Takeo Kimura
Encyclopedia
was a Japanese
art director
, writer
and film director
. Beginning his career in 1945 he art-directed well over 200 films. He was one of Japan's best known art directors, most famously for his collaborations with cult director Seijun Suzuki
through the 1960s at the Nikkatsu
Company, exemplified by Tokyo Drifter
(1966). Other directors with whom he frequently worked include Toshio Masuda
, Kazuo Kuroki
, Kei Kumai
and Kaizo Hayashi
. At age 90 he made his feature film directorial debut with Dreaming Awake
(2008). He had also worked as a critic, writer, painter, photographer and teacher.
on April 1, 1918. A graduate of Aoyama Gakuin University
with a background in theatre, Kimura joined the Nikkatsu
Company's scenography
department in 1941. The same year, the government ordered the ten major movie studios to consolidate into two. A counteroffer of three was accepted and Nikkatsu merged with Daito and Shinko, the first shutting down their film production unit, and the new company was named Daiei
. Kimura continued as an assistant with Daiei after World War II
and was promoted to art director
in 1945. His debut film was Masanori Igayama's Umi no yobu koe (1945). When Nikkatsu opened a new studio and resumed film production in 1954, Kimura transferred there.
At Nikkatsu he worked with many of the studio's directors, including top action director Toshio Masuda
, and showed a propensity for realistic set design. However, Kimura became frustrated in doing the same types of films repeatedly and had ambitions to work on films where the art direction was a major focal point. He found an ideal collaborator in the like-minded Seijun Suzuki
, a director of primarily B action movies
. They first collaborated on The Bastard
(1963) which Suzuki considered a turning point in his career. The two became good friends and Kimura became his permanent art director. They worked to refine their style which consisted of more artistry and symbolism than studio bosses generally preferred to see in their action films. Among their best known collaborations are Gate of Flesh
(1964) and Tokyo Drifter
(1966), on which The Japan Times
' Mark Schilling wrote, "Who can forget the all-white nightclub in the latter film, with the huge donut-shape, color-shifting mobile — like nothing in real life but expressive of the film's go-go-era, anything-can-happen world." Suzuki considered the art director and cinematographer key collaborators and rewrote the scripts he was assigned over extended discussions with Kimura or cinematographer
s Katsue Nagatsuka or Shigeyoshi Mine. They would add characters and scenes or expand simple lines into elaborate shots. For his contributions to The Flower and the Angry Waves
(1964) Kimura received his first screenwriting credit. He was also included in Hachirō Guryū, the joint pen name for the writing group which formed around Suzuki in the mid-1960s, along with six assistant director
s, most prominently Atsushi Yamatoya and Chūsei Sone
.
The Japanese film industry lost much of its viewership to television through the 1960s and, in order to avoid bankruptcy, Nikkatsu shut down regular productions in August, 1971, and in November began producing low cost Roman Pornos, romantic softcore pornography films. Kimura left Nikkatsu a couple years later in 1973 to work freelance
. He has continued to work steadily outside of the studio system and has since worked with a wide selection of directors including auteur Mitsuo Yanagimachi
and multiple collaborations with Kazuo Kuroki
and Kaizo Hayashi
. Stylistically, he continues to vary between the surrealistic, as in his subsequent collaborations with Suzuki, and the realistic, including his films with Kei Kumai
. Kimura directed two short films in 2004, and the release of Mugen Sasurai (2004) afforded him the oldest directorial debut at age 86. Following a third and four short film, he directed his first feature-length film at age 90, Dreaming Awake
(2008), for which he was recognized by Guinness World Records
for "the oldest debut as a feature film director". The film was based on his own novel, which touches on autobiographical elements, and more closely resembles his surrealistic collaborations with Suzuki—who appears in the film as an actor—than his more realistic art direction.
He remained among Japan's best known art directors, most famously for his work with Suzuki through the 1960s. In addition to film, Kimura had worked as a film and art critic, painter, writer, photographer, teacher and on the lecture circuit.
