Known for movies
Short Info
Died | September 6, 1998, Seijo, Tokyo, Japan |
Spouse | Yōko Yaguchi |
Mark | Likes to do Shakespearan plays in Feudal Japanese settings |
Fact | Awarded the French Legion of Honor, 1984. |
Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director and screenwriter who is widely considered one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. He directed 30 films in a career spanning 57 years. His films include Rashomon, Ikiru, Seven Samurai, Yojimbo, Kagemusha, and Ran. He is credited with helping to bring Japanese cinema to the attention of Western audiences and influencing filmmakers such as Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, and Quentin Tarantino.
Born in Tokyo in 1910, Kurosawa began his career as a painter before moving into film. He initially worked as an assistant director before making his directorial debut with Sanshiro Sugata in 1943. His first major success came with Drunken Angel in 1948, which established him as one of the leading lights of the Japanese film industry.
Over the next few years, Kurosawa directed a number of critically acclaimed films, including Rashomon, which won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, and Seven Samurai, which is widely considered one of the greatest films ever made. In the 1960s, Kurosawa began to experience financial difficulties due to a series of box office flops, but he bounced back with a string of successful films in the 1970s and 1980s, including Kagemusha and Ran.
Kurosawa’s final film, Madadayo, was released in 1993. He died of a stroke in 1998 at the age of 88.
During his lifetime, Kurosawa won numerous awards and accolades, including an honorary Oscar for Lifetime Achievement in 1990 and the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival for Ran in 1985. His films have been widely praised for their technical mastery, beauty, and humanity, and he is frequently cited as one of the greatest directors of all time.
General Info
Full Name | Akira Kurosawa |
Died | September 6, 1998, Seijo, Tokyo, Japan |
Height | 1.82 m |
Profession | Film director, Screenwriter, Painter, Film producer, Film Editor |
Nationality | Japanese |
Family
Spouse | Yōko Yaguchi |
Children | Hisao Kurosawa, Kazuko Kurosawa |
Parents | Isamu Kurosawa, Shima Kurosawa |
Siblings | Heigo Kurosawa |
Accomplishments
Awards | Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, Academy Honorary Award, Palme d'Or, Golden Lion, César Award for Best Foreign Film, BAFTA Award for Best Direction, Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement, BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Language Film, David di Donatello for Best Foreign Director, Japan Aca... |
Nominations | Academy Award for Best Director, BAFTA Award for Best Film, Japan Academy Prize for Picture of the Year, Grand Jury Prize, Japan Academy Prize for Director of the Year, Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film, David di Donatello for Best Foreign Film, BAFTA Award ... |
Movies | Seven Samurai, Rashomon, Yojimbo, Throne of Blood, To Live, The Hidden Fortress, Ran, Sanjuro, Kagemusha, High and Low, Red Beard, Stray Dog, Drunken Angel, Dersu Uzala, The Bad Sleep Well, Dreams, Dodes'ka-den, Sanshiro Sugata, The Idiot, Madadayo, I Live in Fear, The Lower Depths, No Regrets for O... |
TV Shows | Samurai 7 |
Social profile links
Marks
# | Marks / Signs |
---|---|
1 | The (often demented) elderly or deceased are frequently misrepresented or unfairly maligned by those remembering them. |
2 | In his color films, use of bold, painterly visuals |
3 | Reoccurring cynical distrust of memories and nostalgia. |
4 | Revolutionary action sequences |
5 | His signature look on set: dark clothes, floppy hat and sunglasses |
6 | Driven characters who frequently end up failing in the goals but ultimately learn hard won life lessons |
7 | Female characters that are usually either sweet but weak and submissive or are deceitful, evil and conniving |
8 | Use of weather to heighten mood, most obviously rain |
9 | Painterly compositions |
10 | Often casts Toshirô Mifune , Takashi Shimura, & Tatsuya Nakadai |
11 | Likes to do Shakespearan plays in Feudal Japanese settings |
12 | Frequently uses the "wipe effect" to fade from one scene to another. This effect later became famous due to its usage in the Star Wars trilogy. |
Quotes
# | Quote |
---|---|
