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Aya Watanabe

Aya Watanabe

Writer · Born February 18, 1970 (56)

Born
February 18, 1970 (56)
Works as
Writer
Titles
4 on MovieCove · 19 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 39 days to Oct 28Up 48% in 30 days

What are Aya Watanabe's films like?

Across a limited sample of 3 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Society.

Themes

share of theme weight
Bonds
57%
Society
36%
Self
8%
Romantic love3 titles, browse their movies with this themeIsolation2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 3 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 2 · Serious 0 · Dark 1

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 3 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 0

Gentle: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their gentle movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 3 · Charged 0 · Intense 0

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 3 · Shifting 0 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 2 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 0 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 2 · Engaged 1 · Full focus 0

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

A split, not a type: Resolved 2 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings shown from 5 titles

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Warm
2
Melancholic
1
Bittersweet
1
Hopeful
1
Joyful
1
Other
1

How their films linger

Bittersweet2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Aya Watanabe's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 3 of their 4 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Aya Watanabe's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

19 credits, 4 with a MovieCove page.

  • Elpis (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)

    Show 10 episodes · Writer

  • Backlight (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Writer

  • How to be Likable in a Crisis (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Show 5 episodes · Writer

  • Josée(2020)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • Idol (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Producer

  • Wonderwall: The Movie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Screenplay

  • A Stranger in Shanghai (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Writer

  • Carole & Tuesday(2019)

    Show 24 episodes · Writer

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all shows

  • Gassoh (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Screenplay

  • The Long Goodbye (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Show 5 episodes · Screenplay

  • Carnation (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)

    Show 151 episodes · Writer

  • The Town's Children (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)

    Writer

  • Fish of the Fire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)

    Writer

  • The Boat (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)

    Writer

  • A Gentle Breeze in the Village(2007)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • La Maison de Himiko (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Writer

  • Thirty Lies or So (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Screenplay

  • Josee, the Tiger and the Fish(2003)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films

  • All About "All About Lily Chou-Chou" (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    as Narrator

Career shape

A full career of 19 titles from 2002 to 2022.

Biggest box office

Josée (2020)

$1.7M worldwide

Highest rated

Josee, the Tiger and the Fish (2003)

Midcredits 83rd

Most popular right now

Josée (2020)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting1 of 19: 1 only acting, 0 with another roleWriting17 of 19: 17 only writing, 0 with another roleProducing1 of 19: 1 only producing, 0 with another role

By decade

2000s7 · 1 acting · 6 crew2010s6 · crew2020s6 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it.

How do Aya Watanabe's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 80th percentile, the median of all 3; across a limited sample of 3 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 85th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

85thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 3

Approval · how many liked their films

72ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 3

Reach · how many have seen their films

78thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 3

Midcredits score across 4 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up3
  • 50th to 74th1

Shape of the crowd

None of their 4 titles divides audiences: 4 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Crowd Pleaser4

Most loved · writer

Josee, the Tiger and the Fish (2003)

Midcredits 83rd · 68% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 50/100 and the plot and story 52/100 in their films, across 3 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Aya Watanabe work with?

People who share at least 2 of Aya Watanabe's MovieCove titles; Seiko Tanabe shares the most, 2.