He died of interstitial pneumonia in a Tokyo hospital on March 21, 2010, at the age of 91.
, A Long Way for a Motor Car and The Woman
. The following year, he was nomination in the same category for Kei Kumai
's Willful Murder, and again in 1983 for the international co-production
The Go Masters and Yukko no okurimono: Cosmos no yō ni. At the 12th annual ceremony in 1989, he was co-nominated with Noriyoshi Ikeya for their work on Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis
. Kimura received another nomination in 1990 for Kumai's The Death of a Tea Master. His second win came in 1991 for Mt. Aso's Passions, Childhood Days
and Hong Kong Paradise
. Bandō Tamasaburō
's Yearning
earned Kimura his last nomination at the 1994 ceremony.
He won three Mainichi Film Awards for Best Art Direction. At the 9th annual ceremony in 1955, he won for A Certain Woman, made at Daiei
, and Black Tide, made after he had moved to Nikkatsu
. He again won in 1982 for Kumai's Willful Murder. Finally, at the 1987 ceremony he won for The Sea and Poison
, House of Wedlock
and To Sleep So as to Dream.
Additional awards include Best Artistic Contribution for Mt. Aso's Passions, at the 1990 Montreal World Film Festival
, and Best Art Director for The Soul Odyssey, at the 2003 Yokohama Film Festival
.
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
art director
Art director
The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
, writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and film director
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:...
. Beginning his career in 1945 he art-directed well over 200 films. He was one of Japan's best known art directors, most famously for his collaborations with cult director 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...
through the 1960s at the Nikkatsu
Nikkatsu
is a Japanese entertainment company well known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio. The name Nikkatsu is an abbreviation of Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally "Japan Cinematograph Company".-History:...
Company, exemplified by Tokyo Drifter
Tokyo Drifter
is a 1966 yakuza action film directed by Seijun Suzuki. The story follows Tetsuya Watari as the reformed yakuza hitman "Phoenix" Tetsu who is forced to roam Japan avoiding execution by rival gangs.-Plot:...
(1966). Other directors with whom he frequently worked include Toshio Masuda
Toshio Masuda
is a Japanese film director. He developed a reputation as a consistent box office hit-maker. Over the course of five decades, 16 of his films made the yearly top ten lists at the Japanese box office—a second place record in the industry. Between 1958 and 1968 he directed 52 films for the Nikkatsu...
, Kazuo Kuroki
Kazuo Kuroki
-Filmography:* Silence Has No Wings * Preparation for the Festival * Yūgure made * The Bridge of Tears * Tomorrow * Pickpocket * The Face of Jizo * The Blossoming of Kamiya Etsuko...
, Kei Kumai
Kei Kumai
was a Japanese film director from Azumino, Nagano prefecture. After his studies in literature at Shinshu University, he worked as director's assistant....
and 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 *...
. At age 90 he made his feature film directorial debut with Dreaming Awake
Dreaming Awake
Dreaming Awake is the titled debut album by the Christian power metal band Harmony It was released in 2003.-Track listing:#"Into the Afterlife" [Instrumental] – 2:06#"Eternity" – 5:14...
(2008). He had also worked as a critic, writer, painter, photographer and teacher.
Career
Kimura was born 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...
on April 1, 1918. A graduate of Aoyama Gakuin University
Aoyama Gakuin University
, abbreviated AGU, is a Japanese Christian university in Shibuya near Omotesandō, Tokyo, Japan. Aoyama Gakuin University is part of a comprehensive educational institute called Aoyama Gakuin, which includes a kindergarten, an elementary school, junior and senior high schools, and a women's junior...
with a background in theatre, Kimura joined the Nikkatsu
Nikkatsu
is a Japanese entertainment company well known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio. The name Nikkatsu is an abbreviation of Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally "Japan Cinematograph Company".-History:...
