Norimasa Kaeriyama
Encyclopedia
was a pioneering Japanese film director
and film theorist.
's magazine Katsudō shashinkai while still a student, Kaeriyama developed a long series of critiques of contemporary Japanese cinema
that would make him the leading spokesman of the Pure Film Movement
in the 1910s. The ideas about what cinema should be that he developed in the journal Kinema Record
, which he helped found with Yukiyoshi Shigeno, were accumulated in his 1917 book, The Production and Photography of Moving Picture Drama (Katsudō shashingeki no sōsaku to satsueihō), an influential work that continued to be reprinted into the 1920s. Although an engineer by training, Kaeriyama entered the film industry, first at Nihon Kinetophone in 1914, and then at Tennenshoku Katsudō Shashin
(Tenkatsu) in 1917. It was at the latter that he was able to put his ideals into practice with films such as The Glow of Live (Sei no kagayaki) and Maid of the Deep Mountains (Miyama no otome), which were filmed in 1918 with his production group, the Geijutsu Eiga Kyōkai, but released in 1919. These were hailed as some of the first "pure films" in Japan, in part because Kaeriyama was one of the first to use actresses in a Japanese produced film. Several figures who later made significant contributions to Japanese cinema worked with him on these projects, including Minoru Murata
(later a director), Shizue Natsukawa, Iyokichi Kondō, and Sugisaku Aoyama (the latter all actors). Kaeriyama continued directing films until the mid-1920s, but rarely to much success. Afterwards, he returned to engineering work, while continuing to write how-to books on filmmaking
as well as pursuing the study of sex in cinema.
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 film theorist.
Biography
Beginning with articles he submitted to Yoshizawa ShōtenYoshizawa Shōten
was a film studio and importer active in the early years of cinema in Japan. Originally involved in the magic lantern business, Yoshizawa bought a cinématographe camera off a visiting Italian and began exhibiting motion pictures in 1897. Run by Ken'ichi Kawaura, and having an office in London,...
's magazine Katsudō shashinkai while still a student, Kaeriyama developed a long series of critiques of contemporary Japanese cinema
Cinema of Japan
The has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world – as of 2009 the fourth largest by number of feature films produced. Movies have been produced in Japan since 1897, when the first foreign cameramen arrived...
that would make him the leading spokesman of the Pure Film Movement
Pure Film Movement
The was a trend in film criticism and filmmaking in 1910s and early 1920s Japan that advocated what were considered more modern and cinematic modes of filmmaking. Critics in such magazines as Kinema Record and Kinema Junpo complained that existing Japanese cinema was overly theatrical...
in the 1910s. The ideas about what cinema should be that he developed in the journal Kinema Record
Kinema Record
was a Japanese film magazine published during the 1910s that played an important role in the Pure Film Movement. In 1914, with no serious film magazines being published in Japan at the time, Norimasa Kaeriyama, Yoshiyuki Shigeno and other students interested in movies formed the Japan...
, which he helped found with Yukiyoshi Shigeno, were accumulated in his 1917 book, The Production and Photography of Moving Picture Drama (Katsudō shashingeki no sōsaku to satsueihō), an influential work that continued to be reprinted into the 1920s. Although an engineer by training, Kaeriyama entered the film industry, first at Nihon Kinetophone in 1914, and then at Tennenshoku Katsudō Shashin
Tennenshoku Katsudō Shashin
was a Japanese film studio active in the 1910s. The name translates as the "Natural Color Moving Picture Company," but it was known as Tenkatsu for short...
(Tenkatsu) in 1917. It was at the latter that he was able to put his ideals into practice with films such as The Glow of Live (Sei no kagayaki) and Maid of the Deep Mountains (Miyama no otome), which were filmed in 1918 with his production group, the Geijutsu Eiga Kyōkai, but released in 1919. These were hailed as some of the first "pure films" in Japan, in part because Kaeriyama was one of the first to use actresses in a Japanese produced film. Several figures who later made significant contributions to Japanese cinema worked with him on these projects, including Minoru Murata
Minoru Murata
was a Japanese film director, screenwriter, and actor who was one of the major directors of the silent era in Japan.-Career:Born in Tokyo, Murata started out as a shingeki actor on the stage. Murata's troupe appeared in the first "pure films" directed by Norimasa Kaeriyama at Tenkatsu in 1918...
(later a director), Shizue Natsukawa, Iyokichi Kondō, and Sugisaku Aoyama (the latter all actors). Kaeriyama continued directing films until the mid-1920s, but rarely to much success. Afterwards, he returned to engineering work, while continuing to write how-to books on filmmaking
Filmmaking
Filmmaking is the process of making a film, from an initial story, idea, or commission, through scriptwriting, casting, shooting, directing, editing, and screening the finished product before an audience that may result in a theatrical release or television program...
as well as pursuing the study of sex in cinema.