Renowned director Mamoru Oshii has put together a new project. He has gathered 15 anime creators, including "Tekkon Kinkreet" director Michael Arias, to work on a series of animated works, each lasting one minute.

The project is titled Ani Kuri 15, with the creators divided into three groups of five. Each group's works will be broadcast on NHK over a four-month period, with the entire project running for a whole year. NHK will begin broadcasting on May 7.

With no sponsors other than NHK, the group has been granted almost complete freedom over the content of the project. Oshii mentioned that the work is the story of "the momentary existence of a mermaid princess, born from the sea of information."

Since last year, NHK has been airing a similar one-minute drama series titled "El Poporazzi ga Yuku!!" which has been popular among youngsters. "Ani Kuri 15" will be the network's second experiment with the format. The creators also hope that if the project goes well, the resulting work can be entered into international anime competitions.

Former Porno Graffiti bassist Tama is collaborating with vocalist Yusuke of HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR.

Last year, both artists were involved in the tribute album for "Death Note: The Last Name." Impressed by Yusuke's voice, Tama asked him to provide guest vocals for his upcoming single, "Honnou." This is Yusuke's first time doing vocals for another artist.

The single goes on sale on May 23. Tama also announced that he will be releasing an album titled "Natural Born" on June 20, followed by a national tour starting on June 28.

15-year-old model Erena Mizusawa (of fashion magazine SEVENTEEN) will make her acting debut in the lead role of "Koisuru Nichiyoubi: Sotsugyou - Haru no Uso." The two-episode drama is part of the third series of BS-i's popular "Koisuru Nichiyoubi" program, also known as "Love on Sunday."

Though the program originally aired on Sundays, it now airs on Saturdays at 11:00pm. Mizusawa's arc begins on the 24th.

Naojiro Hayashi, the younger half of music duo Hirakawachi Icchome, made his solo debut on Friday. He attended the preview screening of the movie, "Lemon no Koro," which he sings the theme song for. At the event, he publicly performed the song, titled "hikari," for the first time.

Hayashi also makes his screen debut in "Lemon no Koro," alongside co-stars Nana Eikura and Mitsuki Tanimura. The movie opens in theaters on the 31st, and Hayashi's single goes on sale on the 28th.

Singer-songwriter Mariya Takeuchi will make her first television appearance in almost 26 years when she appears on the new NHK music show, "SONGS" (Wednesdays 11:00pm).

"SONGS" is a 30-minute program geared towards adults in their forties and fifties. Each week will feature a particular artist, and Takeuchi has been chosen for the inaugural episode on April 11.

Takeuchi, who is now 52, married musician and producer Tatsuro Yamashita in 1982, and shortly after that she had a child. Since around that time, she has not appeared on television.

Takeuchi's appearance on "SONGS" will include her new song, "Jinsei no Tobira." It is one of the lead tracks on "Denim," her first original album since 2001. The album goes on sale on May 16.

Popular playwright/director Ai Nagai will see her acclaimed work, "Konnichiwa Kaasan" ("Hello Mother"), adapted into a short drama series on NHK.

The story revolves around a man in his fifties who gets laid off and returns home for the first time in two years, only to discover his mother, now in her seventies, leading a completely different life. She has become lively, is active in the community as a volunteer, and even has a boyfriend. The play (and the drama) examines the lives of these three people as they begin a strange life together in the same house.

The series will star Haruko Kato, Mitsuru Hirata, Keiko Takeshita, and Yasunori Danta. Additional cast members include Eriko Watanabe, Ayumi Ishida, and Kiyoshi Kodama.

NHK will air the 4-episode series in its Saturday 9:00pm time slot. It begins on May 26.

The free weekly magazine L25, which is geared towards office ladies in the Tokyo area, has put together a compilation CD meant to encourage the working woman.

The CD, which goes on sale April 4, features twelve tracks by artists such as Tommy february6, Yumi Matsutoya, and Sadistic Mika Band.

To celebrate the CD's release and the magazine's launch (it debuted last November), L25 is holding a party on March 29, which will include a mini-concert.

A FamilyMart store in Toshima, Tokyo is participating in a joint PR campaign with the upcoming film, "Kiiroi Namida," which stars the members of popular Johnny's group Arashi.

Arashi member Sho Sakurai visited the convenience store on Thursday for a publicity event. The shop will be selling a special menu of four dishes that appear in the movie, including spaghetti napolitan (said to be one of Sakurai's favorite foods). Since the film is set in 1963, the store is aiming to reproduce the flavor of that time.

FamilyMart will start selling the foods on April 3, the day before the release of "Kiiroi Namida."

Actor Ken Kaneko participated in his first role as a model at a fashion show on Thursday. The event was organized by Omotesando Hills, with sponsorship from KDDI. He was joined in a talk session by model Ai Tominaga and makeup artist IKKO.

Kaneko recently returned to show business after a brief career as a fighter. This was his first public appearance since his return, but he made no comment on the subject.

Singer-songwriter Noriyuki Makihara has filed a lawsuit against mangaka Leiji Matsumoto, seeking restitution for the damage caused by Matsumoto's claims of plagiarism.

Last October, Matsumoto accused Makihara of plagiarizing a line from "Galaxy Express 999" for a song he wrote for rap duo CHEMISTRY ("Yakusoku no Basho"). Makihara denied the allegation, but Matsumoto kept insisting for an apology. However, Matsumoto did not take the matter to court.

Now, Makihara has filed a suit demanding Matsumoto to provide evidence of plagiarism. In the case that Matsumoto is unable to, Makihara is seeking 22 million yen in damages caused by the accusation.

The initial oral proceedings are scheduled to begin next week.

Author Saburo Shiroyama died of interstitial pneumonitis at a hospital in Chigasaki, Kanagawa on Thursday morning. He was 79.

Shiroyama was best known for his novels involving business and economics. In 1959, his novel "Sokaiya Kinjo" earned the prestigious Naoki Prize. He won several other awards during his lifetime, including the Eiji Yoshikawa Cultural Prize and the Kan Kikuchi Prize.