Aya Ueto
- Actress
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
Born in Tokyo, Japan in 1985, Aya Ueto received her first break in
August 1997 when, at the age of 11, she won the Special Jury Prize at
the 7th All-Japan Bishoujo Contest. After this initial success, she
tried her hand at both acting and singing, appearing in various minor
TV drama roles, as well as a low budget action movie, and formed a
short-lived pop quartet, "Z-1", with other winners of the Bishoujo
Contest. After her passionate portrayal of a high school student with
Gender Identity Disorder in the 6th series of the long-running
classroom drama Kinpachi sensei, 3-nen B-gumi Kinpachi Sensei (1979), endeared her to the Japanese
nation, she was able to pursue a solo music career with her first
single, "Pureness", released in August 2002. It was this performance
that also convinced cult movie director Ryûhei Kitamura to cast her in the
title role of Azumi (2003). With the film's release date coinciding with the
sale of her debut album "AYAUETO" in the spring of 2003, Aya was set
for super-stardom. Her famous smile has since earned her increasing
numbers of commercial contracts and magazine covers - all important
exposure for any idol - combined with starring roles in a number of
popular television dramas have meant she is rarely out of the limelight
and has cemented her position as one of Japan's top
entertainers.
