Shunsui Matsuda
Encyclopedia
was the last Japan
ese benshi
of the silent film
era. Shunsui Matsuda’s love for silent films was so great he dedicated his life to finding and preserving valuable classic films from the golden era.
, Shunsui Matsuda performed as child Benshi but it was only after the Pacific War
, when the post-war shortages created a demand in films that Matsuda really began his vocation as a Benshi.
In 1947 he found himself part of a troupe of itinerant benshi travelling around Kyūshū
, whose burgeoning coal mining
industry had attracted a lot of workers to the region. The desperate shortage of any means of entertainment in the area meant that reruns of old silent films were still immensely popular. It was during his travels that he realized the need to preserve the films from the silent film era.
With the 1923 Kanto earthquake
and the War, a vast number of films had already been destroyed, but even worse was the complete laissez-faire attitude of the major studios to their own product. The few surviving fragments of films such as Ozu's I Graduated, But… (Daigaku wa Detakeredo, 1929) are pretty much entirely down to the efforts of this man, who travelled the country scouring pawn shops and old theatres for films to add to his collection.
In 1948, he officially took up his name as the second Matsuda Shunsui and in the same year he was awarded the top prize in the national Film Narrator's Competition. In 1952, he founded Matsuda Film Productions and appointed President of the Friends of Silent Films Association, both which are still being thriving under the guidance of his second son, Yutaka Matsuda.
He continued to give performances all the way up until his death in 1987, also directing his own silent film, Jigoku no Mushi (Maggots of Hell) in 1979 and producing Bantsuma - Bando Tsumasaburo no Shogai (Bantsuma - The Life and Times of Bando Tsumasaburo) in 1980. He can also be seen in full flow providing the narration for the silent film fragment in Kaizo Hayashi
's homage to this golden age, To Sleep So As To Dream (Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai, 1986).
In 1984, Matsuda received an invitation from the Frankfurt Museum of Cinema and he gave his first Benshi performance in Europe. A year later, he received the first Tokyo Metropolitan Culture Prize.
Shunsui Matsuda died of cancer
on 8 August, 1987 leaving behind a great legacy.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese benshi
Benshi
were Japanese performers who provided live narration for silent films . Benshi are sometimes also called or .-Role of the benshi:...
of the silent film
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
era. Shunsui Matsuda’s love for silent films was so great he dedicated his life to finding and preserving valuable classic films from the golden era.
Biography
Born in 1925 in TokyoTokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Shunsui Matsuda performed as child Benshi but it was only after the Pacific War
Pacific War
The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
, when the post-war shortages created a demand in films that Matsuda really began his vocation as a Benshi.
In 1947 he found himself part of a troupe of itinerant benshi travelling around Kyūshū
Kyushu
is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands....
, whose burgeoning coal mining
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
industry had attracted a lot of workers to the region. The desperate shortage of any means of entertainment in the area meant that reruns of old silent films were still immensely popular. It was during his travels that he realized the need to preserve the films from the silent film era.
With the 1923 Kanto earthquake
Kanto earthquake
can refer to any of the historical earthquakes to occur in the Kantō region that originate from slippage in the Sagami Trough. Although the 1854 Ansei Great Earthquakes also struck in the region, this term is never used to refer to these quakes.It can refer to:...
and the War, a vast number of films had already been destroyed, but even worse was the complete laissez-faire attitude of the major studios to their own product. The few surviving fragments of films such as Ozu's I Graduated, But… (Daigaku wa Detakeredo, 1929) are pretty much entirely down to the efforts of this man, who travelled the country scouring pawn shops and old theatres for films to add to his collection.
In 1948, he officially took up his name as the second Matsuda Shunsui and in the same year he was awarded the top prize in the national Film Narrator's Competition. In 1952, he founded Matsuda Film Productions and appointed President of the Friends of Silent Films Association, both which are still being thriving under the guidance of his second son, Yutaka Matsuda.
He continued to give performances all the way up until his death in 1987, also directing his own silent film, Jigoku no Mushi (Maggots of Hell) in 1979 and producing Bantsuma - Bando Tsumasaburo no Shogai (Bantsuma - The Life and Times of Bando Tsumasaburo) in 1980. He can also be seen in full flow providing the narration for the silent film fragment in Kaizo Hayashi
Kaizo Hayashi
is a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He made his directorial debut with To Sleep so as to Dream . Abroad, he is best known for his neo-noir Maiku Hama trilogy, The Most Terrible Time in My Life , Stairway to the Distant Past and The Trap .-Partial filmography:* To Sleep so as to Dream *...
's homage to this golden age, To Sleep So As To Dream (Yume Miruyoni Nemuritai, 1986).
In 1984, Matsuda received an invitation from the Frankfurt Museum of Cinema and he gave his first Benshi performance in Europe. A year later, he received the first Tokyo Metropolitan Culture Prize.
Shunsui Matsuda died of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
on 8 August, 1987 leaving behind a great legacy.
Filmography
- 1979, DIRECTOR, Jigoku no Mushi (Maggots of Hell)
- 1980, PRODUCER, Bantsuma - Bando Tsumasaburo no Shogai (Bantsuma - The Life and Times of Bando Tsumasaburo)
- PRODUCER, 32 works of “Katsuben Talkie Version” (music and narration all written by himself)
Awards
- 1948 Awarded top prize in the national Film Narrator's Competition
- 1963 Awarded Million Pearl Prize
- 1985 Awarded the first Tokyo Metropolitan Culture Prize
Trivia
- The story goes that Matsuda discovered one of the projectionists snipping out footage from one of these films because it "dragged the film down", and thereupon decided to dedicate his life to the act of preserving these early cinematic documents.
- One of his students is Midori SawatoMidori Sawatois a benshi, one of the few silent film narrators still active in Japan.-Life:Originally from Tokyo, Midori Sawato graduated from the Department of Philosophy, Hosei University. She first decided she wanted to become a benshi in 1972, when she saw the silent film The Water Magician...
, one of the very few existing Benshi today. - He appeared in Yume miru yoni nemuritai alongside Midori Sawato.
- The films that Matsuda managed to collect from around the country constitute around 1000 films, the bulk of which are silent films, amounting to about 6000 rolls of film.