Saka no ue no kumo (TV series)
Encyclopedia
is a current NHK 21 Century special drama
which is scheduled to be aired for three years starting from November 29, 2009. 13 episodes, 90 minutes each, have been planned. The first series, with 5 episodes, was broadcast in 2009, while series two and three, each with 4 episodes, are being broadcast in late 2010 and 2011. While most episodes are shot in Japan, one of the episodes in series two is shot in Latvia
. The TV series is based on the novel Saka no ue no kumo
by Ryōtarō Shiba
and adopted by Hisashi Nozawa
.
The theme song of the drama series is titled "Stand Alone". It was composed by Joe Hisaishi
, written by Kundo Koyama and performed by British soprano singer Sarah Brightman
.
Taiga drama
is the name NHK gives to the annual, year-long historical fiction television series it broadcasts in Japan. Beginning in 1963 with the black-and-white Hana no Shōgai, starring kabuki actor Onoe Shōroku and Takarazuka star Awashima Chikage, the network has hired a producer, director, writer, music...
which is scheduled to be aired for three years starting from November 29, 2009. 13 episodes, 90 minutes each, have been planned. The first series, with 5 episodes, was broadcast in 2009, while series two and three, each with 4 episodes, are being broadcast in late 2010 and 2011. While most episodes are shot in Japan, one of the episodes in series two is shot in Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
. The TV series is based on the novel Saka no ue no kumo
Saka no ue no kumo
, "Cloud over the slope," is a popular Japanese historical novel by Shiba Ryōtarō originally published serially from 1968 to 1972 in eight volumes...
by Ryōtarō Shiba
Ryotaro Shiba
, born in Osaka, Japan, was a Japanese author best known for his novels about historical events in Japan and on the Northeast Asian sub-continent, as well as his historical and cultural essays pertaining to Japan and its relationship to the rest of the world....
and adopted by Hisashi Nozawa
Hisashi Nozawa
was a famous Japanese screenwriter and mystery novelist. He won the Kuniko Mukōda Prize in 1998 for his screenplay Nemureru Mori and 結婚前夜 . He also won the Edogawa Rampo Award in 1997 for Hasen no marisu and the Eiji Yoshikawa Prize for New Writers in 2001 for Shinku...
.
The theme song of the drama series is titled "Stand Alone". It was composed by Joe Hisaishi
Joe Hisaishi
, known professionally as , is a composer and director known for over 100 film scores and solo albums dating back to 1981.While possessing a stylistically distinct sound, Hisaishi's music has been known to explore and incorporate different genres, including minimalist, experimental electronic,...
, written by Kundo Koyama and performed by British soprano singer Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman is an English classical crossover soprano, actress, songwriter and dancer. She is famous for possessing a vocal range of over 3 octaves and singing in the whistle register...
.
Staff
- Original: Ryōtarō ShibaRyotaro Shiba, born in Osaka, Japan, was a Japanese author best known for his novels about historical events in Japan and on the Northeast Asian sub-continent, as well as his historical and cultural essays pertaining to Japan and its relationship to the rest of the world....
- Script: Hisashi NozawaHisashi Nozawawas a famous Japanese screenwriter and mystery novelist. He won the Kuniko Mukōda Prize in 1998 for his screenplay Nemureru Mori and 結婚前夜 . He also won the Edogawa Rampo Award in 1997 for Hasen no marisu and the Eiji Yoshikawa Prize for New Writers in 2001 for Shinku...
- Music: Joe HisaishiJoe Hisaishi, known professionally as , is a composer and director known for over 100 film scores and solo albums dating back to 1981.While possessing a stylistically distinct sound, Hisaishi's music has been known to explore and incorporate different genres, including minimalist, experimental electronic,...
- Titling: Ryōtarō ShibaRyotaro Shiba, born in Osaka, Japan, was a Japanese author best known for his novels about historical events in Japan and on the Northeast Asian sub-continent, as well as his historical and cultural essays pertaining to Japan and its relationship to the rest of the world....
- Historical research: Yasushi Toriumi
- Narrator: Ken WatanabeKen Watanabeis a Japanese stage, film, and television actor. To English-speaking audiences he is known for playing tragic hero characters, such as General Tadamichi Kuribayashi in Letters from Iwo Jima and Lord Katsumoto Moritsugu in The Last Samurai, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best...
