Juzo Itami's Prophecy from 30 Years Ago: Reading the Lecture Materials for 'Supermarket Woman' Today

I previously wrote on note about how, during my time as an unemployed person, I visited Matsuyama and went to the Itami Juzo Museum, and how that trip became the catalyst for a fresh start in my life.

Then, I unexpectedly received materials (7 pages) from author Tomoko Saotome, who had read that piece.

These were lecture materials for the retail industry given by director Juzo Itami in August 1996, after the release of his film 'Supermarket Woman.' Ms. Saotome was the person who served as the interviewer for that lecture.

This was incredibly interesting.

Itami talks about supermarkets. But at the same time, he also talks about movie theaters. He talks about Japanese cinema. He also discusses retail, customer-centricity, systematization, private brands (PB), and the insularity of Japanese business.

Moreover, some of his words, when read from the perspective of nearly 30 years later, seem surprisingly prophetic. It might even be fair to call them predictions.

Multiplexes really did change movie theaters. PBs have become the stars of retail. Food transparency has become institutionalized. And we have entered an era where every industry is asked, 'Are you really looking at the customer?'

So, what was Itami saying 30 years ago?

I would like to compare his words with the present by quoting some of them.

Juzo Itami was a person who deciphered 'structures'

When people think of Itami, they have the impression of a satirist, an observer, and a man of humor.

Of course, that is not wrong. But after reading these lecture materials, I realized something anew.

I think Itami was a person who deciphered structures.

If it's a supermarket, he doesn't just look at the sales floor. He looks at procurement, products, labeling, pricing, employees, customers, competition, and industry customs. He sees the whole thing as a single structure.

If it's a movie theater, he doesn't just look at the screen. He looks at the exhibition, seating, service, access, ease of choosing films, and even includes the perspective of 'what is it like for the customer?'

The interesting thing about Itami is that he doesn't just criticize that structure; he finds it amusing.

Industries have strengths. They have wisdom that has lasted a long time. They have ingenuity that only professionals understand. But at the same time, they also have weaknesses. Internal logic, deceptions invisible to customers, unchanging customs, and a dullness that refuses to listen to outside voices.

I think Itami was looking at both those strengths and weaknesses.

That is why his films do not become sermons. They do not become mere accusations either. Because he depicts the absurdity, resilience, weakness, and even the charm of the people within the structure, it is something you can laugh at.

And above all, the perspective is interesting.

Making a movie about a funeral. Making a movie about a tax audit. Making a movie about a supermarket. Juzo Itami turns subjects that would normally be considered "unfilmable" into movies.

Why does that seem so innovative?

It is not because the subjects are eccentric. It is because his reading of the structure is sharp.

He shows things we are used to seeing from a completely different angle. He presents them as worlds we thought we knew but didn't. That is where the novelty of Itami's films lies.

In the lecture materials, Itami speaks about screenplays as follows:

This statement is also very clear when read today.

Itami was a person who designed films. What to show. Who to have speak. In what order to make the audience understand. Where to make them laugh, where to make them angry, and where to make them feel convinced.

Within that blueprint, the structure of the industry was incorporated.

That is why 'Supermarket Woman' is not just a supermarket reconstruction comedy. It was a film that made the behind-the-scenes of retail, which is difficult for customers to see, visible to the audience.

Prophecy No. 1: Multiplexes really did change movie theaters

What was particularly interesting in the lecture materials was how the conversation shifts quite naturally from supermarkets to movie theaters.

Tomoko Saotome asks if cinema complexes are similar to supermarkets. Itami then replies as follows:

He further states:

I believe that what Itami was looking at here was not simply a new form of movie theater.

He viewed multiplexes, much like supermarkets, as a service industry built on customer-centricity, convenience, product variety, and systematization.

Back in 1996, Japanese movie theaters had not yet become as multiplex-oriented as they are today. It was an era when local cinemas, single-screen theaters, and old exhibition systems still remained.

Into that environment came multiplexes, featuring multiple screens, connections to parking lots and commercial facilities, flexible showtimes, and comfortable seating.

Looking at the current figures, I think it is safe to say that this prediction has been almost entirely validated. In 1996, the number of screens in Japan was 1,828. By 2025, that number has grown to 3,697. Moreover, 3,305 of those are multiplex screens.

Movie theaters have become almost entirely the era of the multiplex.

Today, online reservations, seat selection, membership apps, loyalty points, food services, sound systems, premium seating, and granular showtime scheduling have become the norm.

Movie theaters are no longer just places to screen films; they have become places to design the cinematic experience. What Itami was looking at was not just the upgrading of theater facilities. I believe it was the shift in the very philosophy of movie theaters from industry-centric to customer-centric.

Prophecy No. 2: A Sense of Crisis for Japanese Cinema

On the other hand, his view on Japanese cinema was quite severe.

In the lecture materials, Itami says the following:

Those are very strong words.

Of course, from today's perspective, one cannot simply say that Japanese cinema is 'bleak.' In terms of box office performance, Japanese films actually have a significant presence. Looking at the 2025 box office revenue, the share of Japanese films has reached 75.6%.

