Netflix has dropped a teaser for The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House, a new drama series from Japan. It’s lovely. Check it out.
A joint production between Netflix, Story Inc., and BUN-BUKU Inc., The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House is based on the best-selling and award-winning manga Maiko in Kyoto: From the Maiko House by Aiko Koyama. Writing, directing, showrunning, and executive producing the nine-episode drama series is Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or award winner Hirokazu Kore-eda (Shoplifters).
Set in the geisha district of Kyoto, the series follows the daily life of Kiyo (Nana Mori, Blue, Painful, Fragile), a makanai (person who cooks meals) at a house where maiko (apprentice geishas) live together. After graduating from school, 16-year-old Kiyo leaves her home in Aomori and goes to Kyoto with her friend, Sumire (Natsuki Deguchi, Girl Gun Lady), and dreams of becoming a maiko herself. But she is told that she is not suited to being one, so the heartbroken Kiyo is about to return home when her cooking skills are discovered and she is hired as a makanai. Meanwhile, Sumire, believed to be a once-a-century talent, quickly grows into a beautiful maiko and becomes famous along the streets of the traditional Gion town.
The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House, a Netflix Series, premieres globally on Thursday, January 12, 2023, exclusively on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
Costars include Aju Makita (Pure Japanese) as Ryoko, the teen daughter of the manager of the maiko house; Keiko Matsuzaka (Here Comes the Morning) as Chiyo, the previous manager of the maiko house who still plays a key role in its operation; Ai Hashimoto (35-Year-Old Girl) as Momoko, the most popular geiko (another word for geisha); Mayu Matsuoka (Love Begins When the Money Ends) as Yoshino, a former peer of Momoko who decides to return to the path of the geiko; and Takako Tokiwa (The Lump in My Heart) as Azusa, the manager of the maiko house and Ryoko’s mother.
Recently-announced cast members include Kairi Jo, Momoko Fukuchi, Kotoko Wakayanagi, Kotona Minami, Lily Franky, Yukiya Kitamura, Toshinori Omi, Kanji Furutachi, Keiko Toda, Kayoko Shiraishi, and Arata Iura.
The series is produced by Genki Kawamura (Confessions). Additional directors include Megumi Tsuno (Ten Years Japan), Hiroshi Okuyama (Jesus), and Takuma Sato (Any Crybabies Around?), and additional writers include Mami Sunada, Megumi Tsuno, Hiroshi Okuyama, and Takuma Sato.
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