"Lala Pipo," a novel by prize-winning author Hideo Okuda ("Southbound," "In the Pool"), is being turned into a movie.

The novel's title is based on a mishearing of the phrase "a lot of people." With sex as its central theme, the original novel combined tragedy and comedy in its portrayal of human nature through the lives of several characters. One of them, a scout for the sex industry, will be played by Hiroki Narimiya in the film.

Director Tetsuya Nakashima is handling the script, while Masayuki Miyano is taking on his first feature-length film as director. Filming begins on the 29th, with Nikkatsu and Desperado jointly distributing the movie next spring.