- Production coordinator: Yasuhiro Kan
- Casting: Mineyo Satō
Akiyama family
- Masahiro MotokiMasahiro MotokiMasahiro Motoki is a Japanese actor. He portrayed protagonist Daigo Kobayashi in Departures, which won the 81st Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film...
as Akiyama SaneyukiAkiyama Saneyukiwas a Meiji-period career officer in the Imperial Japanese Navy. He was famous as a planner of Battle of Tsushima in the Russo-Japanese War. The Japanese general Akiyama Yoshifuru was his elder brother.-Early life and career:... - Hiroshi AbeHiroshi Abe (actor)is a Japanese model and actor.He began his career as a model, but he successfully made the transition to acting, becoming one of the most regularly visible presences in Japanese media. He is a 1988 graduate of Chuo University.-Career:...
as Akiyama YoshifuruAkiyama Yoshifuruwas a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, and was considered the father of the modern Japanese cavalry. Akiyama Yoshifuru was Vice Admiral Akiyama Saneyuki's older brother.-Early life:... - Shirō Itō as Akiyama Hisataka
- Keiko TakeshitaKeiko TakeshitaKeiko Takeshita is a Japanese actress.-External links:*...
as Akiyama Sada - Takako MatsuTakako Matsu, born , is a Japanese actress and pop singer/songwriter born on June 10, 1977 in Tokyo, Japan. The style of her music is often laid-back and relaxing.- Profile :* Interests: Watching movies and stage plays...
as Akiyama Tami
Masaoka family
- Teruyuki Kagawa as Masaoka ShikiMasaoka Shiki, pen-name of Masaoka Noboru , was a Japanese poet, author, and literary critic in Meiji period Japan. Shiki is regarded as a major figure in the development of modern haiku poetry...
- Miho KannoMiho Kannois a Japanese actress and J-Pop singer. Her nickname is Kanchan . She was born in Sakado, Saitama, Japan.- Biography :In 1992, Kanno made her debut as a member of a group called Sakurakko Kurabu Sakura Gumi after passing the orientation for the TV variety show Sakurakko Kurabu...
as Masaoka Ritsu - Mieko Harada as Masaoka Yae
- Ichiro Shinjitsu as Ōhara Kanzan
- Yūto Uemura as Katō Tsunetada
Navy officials and their family
- Takahiro FujimotoTakahiro Fujimotois an actor and a retired male medley swimmer from Japan, who represented his native country in two consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1988. His best Olympic result was the 8th place in the Men's 400m Individual Medley event at the 1992 Summer Olympics.Fujimoto started his career as an actor...
as Hirose Takeo - Tsurutarō Kataoka as Yashiro RokurōYashiro Rokuro- Notes :...
- Tetsuya WatariTetsuya Watariis a Japanese stage, film, and television actor. He made his screen debut in 1964, in Isamu Kosugi's .He is now the president of Ishihara Promotion.He has a younger brother, Tsunehiko Watase, who is also an actor.-Filmography:-External links:* *...
as Tōgō HeihachirōTogo HeihachiroFleet Admiral Marquis was a Fleet Admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy and one of Japan's greatest naval heroes. He was termed by Western journalists as "the Nelson of the East".-Early life:... - Kōji Ishizaka as Yamamoto GonbeiYamamoto Gonnohyoe, also called Gonnohyōe, was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy and the 16th and 22nd Prime Minister of Japan.-Early life:...
- Masao Kusakari as Katō TomosaburōKato TomosaburoViscount was a career officer in the Imperial Japanese Navy, cabinet minister, and Prime Minister of Japan from 12 June 1922 to 24 August 1923.-Biography:...
- Hiroshi TachiHiroshi Tachiis a Japanese actor and singer. He is probably best known for starring the TV drama series Seibu Keisatsu.He is a dropout of Chiba Institute of Technology.- References :...
as Shimamura HayaoShimamura HayaoBaron was a Japanese admiral during the First Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese Wars as well as one of the first prominent staff officers and naval strategists of the early Imperial Japanese Navy.-Biography:... - Masaya KatoMasaya Katois a Japanese actor and seiyū from Nara in the Kansai region.-Biography:He is currently attached to Burning Production. He stands at 183 centimeters...
as Arima RyokitsuArima RyokitsuAdmiral was a career naval officer in the Imperial Japanese Navy during Meiji and Taishō periods.-Biography:Arima was a native of Wakayama, where his father was a senior samurai retainer of the Kishū Tokugawa clan, and an active supporter of the Tokugawa shogunate during the Boshin War of the... - Akira NakaoAkira Nakaois a Japanese actor and personality from Kisarazu, Chiba, Japan. He graduated from Chiba Prefectural Kisarazu High School and attended Musashino Art University. Nakao is a member of the Furutachi Project agency....
as Hidaka Sōnojō - Kisuke Iida as Takarabe TakeshiTakarabe Takeshi- Notes :...
