Live Music Club in “Pumpkin and Mayonnaise”

The live music club Shimokitazawa Garage in Setagaya Ward is featured in the movie “Pumpkin and Mayonnaise” (2017). In the original manga by Kiriko Nananan, the live music club was called ‘Shimokitazawa.’ ‘The artwork of Kiriko Nananan depicts the finest of urban details which form the backdrop for the characters. The signboards and address plates are drawn with a subtle touch that exudes the endearing features of local neighborhood life. The style of the original work was of crucial importance in guiding me as I was making the movie. However, the area around Shimo-kitazawa Station has greatly changed since the ’90s, when the manga was first published.
The scene in which the protagonist, Tsuchida (Asami Usuda), stumbles upon her former boyfriend, Hagio (Joe Odagiri), is a clear reproduction of the South Exit Gate at Shimo-kitazawa Station in the original work. However, the station has since then been completely renovated and doesn’t look anything like its former self. I therefore decided to have Hagio run into Tsuchida at the live music club she works at, and filmed this scene at the live music club Shimokitazawa Garage (which Asami Usuda actually introduced me to!). Shimokitazawa Garage is on the first basement floor of a building that has office space and a waiting room on the second floor. As I was looking for locations for the movie, I became ecstatic when I saw the building’s rooftop. That was a nice additional feature for the movie. I also felt that the club’s furniture and empty bottles were just so perfectly lying around that nothing needed to be changed. The rooftop, whose access is restricted to the employees, was the perfect spot for Tsuchida and Hagio to quietly slip away for a short while.
The employees began taking measurements even before I mentioned that I’d like to shoot scenes there. It was just clear to me at first sight that this was the ideal place. Unfortunately, it was raining on the day the rooftop scene was supposed to be filmed, so I had to give up on my plan. However, I felt the rooftop of the building truly represented the mood of the town in the original manga.’
{Masanori Tominaga, director of “Pumpkin and Mayonnaise”}