Interviews / Nov. 14, 2018
Marriage is almost here, in Taiwan. The biggest challenge is to communicate our love with the opposition and society. Recently, there was a film that not only talked about gay marriage but also focused on the diverse families. Bao Bao (Guang Cheng Shie, 2018) tells the friendship stor between a gay and a lesbian couple. They have a dream, to have babies, and for that they need each other and a lot of hard work. Daniel Tsai and Yukihiko Kageyama are the beautiful gay couple in Bao Bao. They together create the a recognizable human comfort found in a loving relationship and their desire to have a family. Check out the interview with these two actors.
Yukihiko Kageyama (left) and Daniel Tsai (right)
source: Shine Time Entertainment
Why did you decide to participate in the film? How did you prepare for your role?
Yukihiko: Every actor should have a queer role in their career and I am glad that I had the chance to play one. I have many queer friends so before we start shooting I asked them about their relationship and family.
Daniel: I am not against playing a gay man. It is a different experience for me. I am a straight man, I did not understand the life of a queer person before. Moreover, I would like the public to take look at the issue and think. That is why I take on the role. After accepting, I watched Lan Yu and Brokeback Mountain and asked my gay friends. I know it is different from a heterosexual relationship, so I did some research.
Ga: The couple has a big fight in the rain, which is the climax of the film. What do you think of this scene?
Yukihiko: As an actor, I was especially excited. It was almost a wrap for the whole movie, so I was very into the role. It was satisfying.
Daniel: It was the key scene in the film. We were not too close in the beginning until this scene. We were able to showcase the family love between two couples. We did not plan to have rain, but it was the right thing that it happened.
Yukihiko Kageyama (left) and Daniel Tsai (right) / Source: Shine Time Entertainment
Jake Choi from Front Cover started to believe sexuality is a wide spectrum after playing a gay man. Have you re-discovered your sexuality before or after this film?
Yukihiko: I started to pay more attention to my appearance.
Daniel: I like to check out guys with nice figure. I look up to them as my role models. However, it is like brothers with my male friends, nothing more than that.
If you liked guys, who would be your type?
Yukihiko: I am the oldest son in the family with a younger brother, so I think I would like mature guys like Hiroshi Abe and Yutaka Takenouchi. The kind of mid-age charm is what I look up to, I want to have their charm!
Daniel: I appreciate a calm and laid back guy like Takeshi Kaneshiro.
Yukihiko Kageyama (left) and Daniel Tsai (right) / Source: GagaTai
Has any gay men ever had a crush on you?
Yukihiko: There was a guy at a gay bar. There are two kinds of bars at Ni-Chome, one is with all gay customers and waiters, another is with gay waiters but mostly straight guests. I used to go there quite often. I feel comfortable talking to gay people. I would discuss my relationships with them and get some advice. They would joke that I would get free drinks if I dated one of them.
Daniel: A gay friend had a crush on me when I was 20. He knew that I was straight, couldn't really get me even though he really wanted to. He said he used to be straight, but realized he was gay after a while so he also thinks that might happens to me too. It's inevitable that there is going to be some physical contact with us, but it would be too much if he touches my private parts, I would have pushed him away with a smile. I think it is fine, we are all friends. He introduced his girlfriends to me, in hope of getting approval from his sisters. Little did he know that one of the girls ended up being my girlfriend. He was holding a grudge for half a year, but we stayed friends after.
Yukihiko Kageyama (left) and Daniel Tsai (right) / Source: GagaTai
What do you think are the differences between the gay scene in Japan and Taiwan?
Yukihiko: No matter gay or lesbian, it is more obvious in terms of appearance in Taiwan. This might be because Japan is more conservative.
Daniel's new film The Story of the Stone is also out. What do you think the difference is between the two roles?
Daniel: Jia Lian is more free-spirited, a bad boy, definitely a player. Tim is a lot more reserved. He hopes he doesn't look very "out".
Do you have some words of encouragement for your queer fans?
Yukihiko: I deeply support marriage equality in both Taiwan and Japan. This is a topic we will be facing in the next 10, 20 years. I hope we can start the conversation with this film Bao Bao.
Daniel: There should be no limits to love. I watched the film Shoplifters, the film follows a family with no biological connection. I do not think families should be by blood, I support LGBT friends should be treated the same. Regardless of gender, we are all the same.
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