First Love

Behind the Scenes of Netflix’s "First Love" (2022): A Star-Studded Japanese Romance Rekindled

Netflix’s First Love (2022) brought together two of Japan’s most magnetic stars, Hikari Mitsushima and Takeru Satoh, for a sweeping romance that spans decades. latestnetflix.com's view is that while the series itself is a fictional tale of lost love and memory, the making-of footage and promotional materials offer a rare glimpse into the chemistry—and challenges—behind the production.

A Reunion of Talent

Mitsushima and Satoh, both household names in Japan, anchor the series as Yae and Harumichi, childhood sweethearts separated by time and circumstance. Their on-screen reunion after years apart is a central emotional beat, and the actors’ real-life rapport appears to have translated seamlessly to the screen. Behind-the-scenes clips from Netflix’s making-of featurette show the pair sharing playful banter between takes, with Mitsushima joking about Satoh’s "serious actor face" and Satoh teasing her about her "perfectionism." Director Yuri Kanchiku, who helmed the project alongside an uncredited team, reportedly encouraged this lighthearted dynamic to keep the set energized during long shoots.

The supporting cast—including Rikako Yagi, Taisei Kido, and Kaho—also drew attention for their performances, though their off-screen interactions remain largely undocumented. One standout moment in the production featurette captures the ensemble filming a pivotal scene in a snowy Hokkaido landscape, with the actors bundled in winter gear between takes, laughing as they stomp warmth back into their feet.

The Amnesia Angle: A Creative Challenge

One of the series’ most talked-about plot devices is Yae’s amnesia, which erases her memories of Harumichi for years. Sources suggest this narrative choice wasn’t just a storytelling gimmick but a logistical hurdle. Mitsushima revealed in a snippet from the making-of that she had to "relearn" her character’s emotional arc for each "memory state," requiring her to film scenes out of chronological order. The actress described it as "like playing three different people at once," with subtle shifts in posture, speech, and even eye contact to reflect Yae’s fragmented psyche.

Satoh, meanwhile, had to navigate the opposite challenge: portraying Harumichi’s unwavering devotion despite Yae’s forgetfulness. In a teaser clip , he hints at the difficulty of balancing "quiet longing" with "restrained frustration," a duality that became a cornerstone of his performance. The chemistry between the leads was so convincing that some viewers mistook the series for a real-life love story, a misconception the cast has gently debunked in interviews .

Production Secrets and Rumors

While Netflix has kept most behind-the-scenes details under wraps, a few tidbits have emerged:

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYmQHMC8NII

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkOvVlLPBpA

• Filming Locations: The series was shot across Japan, with key scenes set in Tokyo and Hokkaido. The snowy landscapes in the trailers were filmed during winter, forcing the crew to work in subzero temperatures—a challenge Kanchiku later called "brutal but beautiful" .

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYfJ0Az6yeg

• Musical Motifs: The soundtrack, though not widely discussed, features a recurring piano theme that mirrors the characters’ emotional highs and lows. A review clip praises the score for "elevating the melodrama without veering into schmaltz," though no composer has been officially credited.
• Unconfirmed Reshoots: Rumors swirled about last-minute script changes, particularly for the finale, but neither Netflix nor the cast has confirmed whether additional scenes were filmed. The ambiguous ending, which left some viewers divided, may or may not have been the original vision .

The Verdict: A Labor of Love?

Despite the hype, First Love (2022) has flown somewhat under the radar compared to other Netflix Japan originals. Critics have praised the leads’ performances , but the series hasn’t generated the same buzz as, say, Alice in Borderland or Terrace House. Still, the making-of footage suggests it was a passion project for the cast, particularly Mitsushima and Satoh, who have both expressed admiration for the source material (a loose adaptation of Utada Hikaru’s iconic songs, though the connection isn’t explicitly stated in the series).

For fans of Japanese romance dramas, First Love delivers exactly what it promises: a visually lush, emotionally charged story about love’s persistence. The behind-the-scenes glimpses only deepen the intrigue—proving that sometimes, the real magic happens when the cameras stop rolling.