Akihiko Shiota
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese film director
and screenwriter
.
, Shiota attended Rikkyō University
, where he began making 8mm films in the tradition of other Rikkyō students like Kiyoshi Kurosawa
. His independently made films were recognized at the Pia Film Festival and he began writing film criticism
and working as an assistant for Kurosawa and other filmmakers. He also studied screenwriting under Atsushi Yamatoya, who wrote scenarios for Seijun Suzuki
, and worked as the cinematographer
for films by Takayoshi Yamaguchi.
His first two films as a director, Moonlight Whispers
and Don't Look Back
, were both released in 1999 and earned Shiota the Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award
. Don't Look Back also won the Jury Prize at the Three Continents Festival
. Harmful Insect
(2002) screened at the Venice Film Festival
and earned two more awards at the Three Continents Festival. His first major commercial film, Yomigaeri
, was the fourth biggest grossing Japanese film of 2003, but his next work, Canary, about Aum Shinrikyo
, returned him to the world of independent film. Dororo
, based on a manga
by Osamu Tezuka
, was the eighth top-grossing Japanese film of 2007.
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
and screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
.
Career
Born in Kyoto PrefectureKyoto Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of the island of Honshu. The capital is the city of Kyoto.- History :Until the Meiji Restoration, the area of Kyoto prefecture was known as Yamashiro....
, Shiota attended Rikkyō University
Rikkyo University
, also known as Saint Paul's University, is a private university, based on Christian precepts, in Ikebukuro, Tokyo. There is a suburban campus in Niiza in nearby Saitama.It is known for its liberal climate symbolized by the motto -History:...
, where he began making 8mm films in the tradition of other Rikkyō students like Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Kiyoshi Kurosawa
is a Japanese filmmaker. He is best known for his many contributions to the Japanese horror genre.-Biography:Born in Kobe on July 19, 1955, Kiyoshi Kurosawa is not related to director Akira Kurosawa...
. His independently made films were recognized at the Pia Film Festival and he began writing film criticism
Film criticism
Film criticism is the analysis and evaluation of films, individually and collectively. In general, this can be divided into journalistic criticism that appears regularly in newspapers, and other popular, mass-media outlets and academic criticism by film scholars that is informed by film theory and...
and working as an assistant for Kurosawa and other filmmakers. He also studied screenwriting under Atsushi Yamatoya, who wrote scenarios for Seijun Suzuki
Seijun Suzuki
, born Seitaro Suzuki on May 24, 1923, is a Japanese filmmaker, actor, and screenwriter. His films are renowned by film enthusiasts worldwide for their jarring visual style, irreverent humour, nihilistic cool and entertainment-over-logic sensibility...
, and worked as the cinematographer
Cinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
for films by Takayoshi Yamaguchi.
His first two films as a director, Moonlight Whispers
Moonlight Whispers
is a 1999 Japanese film directed by Akihiko Shiota. The film is based on the manga Gekko no sasayaki.Boy meets girl , they fall in love...
and Don't Look Back
Don't Look Back (1999 film)
is a 1999 Japanese film directed by Akihiko Shiota....
, were both released in 1999 and earned Shiota the Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award
Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award
The is given annually by the Directors Guild of Japan to a new director of a film released that year who is considered the most "suitable" for the award. The winner is selected by a committee formed of DGJ members. All formats—feature film, documentary, television, video, etc.—are eligible for...
. Don't Look Back also won the Jury Prize at the Three Continents Festival
Three Continents Festival
The Festival of the Three Continents is an annual film festival held since 1979 in Nantes, France, and is devoted to the cinemas of Asia, and Africa and Latin America. It was founded by Philippe and Alain Jalladeau. The top award in the festival's competition is the balloon shaped Golden...
. Harmful Insect
Harmful Insect
is a 2002 Japanese film directed by Akihiko Shiota.-Awards:27th Hochi Film Award* Best Actor - Seiichi Tanabe24th Yokohama Film Festival*9th Best Film...
(2002) screened at the Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
and earned two more awards at the Three Continents Festival. His first major commercial film, Yomigaeri
Yomigaeri
is a Japanese film directed by Akihiko Shiota, and release on 18 January 2003. It features Tsuyoshi Kusanagi and Yuko Takeuchi in the lead roles, and stars a number of actors in smaller roles who are well-known in Japanese film and television...
, was the fourth biggest grossing Japanese film of 2003, but his next work, Canary, about Aum Shinrikyo
Aum Shinrikyo
Aum Shinrikyo was a Japanese new religious movement. The group was founded by Shoko Asahara in 1984. The group gained international notoriety in 1995, when it carried out the Sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway....
, returned him to the world of independent film. Dororo
Dororo
is a Japanese manga series from the critically acclaimed manga creator Osamu Tezuka in the late 1960s. The anime television series based on the manga consists of 26 half-hour episodes. It was made into a live-action film in 2007....
, based on a manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
by Osamu Tezuka
Osamu Tezuka
was a Japanese cartoonist, manga artist, animator, producer, activist and medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine. Born in Osaka Prefecture, he is best known as the creator of Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion and Black Jack...
, was the eighth top-grossing Japanese film of 2007.
Selected filmography
- Moonlight WhispersMoonlight Whispersis a 1999 Japanese film directed by Akihiko Shiota. The film is based on the manga Gekko no sasayaki.Boy meets girl , they fall in love...
(月光の囁き, Gekkō no sasayaki) (1999) - Don't Look BackDon't Look Back (1999 film)is a 1999 Japanese film directed by Akihiko Shiota....
(どこまでもいこう, Doko made mo ikō) (1999) - Gips (ギップス, Gippusu) (2001), part of the Love CinemaLove Cinemais a series of Japanese films by CineRocket, it consists of six straight-to-video releases by independent filmmakers via a brief but exclusive run at the minuscule Shimokitazawa cinema in Tokyo...
project - Harmful InsectHarmful Insectis a 2002 Japanese film directed by Akihiko Shiota.-Awards:27th Hochi Film Award* Best Actor - Seiichi Tanabe24th Yokohama Film Festival*9th Best Film...
(害虫, Gaichū) (2002) - YomigaeriYomigaeriis a Japanese film directed by Akihiko Shiota, and release on 18 January 2003. It features Tsuyoshi Kusanagi and Yuko Takeuchi in the lead roles, and stars a number of actors in smaller roles who are well-known in Japanese film and television...
(黄泉がえり, 2003) - Canary (カナリア, Kanaria) (2005)
- DororoDororois a Japanese manga series from the critically acclaimed manga creator Osamu Tezuka in the late 1960s. The anime television series based on the manga consists of 26 half-hour episodes. It was made into a live-action film in 2007....
(どろろ) (2007)
External links
- Akihiko Shiota Interview Midnight Eye (by Tom Mes)