NHK has confirmed that singer-songwriter Tomohiro Hata will provide the theme song for the upcoming live-action adaptation of Ao no Hana, Utsuwa no Mori. The track, titled "Fragments," will accompany the series when it debuts on the network's "Yorudora" programming block on October 26. Alongside the musical announcement, the network released a new key visual highlighting the show's aesthetic.
The series centers on Aoko, a ceramics painter living in the pottery-renowned town of Hasami in Nagasaki prefecture, and her burgeoning romance with a visitor named Tatsuki. The production stars former SKE48 and Nogizaka46 member Rena Matsui as Aoko, with Hayate Ichinose, known for his role in Kishiryū Sentai Ryusoulger, portraying Tatsuki.
This adaptation draws from the original manga by Yūki Kodama, which concluded its run in Shogakukan's Flowers magazine in 2022. Kodama is perhaps best known for her celebrated work Kids on the Slope, which previously saw both an anime adaptation on the Noitamina block and a live-action film. While Ao no Hana, Utsuwa no Mori explores a distinct setting in the world of traditional ceramics, it continues the author's history of character-driven narratives adapted for the screen.
Why it matters: With the series set to premiere in late October, the reveal of the theme song and key visual completes the primary promotional rollout for the project. It remains to be seen how the production will translate the specific atmosphere of Hasami's pottery culture to the screen, a hallmark of Kodama's detailed source material.