Company's scenography
Scenography
-Usage:Whilst also aligned with the professional practice of the scenographer, it is important to distinguish the individual elements that comprise the 'design' of a performance event from the term 'scenography' which is as an artistic perspective concerning the visual, experiential and spatial...
department in 1941. The same year, the government ordered the ten major movie studios to consolidate into two. A counteroffer of three was accepted and Nikkatsu merged with Daito and Shinko, the first shutting down their film production unit, and the new company was named Daiei
Kadokawa Pictures
is a Japanese movie studio.-History:One of the most famous studios in Japan and founded in 1942 as , it is best known for having produced the giant monster Gamera film series and the Daimajin Trilogy. It also produced the Zatoichi and Nemuri Kyoshiro film series and the television series Shōnen Jet...
. Kimura continued as an assistant with Daiei after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and was promoted to art director
Art director
The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
in 1945. His debut film was Masanori Igayama's Umi no yobu koe (1945). When Nikkatsu opened a new studio and resumed film production in 1954, Kimura transferred there.
At Nikkatsu he worked with many of the studio's directors, including top action director Toshio Masuda
Toshio Masuda
is a Japanese film director. He developed a reputation as a consistent box office hit-maker. Over the course of five decades, 16 of his films made the yearly top ten lists at the Japanese box office—a second place record in the industry. Between 1958 and 1968 he directed 52 films for the Nikkatsu...
, and showed a propensity for realistic set design. However, Kimura became frustrated in doing the same types of films repeatedly and had ambitions to work on films where the art direction was a major focal point. He found an ideal collaborator in the like-minded 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...
, a director of primarily B action movies
B movie
A B movie is a low-budget commercial motion picture that is not definitively an arthouse or pornographic film. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified a film intended for distribution as the less-publicized, bottom half of a double feature....
. They first collaborated on The Bastard
The Bastard (film)
is a 1963 Japanese youth film directed by Seijun Suzuki for the Nikkatsu Corporation. It is based on the loosely autobiographical novel of the same name by Toko Kon. Ken Yamanouchi stars as Togo Konno, the titular bastard...
(1963) which Suzuki considered a turning point in his career. The two became good friends and Kimura became his permanent art director. They worked to refine their style which consisted of more artistry and symbolism than studio bosses generally preferred to see in their action films. Among their best known collaborations are Gate of Flesh
Gate of Flesh
is a 1964 Japanese film directed by Seijun Suzuki.-Synopsis:In an impoverished and burnt out Tokyo ghetto of post-World War II Japan, a band of prostitutes defend their territory, squatting in a bombed-out building. Somehow they eke out a living together...
(1964) and Tokyo Drifter
Tokyo Drifter
is a 1966 yakuza action film directed by Seijun Suzuki. The story follows Tetsuya Watari as the reformed yakuza hitman "Phoenix" Tetsu who is forced to roam Japan avoiding execution by rival gangs.-Plot:...
(1966), on which The Japan Times
The Japan Times
The Japan Times is an English language newspaper published in Japan. Unlike its competitors, the Daily Yomiuri and the International Herald Tribune/Asahi Shimbun, it is not affiliated with a Japanese language media organization...
' Mark Schilling wrote, "Who can forget the all-white nightclub in the latter film, with the huge donut-shape, color-shifting mobile — like nothing in real life but expressive of the film's go-go-era, anything-can-happen world." Suzuki considered the art director and cinematographer key collaborators and rewrote the scripts he was assigned over extended discussions with Kimura or 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...
s Katsue Nagatsuka or Shigeyoshi Mine. They would add characters and scenes or expand simple lines into elaborate shots. For his contributions to The Flower and the Angry Waves
The Flower and the Angry Waves
is a 1964 Japanese film directed by Seijun Suzuki.-External links:* at the Japanese Movie Database...
