Escaping from membership as a Yakuza can be quite difficult. Yet, some have found a way to move beyond membership is these gangs through acting. An acting agency has been set up which employees only former members of the Yakuza.
Ryuichi Baba's face contorts in pain as he falls down dead.
But instead of hitting the cold concrete floor, he thuds onto a soft mattress.
Moments later, Baba springs back to life and makes a thumbs up at the cheering crowd. His stylized death scene just wrapped up a shoot for "Crazy Fighter," a low-fi action film starring martial arts fighters and ex-gangsters.
Baba spent 20 years with the mafia, only escaping his life of crime six years ago. Now a member of the Takakura-gumi acting agency, he's part of a crew of around 60 reformed ex-gangsters who find purpose and retribution in playing their former selves.
And their efforts are slowly gaining traction in a country where gangsters are still feared and stigmatized.
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