Director Masahiro Kobayashi ("Ai no Yokan") is working on a new film called "Haru to no Tabi." The movie stars veteran actor Tatsuya Nakadai (76), who last played a lead role in the 2002 picture "Shiroi Inu to Waltz wo."

The story portrays the final trip of an old man together with his granddaughter. The film is said to be a look at social issues surrounding family and the elderly. In talking about the movie, the ambitious Kobayashi explained that he wanted to do a modern version of a masterpiece like Yasujiro Ozu's "Tokyo Story" or Akira Kurosawa's "Ikiru."

Nakadai plays a former fisherman named Tadao who lives in Hokkaido with his granddaughter Haru (Eri Tokunaga). Haru says she wants to move to Tokyo and work there, so Tadao pays a visit to his estranged brothers, who both think poorly of Tadao. The brothers are played by Hideji Otaki (with Kin Sugai as his wife) and Akira Emoto.

Shooting started earlier this month in areas such as Hokkaido and Miyagi. It is said that there are already offers from overseas distributors, and Kobayashi is aiming to have the film premiere in 2010 at international movie festivals, especially Cannes.

Actor Tsuyoshi Abe (27) surprisingly announced on Monday that he is now married. His wife is Chinese actress Shi Ke (29), whom he met during filming of the 2006 movie "Stand In Love." The pair registered their marriage on Sunday at a Tokyo office.

Abe, who is a quarter-Japanese, was originally born in China but moved to Japan at the age of 9. He is still active as a celebrity in China, where he is known by the name Li Zhendong. In Japan, Abe is perhaps best known for playing one member of the group F4 in the hit television drama "Hana Yori Dango."

Shi Ke will reportedly take a break from acting around the summer to come to Japan.

Hikaru Utada's newest album, "This Is The One," will finally see a CD release in the United States on May 12. To promote and celebrate the release, Utada has teamed up with MySpace Karaoke for a special contest.

Using the MySpace Karaoke service, contestants can submit a recording of themselves singing Utada's "Come Back to Me." Utada herself will select the winner, who will get the opportunity (along with three friends) to hang out with Utada to sing karaoke together.

The contest is running from April 26 to May 11. More information is available at the MySpace Karaoke website.

Miyavi has announced a new world tour, which will include Europe and South America. The European leg of the tour is scheduled to start on September 19 in Moscow and end on October 11 in Barcelona, with a total of 17 shows. Ticket sales begin on April 29.

The European dates will be followed by concerts in South America, though the schedule for those shows has not yet been announced.

More details about the tour are available on Miyavi's MySpace page.