(1964) Kimura received his first screenwriting credit. He was also included in Hachirō Guryū, the joint pen name for the writing group which formed around Suzuki in the mid-1960s, along with six assistant director
Assistant director
The role of an Assistant director include tracking daily progress against the filming production schedule, arranging logistics, preparing daily call sheets, checking cast and crew, maintaining order on the set. They also have to take care of health and safety of the crew...
s, most prominently Atsushi Yamatoya and Chūsei Sone
Chusei Sone
is a Japanese film director known primarily for his stylish and popular Roman Porno films for Nikkatsu, particularly the first two installments of the Angel Guts series. Despite a somewhat uneven career, many mainstream critics consider Sone the best of Nikkatsu's Roman Porno directors.-Life and...
.
The Japanese film industry lost much of its viewership to television through the 1960s and, in order to avoid bankruptcy, Nikkatsu shut down regular productions in August, 1971, and in November began producing low cost Roman Pornos, romantic softcore pornography films. Kimura left Nikkatsu a couple years later in 1973 to work freelance
Freelancer
A freelancer, freelance worker, or freelance is somebody who is self-employed and is not committed to a particular employer long term. These workers are often represented by a company or an agency that resells their labor and that of others to its clients with or without project management and...
. He has continued to work steadily outside of the studio system and has since worked with a wide selection of directors including auteur Mitsuo Yanagimachi
Mitsuo Yanagimachi
Mitsuo Yanagimachi is an award-winning Japanese screenwriter and film director.-Career:...
and multiple collaborations with Kazuo Kuroki
Kazuo Kuroki
-Filmography:* Silence Has No Wings * Preparation for the Festival * Yūgure made * The Bridge of Tears * Tomorrow * Pickpocket * The Face of Jizo * The Blossoming of Kamiya Etsuko...
and 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 *...
. Stylistically, he continues to vary between the surrealistic, as in his subsequent collaborations with Suzuki, and the realistic, including his films with Kei Kumai
Kei Kumai
was a Japanese film director from Azumino, Nagano prefecture. After his studies in literature at Shinshu University, he worked as director's assistant....
. Kimura directed two short films in 2004, and the release of Mugen Sasurai (2004) afforded him the oldest directorial debut at age 86. Following a third and four short film, he directed his first feature-length film at age 90, Dreaming Awake
Dreaming Awake
Dreaming Awake is the titled debut album by the Christian power metal band Harmony It was released in 2003.-Track listing:#"Into the Afterlife" [Instrumental] – 2:06#"Eternity" – 5:14...
(2008), for which he was recognized by Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
for "the oldest debut as a feature film director". The film was based on his own novel, which touches on autobiographical elements, and more closely resembles his surrealistic collaborations with Suzuki—who appears in the film as an actor—than his more realistic art direction.
He remained among Japan's best known art directors, most famously for his work with Suzuki through the 1960s. In addition to film, Kimura had worked as a film and art critic, painter, writer, photographer, teacher and on the lecture circuit.
He died of interstitial pneumonia in a Tokyo hospital on March 21, 2010, at the age of 91.
Awards
Kimura has been nominated for nine Japanese Academy Awards for his art direction and won twice. At the 2nd annual ceremony in 1979, he was nominated for the Outstanding Achievement in a Technical Field for Love and Faith. He won the 1981 award for Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction for An Ocean to Cross, ZigeunerweisenZigeunerweisen (film)
is a 1980 independent Japanese film directed by Seijun Suzuki and based on Hyakken Uchida's novel, Disk of Sarasate. It takes its title from a gramophone recording of Pablo de Sarasate's violin composition, Zigeunerweisen, which features prominently in the story...
, A Long Way for a Motor Car and The Woman
The Woman
The Woman is a 2011 American crime horror film directed by Lucky McKee.-Plot:When a successful country lawyer captures and attempts to "civilize" the last remaining member of a violent clan that has roamed the Northeast coast for decades, he puts the lives of his family in jeopardy.-Cast:*...
. The following year, he was nomination in the same category for Kei Kumai
Kei Kumai
was a Japanese film director from Azumino, Nagano prefecture. After his studies in literature at Shinshu University, he worked as director's assistant....