However, what Itami was taking issue with was not simply the sales of Japanese films.

What he was concerned about was whether the creators were looking at the audience.

He also said this:

This, too, is scathing.

However, reading these words now, they do not look like mere criticism of Japanese cinema. Rather, they sound like a question directed at every industry.

Are the creators looking at the customers? Are they operating solely on the internal logic of the industry? Are they forcing their own convenience onto the audience and consumers?

Itami-san viewed film not just as art, but within the context of its relationship with the audience.

Viewing film as a business does not mean thinking only about making money. It means not forgetting that there is another party involved.

This question strikes not only at movie theaters but also at streaming services, television, publishing, and the media.

Who are you creating for?

Prophecy No. 3: Private Brands have become the protagonists of retail

At the beginning of the lecture materials, Itami-san talks about the reaction of the supermarket industry after the release of 'Supermarket Woman'.

Within that, there is an interesting statement regarding private brands.

Touching upon a newspaper advertisement immediately after the release, he introduces that Isao Nakauchi of Daiei called himself the 'PB Great Demon King'.

And he says that this was 'perhaps one of the secondary effects of the film'.

This is quite interesting to read now.

In 1996, when 'Supermarket Woman' was released, I don't think the term 'PB' had permeated the general public as much as it has now. Even if private brands were an important theme within the retail industry, for consumers, they were likely still perceived as just 'cheap alternatives'.

However, Itami-san was reacting to that.

Moreover, I think he saw PB not just as a matter of products, but as an issue of leadership in the supermarket business format.

If you only stock and display national brand products, retail is close to being a mere provider of shelf space. But having a PB means that retailers plan the products themselves, decide the quality, set the prices, and nurture them on the sales floor.

In other words, PB is also a weapon for retailers to gain leadership over manufacturers.

Looking at the current situation, this change is clear.

For example, Seven Premium started with 49 items in 2007 and exceeded 1.5 trillion yen in annual sales in fiscal year 2024. Private brands are no longer supporting roles; they are the retail brand itself.

The term 'PB Great Demon King' might have been a slightly joking industry reaction at the time.

However, looking back from nearly 30 years later, private brands have truly become the protagonists of retail.

A supermarket is not just a place to line up products. It is a place to observe what customers are looking for, create products, set prices, and design how to sell them.

In other words, a supermarket is not only a distribution business but also an information industry and a product development industry.

It seems that 'Supermarket Woman' incorporated this shift in retail leadership into the film at a very early stage.

Prophecy No. 4: Food transparency has become a system

In the world of the supermarket depicted in 'Supermarket Woman,' there are deceptions invisible to the customer.

How to handle old products. How to handle labeling. How to maintain hygiene. What happens behind the sales floor. Itami-san depicted these issues not as heavy accusations, but as humorous scenes.

However, looking back from 30 years later, this was a very important theme.

The food labeling system was subsequently developed. The new food labeling system was fully implemented in 2020, and in terms of food hygiene, as of 2021, all food business operators are in principle required to implement hygiene management in accordance with HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point).

HACCP is a food hygiene concept that identifies in advance which processes are prone to risks and manages and records particularly important processes. In other words, it is a mechanism that makes food safety visible through procedures and records, rather than leaving it solely to the 'intuition of the staff on-site.'

Just because a system has been created does not mean that all problems will disappear.

However, at least the world surrounding food has moved in a direction where 'it cannot be helped because the customer cannot see it' is no longer an acceptable excuse.

To label. To record. To be able to explain. To manage according to rules.

What Itami-san turned into humor in the film eventually became a matter of compliance.

I think this is also because he saw the structure, rather than him predicting the future.

There is room for deception in places invisible to the customer. The eyes of the consumer enter there, the system enters there, and transparency becomes required.

I believe Itami-san grasped that flow as the subject matter for his film.

Why did he make a movie about a supermarket?

So, why did you choose a supermarket as the subject of a film?

Toward the end of the lecture, Ms. Saotome asks, "Why did you decide to make a film about a supermarket, which is such a plain, ordinary, and everyday business found everywhere?"

To this, Itami replies as follows.

I believe this is the core of these lecture materials.

He did not choose the supermarket as a plain subject. Rather, he saw in it the potential to change Japanese business.

Supermarkets are customer-oriented, stand on the principles of competition, are systematized, are manualized, and anyone can participate if they receive training.

This is not merely praise for the retail industry. I believe he saw the supermarket as something that would break through a closed industry.

Here, too, lies the interesting perspective characteristic of Itami.

Supermarkets are familiar to everyone. They are so everyday that, for that very reason, they are usually thought to be poor subjects for a film.

However, Itami saw a structure within them.

He saw the supermarket not as a place to sell goods, but as a place where changes in society manifest.

That is why 'Supermarket Woman', while being a film about a supermarket, became more than just a film about a supermarket.

Did Japanese business look at the customers outside?

There is an even more important statement toward the end of the lecture materials.

Itami speaks about Japanese business as follows.

This is a statement with quite a significant scope.

