Japanese actress Terajima wins best actress award at Berlin film festival

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OSAKA, Feb. 21 Kyodo -
Japanese actress Shinobu Terajima said Sunday she can hardly believe that she
has won the best actress award at the Berlin International Film Festival for
her role in a war movie.
''It was hard for me to believe it,'' said the 37-year-old Terajima, in Osaka
for a theater premiere on Sunday, of her first reaction to the news. ''Now I'm
beginning to feel thrilled by it.''
''Everyone involved in the movie did excellent jobs and I think this award is
like a reward for that,'' she said.
Terajima won the Silver Bear for Best Actress award at the 60th Berlin film
festival on Saturday for her role in director Koji Wakamatsu's ''Caterpillar,''
a film based on the 1929 short story of the same title by Japanese mystery
writer Edogawa Rampo.
The film depicts the contradictions of war by focusing on the relationship
between a woman named Shigeko, played by Terajima, and her husband who returns
from war as an honored and decorated soldier but who has lost his arms and legs
in battle.
''The screenplay electrified me when I first got it, compelling me to want to
do it,'' Terajima said. ''It feels like Mr. Wakamatsu's prayer was answered. It
reflects his wish to send a strong message about war.''
At the award ceremony in Berlin, Wakamatsu read out a message from Terajima in
which she said, ''I am grateful for the award. This will be a lifelong treasure
for me.''
She had already left the German capital and learnt that she had won the award
via the Internet at an Osaka hotel early Sunday morning.
The film will be released in Japan in August.
Terajima became the third Japanese actress to be named best actress at the
Berlin film festival, one of the world's three major film festivals along with
Cannes and Venice.
In 1964, Sachiko Hidari received the award for her role in ''She and He'' and
in 1975 Kinuyo Tanaka was honored for ''Sandakan No. 8.''
The closing film at this year's Berlin film festival was ''Otouto'' (Younger
Brother) directed by Yoji Yamada. Yamada was awarded the Berlinale Camera, a
special honor given to someone to whom the Berlin festival is particularly
grateful, during the gala.
==Kyodo