's Willful Murder, and again in 1983 for the international co-production
International co-production
An international co-production is a production where two or more different production companies are working together, for example in a film production...
The Go Masters and Yukko no okurimono: Cosmos no yō ni. At the 12th annual ceremony in 1989, he was co-nominated with Noriyoshi Ikeya for their work on Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis
Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis
is a tokusatsu historical fantasy film produced in 1987 by Exe and distributed in 1988 by Toho Studios. It is the first live-action adaptation of the Teito Monogatari series by Hiroshi Aramata.-Plot:...
. Kimura received another nomination in 1990 for Kumai's The Death of a Tea Master. His second win came in 1991 for Mt. Aso's Passions, Childhood Days
Childhood Days
is a 1990 Japanese film directed by Masahiro Shinoda. It was chosen as Best Film at the Japan Academy Prize ceremony.-Synopsis:A story of childhood life during wartime Japan. Takeshi, the intelligent son of a fisherman, is the schoolyard bully. When his cousin comes to stay with his family to avoid...
and Hong Kong Paradise
Hong Kong Paradise
is a 1990 Japanese film directed by Shūsuke Kaneko. Actress Yuki Saito won the Best Actress award at the Yokohama Film Festival for her performance in this film....
. Bandō Tamasaburō
Bando Tamasaburo V
is a Kabuki actor, and the most popular and celebrated onnagata currently on stage. He has also acted in a handful of films....
's Yearning
Yearning (1993 film)
Yearning is a 1993 Japanese drama film directed by Bandō Tamasaburō V. It was entered into the 43rd Berlin International Film Festival.-Cast:* Sayuri Yoshinaga as Onami* Kyoko Kataoka as Kaede* Kirin Kiki as Omatsu* Toshiyuki Nagashima as Odabe...
earned Kimura his last nomination at the 1994 ceremony.
He won three Mainichi Film Awards for Best Art Direction. At the 9th annual ceremony in 1955, he won for A Certain Woman, made at Daiei
Kadokawa Pictures
is a Japanese movie studio.-History:One of the most famous studios in Japan and founded in 1942 as , it is best known for having produced the giant monster Gamera film series and the Daimajin Trilogy. It also produced the Zatoichi and Nemuri Kyoshiro film series and the television series Shōnen Jet...
, and Black Tide, made after he had moved to Nikkatsu
Nikkatsu
is a Japanese entertainment company well known for its film and television productions. It is Japan's oldest major movie studio. The name Nikkatsu is an abbreviation of Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally "Japan Cinematograph Company".-History:...
. He again won in 1982 for Kumai's Willful Murder. Finally, at the 1987 ceremony he won for The Sea and Poison
The Sea and Poison
is a 1986 Japanese film directed by Kei Kumai and based on a novel by Shusaku Endo.-Cast:* Eiji Okuda as Suguro* Ken Watanabe as Toda* Takahiro Tamura as Professor Hashimoto* Kyôko Kishida as Ohba, Head Nurse* Mikio Narita as Shibata* Shigeru Kôyama as Gondo...
, House of Wedlock
House of Wedlock
is a 1986 Japanese film directed by Kichitaro Negishi.-Synopsis:Tokiko Enomoto finds out that her husband Kazuya, who mostly lives at an apartment near his work while she and their children live at home, has been having an affair with a live-in mistress, Ryōko, at his apartment...
and To Sleep So as to Dream.
Additional awards include Best Artistic Contribution for Mt. Aso's Passions, at the 1990 Montreal World Film Festival
Montreal World Film Festival
The Montreal World Film Festival , founded in 1977, is one of Canada's oldest international film festivals and the only competitive film festival in North America accredited by the FIAPF...
, and Best Art Director for The Soul Odyssey, at the 2003 Yokohama Film Festival
Yokohama Film Festival
The is a noticed yearly awards ceremony held in Japan. The festival was started as a small affair by fans and film critics, and first held on February 3, 1980. Ten films are chosen as the best of the year, and various awards are given to personnel...
.