Army officials and their family
- Kōji Matoba as Nagaoka Gaishi
- Hideki TakahashiHideki Takahashiis a Japanese actor. Born in Kisarazu, Chiba near Tokyo, he attended Ichikawa Gakuen and later Nihon University.- Filmography :He made his debut with Nikkatsu and acted in youth-oriented films. After becoming a star in television jidaigeki, he turned out hit after hit...
as Kodama Gentarō - Tōru Emori as Yamagata AritomoYamagata AritomoField Marshal Prince , also known as Yamagata Kyōsuke, was a field marshal in the Imperial Japanese Army and twice Prime Minister of Japan. He is considered one of the architects of the military and political foundations of early modern Japan. Yamagata Aritomo can be seen as the father of Japanese...
- Masakane Yonekura as Ōyama IwaoOyama Iwao|-...
- Akira Emoto as Nogi Maresuke
- Kyōko Maya as Nogi Shizuko
- Shinya TsukamotoShinya Tsukamotois a Japanese film director and actor with a considerable cult following both domestically and abroad.-Biography:Tsukamoto started making movies at the age of 14, when his father gave him a Super 8 camera. He made a number of films, ranging...
as Akashi MotojiroAkashi Motojiro-Notes:... - Jun Kunimura as Kawakami SorokuKawakami Soroku- Notes :...
- Takehiro Murata as Ijichi KōsukeIjichi KosukeBaron was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army in the First Sino-Japanese War and Chief of Staff of the Japanese Third Army during the Siege of Port Arthur in the Russo-Japanese War. His wife was the niece of Marshal Oyama Iwao.-Biography:...
- Takaaki Enoki as Mori RintarōMori Ogaiwas a Japanese physician, translator, novelist and poet. is considered his major work.- Early life :Mori was born as Mori Rintarō in Tsuwano, Iwami province . His family were hereditary physicians to the daimyō of the Tsuwano Domain...
- Daijirō Tsutsumi as Iguchi Shōgo
- Atsushi Miyauchi as Fujii Shigeta
Politicians and their family
- Gō KatōGo KatoGo Kato was born February 4, 1938, in Omaezaki, Shizuoka, Japan. He is a Japanese entertainer, and actor.-TV Dramas:*Sosa Kenji Ukon Makoto no Satsujin Chosho...
as Itō HirobumiIto HirobumiPrince was a samurai of Chōshū domain, Japanese statesman, four time Prime Minister of Japan , genrō and Resident-General of Korea. Itō was assassinated by An Jung-geun, a Korean nationalist who was against the annexation of Korea by the Japanese Empire... - Toshiyuki NishidaToshiyuki Nishidais a Japanese actor. Outside of Japan, Nishida is best known for his portrayal of Pigsy in the TV series Monkey.Toshiyuki Nishida has received ten Japanese Academy Award nominations, winning twice, for Dun-Huang in 1988 and Gakko and Tsuribaka Nisshi 6 in 1993...
as Takahashi KorekiyoTakahashi KorekiyoViscount was a Japanese politician and the 20th Prime Minister of Japan from 13 November 1921 to 12 June 1922. He was known as an expert on finance during his political career.-Early life :... - Naoto TakenakaNaoto Takenakais a Japanese actor, comedian, singer, and director from Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture affiliated with From First Production. He is married to idol singer and actress Midori Kinouchi.-Director:*Munō no Hito *119...
as Komura JutarōKomura Jutarowas a statesman and diplomat in Meiji period Japan.-Biography:Komura was born to a lower-ranking samurai family in service of the Obi clan at Nichinan, Hyuga province . He attended the Daigaku Nankō... - Ren ŌsugiRen Osugi, born , is a Japanese actor. For his work in Cure, Hana-bi and other films, Osugi was given the Best Supporting Actor award at the 1999 Yokohama Film Festival...
