this has to be important if it’s going to be synced with the music!” What about cero-san’s music and musical style made them the best fit for the film?
Baku Kinoshita: I felt that cero-san’s music is quiet but expressive at the same time. It was just the right music to capture The Last Blossom, especially those mysterious moments and the evening moments as well. That’s why we approached cero-san.
We really liked the music yesterday! Please deliver some final words for the fans who are really excited to see the film.
Baku Kinoshita: I think the music, the visuals, and the dialogue are so wonderful. I hope everyone is really looking forward to The Last Blossom.
Ryoichiro Matsuo: Go see it in theaters! But I hope you will walk into the theater without many expectations, go in like a blank slate, and I’m sure people will come out carrying something in their hearts from this film after watching.
Hirofumi Ito: For a movie that doesn’t have any special moves or battles, I think you will end up walking out of that movie theater and going home with something!
Thank you very much for your time!