Even though he was supposed to be talking about supermarkets, before you know it, he is talking about Japanese business as a whole. That is where Juzo Itami's brilliance lies.

While depicting individual industries, he was looking at the structure of Japanese society that lay beneath them.

Within every industry, there is its own logic. The film industry has its logic, retail has its logic, medicine has its logic, and the funeral business has its logic. There is expertise there, too. And there is history.

However, when that logic becomes too strong, the existence of the customers and consumers on the outside disappears.

Itami was sensitive to that state of affairs. Furthermore, he asks this question:

The word “lawlessness” is strong.

However, I understand Itami's anger well. Continuing to do business based solely on industry customs without listening to the needs of the customer—isn't the fact that this has been tolerated for so long strange in itself?

I believe 'Supermarket Woman' was a work that posed that question in the form of an entertainment film.

A future that exceeded Juzo Itami's predictions

Of course, it is not as if Itami foresaw everything.

Even if he saw the change brought by multiplexes, he surely could not have imagined the era of streaming that would follow.

Nowadays, the distribution of films is not completed solely within movie theaters. Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, U-NEXT, Disney+. Films and video works are being watched in massive quantities outside of theaters as well.

The domestic video streaming market is estimated to have grown to a scale of 674 billion yen in 2025.

If multiplexes changed movie theaters, then streaming changed the video experience itself from outside the movie theater.

If Itami were alive today, how would he view the era of streaming?

The Movie Theater Woman? The Streaming Woman? Or perhaps, the Algorithm Woman?

He probably would have found the quirks of the industry there as well. Rankings, recommendations, viewing data, exclusive streaming, subscriptions, and changes in how works are created. There is plenty of material that could be turned into a film.

There is one more thing that is concerning when viewed from the present.

There is a quite optimistic side to Itami-san's view of supermarkets. He describes the supermarket as a place that is becoming educated, systematized, and customer-oriented.

However, the current retail scene is not all bright stories. There are labor shortages, logistics costs, wage increases, price pass-throughs, the burden of prepared foods and fresh produce, customer harassment, and the aging of local communities.

Rationalization and systematization have progressed, but the front lines supporting those systems are also under great strain.

I believe that if Itami-san were alive today, he certainly would not have overlooked this.

Itami-san was not a person who only looked at the strength of a structure. He was also someone who looked at its weaknesses. I am sure he would have depicted its distortions and creaks with a sharp eye, while perhaps finding them interesting as well.

The significance of verifying a 30-year-old prophecy

Of course, Itami-san was not a prophet.

He did not mystically predict the future. Rather, I think he persistently observed the industry right in front of him. Because his observations were deep, he was able to see where that industry was heading a little earlier than others.

Perhaps that is what prophecy actually is.

It is not the power to see the future, but the power to see the present clearly.

For those who see the present clearly, the future becomes visible just a little bit earlier.

While reading the lecture materials sent to me by Saotome-san this time, I felt a strange sensation many times.

Although these are materials from 1996, the awareness of issues written there is still connected to our lives and industries today.

The rise of multiplexes. The expansion of private brands. Customer-centricity. Food transparency. The insularity of the industry. Changes in the film industry.

Just as Itami-san's remarks have not aged, I believe his films have not aged either.

The surface of society has changed. Supermarkets and movie theaters are quite different from what they were 30 years ago. However, Itami-san's gaze—which looks at the structure of the industry, its internal logic, the relationship with customers, and what changes versus what remains the same—is still valid today.

The reason Juzo Itami's films are still interesting today is not simply because they are nostalgic.

It is because his perspective on reading structures is still alive.

A person who finds the world interesting

When I visited the Itami Juzo Museum during my time of unemployment, that was probably what encouraged me.

Juzo Itami was a man who found the world fascinating.

Cooking, language, film, business, institutions, human vanity, and the strange customs of various industries—he found it all fascinating. He didn't look at the world with cynicism; instead, he got close, observed carefully, grasped how things worked, and turned it all into humor.

I think that attitude was significant during a period when I had lost my job and felt as though my life had come to a bit of a standstill.

The world is still worth looking at. It is worth finding fascinating. It is worth writing about.

He made me think that.

Juzo Itami is not just a director of the past.

He is an author still well worth reading today, whether to think about modern retail, movie theaters, the film industry in the age of streaming, or how closed industries can be opened up.

'Supermarket Woman' may not have been a movie about a supermarket.

It was a movie about an industry being opened up by its customers.

The lecture materials from 30 years ago teach us that all over again today.

Reference Materials

・'August 1996 Top Management Seminar (Director Juzo Itami, Tomoko Saotome)' materials
・Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, Inc. 'Japanese Film Industry Statistics' and 'Number of Screens Nationwide'
・Seven & i Holdings Co., Ltd. 'Seven Premium' announcement materials
・Consumer Affairs Agency 'On the Full Enforcement of the New Food Labeling System'
・Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare 'On the Institutionalization of Hygiene Management in Accordance with HACCP'
・GEM Partners 'Video-on-Demand (VOD) Market Size Estimates'