as Mutsu MunemitsuMutsu MunemitsuCount was a statesman and diplomat in Meiji period Japan.-Early life:Mutsu Munemitsu was born in Wakayama domain, Kii Province as the sixth son of Date Munehiro, a samurai retainer of the Kii Tokugawa clan... - Shin'ya Ōwada as Inoue KaoruInoue KaoruCount , GCMG was a member of the Meiji oligarchy during the Meiji period Empire of Japan. As one of the senior statesman in Japan during that period, he had a tremendous influence on the selection of the nation's leaders and formation of its policies.-Early years:...
- Toshiki Ayata as Katsura TarōKatsura TaroPrince , was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, politician and three-time Prime Minister of Japan.-Early life:Katsura was born into a samurai family from Hagi, Chōshū Domain...
Ordinary people
- Shirō Sano as Kuga KatsunanKuga Katsunan-External links:*...
- Kenzō as Kojima Ichinen
- Yukiyoshi Ozawa as Natsume SōsekiNatsume Soseki, born ', is widely considered to be the foremost Japanese novelist of the Meiji period . He is best known for his novels Kokoro, Botchan, I Am a Cat and his unfinished work Light and Darkness. He was also a scholar of British literature and composer of haiku, Chinese-style poetry, and fairy tales...
Foreigners
- Julian GloverJulian GloverJulian Wyatt Glover is a British actor best known for such roles as General Maximilian Veers in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, the Bond villain Aristotle Kristatos in For Your Eyes Only, and Walter Donovan in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.-Personal life:Glover was born in...
as Alfred Thayer MahanAlfred Thayer MahanAlfred Thayer Mahan was a United States Navy flag officer, geostrategist, and historian, who has been called "the most important American strategist of the nineteenth century." His concept of "sea power" was based on the idea that countries with greater naval power will have greater worldwide... - Marina AleksandrovaMarina AleksandrovaMarina Andreevna Pupenina , known under her pseudonym Marina Aleksandrova, is a Russian actress. She is perhaps the best known for her role of Marie of Hesse and by Rhine in Poor Nastya.- Personal life :...
as Russian Nobility
Series overview
| Season | Originally aired | DVD release dates | Discs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 2009 2009 in Japanese television Events in 2009 in Japanese television.- Debuts :-See also:*2009 Japanese television dramas... |
March 15, 2010 | 5 |
| Season 2 | 2010 2010 in Japanese television Events in 2010 in Japanese television.- Debuts :- Endings :- Deaths :... |
Spring, 2011 | 4 |
| Season 3 | 2011 2011 in Japanese television Events in 2011 in Japanese television.- Debuts :-Finales:... |
Spring, 2012 | 4 |
Season 1 : 1868 - 1900
| Season # | Episode # | Title | Directed by | Rating | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Takeshi Shibata | 17.7% | ||
| 2 | 2 | Takeshi Shibata | 19.6% | ||
| 3 | 3 | Takeshi Shibata | 19.5% | ||
| 4 | 4 | Takeshi Shibata | 17.8% | ||
| 5 | 5 | Ryūji Isshiki | 12.9% |
Season 2 : 1900 - 1904
| Season # | Episode # | Title | Directed by | Rating | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Mikio Satō | 14.7% | ||
| 2 | 7 | Mikio Satō | 15.0% | ||
| 3 | 8 | Takafumi Kimura | 14.7% | ||
| 4 | 9 | Takafumi Kimura | 9.7% |
Season 3 : Russo-Japanese War
| Season # | Episode # | Title | Directed by | Rating | Original airdate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | ||||
| 2 | 11 | ||||
| 3 | 12 | ||||
| 4 | 13 |
- Rating is based on Japanese video research(Kantō regionKanto regionThe is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa. Within its boundaries, slightly more than 40 percent of the land area is the Kantō Plain....
).
Books
- NHK Special Drama, Historical handbook, Saka no ue no kumo(October 30, 2009) ISBN 978-4-14-910729-5
- NHK Special Drama guide, Saka no ue no kumo Part1(October 30, 2009) ISBN 978-4-14-407160-7
- NHK Special Drama guide, Saka no ue no kumo Part2(October 25, 2010) ISBN 978-4-14-407173-7