While the coronavirus has made masks part of everyday life in Japan, in the reality depicted by recent movies and television dramas, office workers, young lovers, schoolchildren and others continue to lead lives untroubled by the pandemic.
Even in one hospital drama series that ended in December, the only mask wearers were surgeons. The world portrayed in commercials and adverts is equally devoid of face coverings.
Japanese drama-makers are not alone, of course, in acknowledging the desire of audiences to see actors' facial expressions. Nevertheless, given the omnipresence of masks in public spaces in Japan, the dissonance between the real and screen worlds is particularly striking.