Japanese actor Joe Odagiri is a rebel, something made evident by his grungy, gothic style - long, unkempt hair and beard and black boots sporting 10cm heels.
And that independent streak is also apparent in his willingness to explore interesting film projects outside his home country.
Odagiri has made some surprising acting choices in recent years. Last year he played the adopted son of a gangster in local director Nelson Yu Lik-wai's Plastic City set in Rio de Janeiro, and a man troubled by his dreams in Kim Ki-duk's Dream.
He's now starring in mainland director Tian Zhuangzhuang's latest film, the period costume drama The Warrior and the Wolf. Odagiri plays a Han soldier, Lu Shenkang, who falls in love with a cursed tribeswoman (Maggie Q) and transforms into a wolf.
How were you introduced to The Warrior and the Wolf?
I know the film's costume designer, Emi Wada, and she told me about this story that Tian was going to film and asked if I was interested. I read the script and a month later, I met with the director.