The complete lineup for the 2008 New York Asian Film Festival has been announced. Of the 43 movies being screened, 27 come from Japan. Some of the titles were previously mentioned here, but that number has more than doubled with the addition of movies such as Ryo Iwamatsu's "Tamio no Shiawase" ("Then Summer Came"), the live-action "Oneechanbara," and the controversial documentary "Yasukuni."

The festival runs from June 20 to July 6. Nippon Cinema has the full roster with the Japanese movies highlighted.

NHK has announced that its taiga drama for 2010 will be "Ryomaden," a story based on the life of Sakamoto Ryoma. The script is an original by screenwriter Yasushi Fukuda, who currently writes for the Takuya Kimura-starring drama series "CHANGE." No cast members have been announced yet.

Fuji TV announced a few more cast details for "Taiyou to Umi no Kyoushitsu," the drama series that will run in its flagship Monday 9:00pm time slot next season. The show was formally revealed on Wednesday, with Yuji Oda starring as a teacher and a bevy of young stars playing his students.

Fumiyo Kohinata is playing the school's director, while Keiko Toda serves under him as the principal. Other teachers will be played by Norito Yashima (mathematics), Michiko Kichise (English), and Tetsuhiro Ikeda (music).

In addition to the students announced previously (which include Yusuke Yamamoto, Masaki Okada, Kie Kitano, Yuriko Yoshitaka, and Mitsuki Tanimura), the show's website reveals Manami Kurose, Yuichi Nakamura, Aya Omasa, Kento Kaku, and Atsuko Maeda.

The guest voice cast for the animated "Detroit Metal City" was partly revealed on Thursday. The biggest announcement was that popular actress Masami Nagasawa is playing the role of the heroine, Yuri Aikawa. Other notable names on the roster are hip-hop artist K DUB SHINE (as Kiba), actor Riki Takeuchi (as Jack Il Dark), and musician Hideki Kaji (making a cameo in the ending theme).

Kenichi Matsuyama and Rosa Kato, who are both appearing in the live-action film that opens on August 23, will also be participating. In the movie, Matsuyama stars as Johannes Krauser II and Kato plays Yuri Aikawa, but in the animated version they will play actor Makoto Hokazono and actress Hanae Yamano, respectively.

The animated project was first announced months ago. It is being produced by Studio 4°C and will be released on August 8 as a 4-disc DVD box set. However, the first short episode (of 24 total) is already being made available for free on a special Amazon site. The second episode will be sold as a sampler DVD on July 11 for 666 yen.

TV show host Minomonta has improved on his Guinness World Record for "Most hours on live TV in one week." He first set the official record in 2006, when his live airtime was 21 hours and 42 minutes. A scheduling change reduced his screen time, but this year he surpassed his previous achievement with a new record of 22 hours and 15 minutes.

Minomonta was formally presented with his Guinness World Record certificate on Thursday.

The latest issue of FRIDAY reveals that comedian Atsuhiko Nakata has a girlfriend. Nakata, 25, is one half of the popular duo Oriental Radio.

His girlfriend is a 27-year-old who is said to resemble talento Aki Higashihara. A reporter directly approached the couple on Monday as they left Nakata's apartment together, and the comedian openly acknowledged the relationship. They apparently met through work and have been dating for two to three years already.

This is the first time a relationship has been reported for Nakata. His comedy partner, Shingo Fujimori, was romantically linked to actress Juri Ueno in 2006.

Tsuyoshi Domoto is starring in Fuji TV's next Saturday night drama, titled "33-pun Tantei" ("33 Minute Detective"). This is his first lead role in a drama series since "Home Drama" in 2004.

The show's name come from its time slot (Saturday nights at 11:10pm), which runs a total of 33 minutes after commercial time is subtracted. Each episode's mystery is solved within that short time span, but unlike typical detective shows, this comedy features a slow-witted sleuth named Rokuro Kurama (Domoto). While viewers will be able to identify the criminal right away, Domoto's character constantly comes up with incorrect theories, leading him to always accuse the wrong person.

Screenwriter Yuichi Fukada devised the show's concept. He frequently works with Domoto, writing for shows such as "Shin Domoto Kyodai" and "Domoto Tsuyoshi no Shoujiki Shindoi."

"33-pun Tantei" begins airing on August 2.

Free announcer Shio Chino, also known as Chino-pan, revealed on her blog that she became a mother on Thursday, giving birth to twin boys.

Chino has been married since April 2006 to an employee of a securities firm who is also a nephew of Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda.

Aya Ueto has been chosen as the female lead in the Japanese dub of the "Speed Racer" movie. She will provide the voice for Speed's girlfriend Trixie, who is played by Christina Ricci.

Jin Akanishi has already been revealed as the voice of Emile Hirsch's Speed.

The Japanese version will hit theaters on July 5.