1 | The first film entitled Ikimono no kiroku (1955) and another film Hachi-gatsu no rapusodî (1991) were made about the atomic bomb. An episode of the film Dreams (1990) is devoted to this topic also. Concern about the atomic bomb is very important. For example, due to the shortage of energy, nuclear energy is used, but they don't know exactly how to dispose of the nuclear waste. So I see the hazards we face. If there is really a lack of energy, then we can try to conserve energy. In Tokyo, they use electricity like there is no tomorrow. This is not necessary. If only we could take the expertise of power plant employees and direct it towards creating energy using wind or natural sources. I believe that nuclear waste disposal is an extremely important issue. |
2 | In Japan, the society progressed through a rapid growth, which was an unnatural process. Daily life lost its natural course. To live, it became necessary to work beyond one's abilities. That's why instability among people has increased. |
3 | Regarding American cinema, I could say that much better films were made in the past. Today's American cinema provides the wrong service to the audience. Violence and car crashes are often seen. What pleasure is there in watching such scenes? Old American films expressed human problems quite well, but these days the American cinema has problems. There is no doubt that a film like Jurassic Park (1993) is interesting, but there used to be more impressive films in the past. In contrast, films, like those of Kiarostami, touch the heart and are very beautiful. These new sci-fi, action films, are good but they are not cinema. |
4 | A film must be made with the heart, not the mind. I think today's young filmmakers have forgotten this and instead they make films through their calculations. That is why Japanese films no longer have an audience. In all honesty, films must be made to target the hearts. During the time of Ozu, my mentor, and also in my time, no filmmaker made films based on theory and calculation, and that was why Japan's cinema was capable of shaping its golden years. Young filmmakers use techniques to humiliate the audience. This is wrong. We must serve cinema and make a film that would stimulate the audience. Ultimately, the aim should be to make an artistic film. That's simple, isn't it? |
5 | Civilization has poisoned humanity. The backbone of a good film is the filmmaker's humane character. If we are not honest to ourselves, we will never be able to make decent films. Actually, it doesn't mean that if a country is well off, it is necessarily capable of making good films. A person, who is able to make good films, knows how to find his or her way into the viewer's heart; such as John Ford, Jean Renoir, John Huston, Federico Fellini,[ Theodoros Angelopoulos], Sidney Lumet... I've met every one of them and have spoken to them. Just as they have exceptional works, they were also very distinguished in character. It was very easy to establish a cordial relationship with them, which is quite important. The people that are depicted on screen in their films are not predetermined characters. They express human problems in a natural way. That's why their films are fascinating. Sidney Lumet is a close friend of mine, and whenever we sit down to talk we never discuss cinema. We generally discuss trivial matters, social problems or our hobbies, and we quite enjoy it. Reporters always ask me what the content of my film is and I tell them that there is no such a thing. I say ordinary things. A film is not supposed to be a lecture. |
6 | Never having seen a Satyajit Ray film is like never having seen the sun or the moon. |
7 | [on watching Solaris with Andrei Tarkovsky] Tarkovsky was sitting in the corner of the screening room watching the film with me, but he got up as soon as the film was over and looked at me with a shy smile. I said to him, "It's very good. It's a frightening movie." He seemed embarrassed but smiled happily. Then the two of us went to a film union restaurant and toasted with vodka. Tarkovsky, who does not usually drink, got completely drunk and cut off the speakers at the restaurant, then began singing the theme of Seven Samurai at the top of his voice. I joined in, eager to keep up. At that moment, I was very happy to be on Earth. |
8 | A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet. |
9 | Movie directors, or should I say people who create things, are very greedy and they can never be satisfied... That's why they can keep on working. I've been able to work for so long because I think next time, I'll make something good. |
10 | A film director has to convince a great number of people to follow him and work with him. I often say, although I am certainly not a militarist, that if you compare the production unit to an army, the script is the battle flag and the director is the commander of the front line. From the moment production begins to the moment it ends, there is no telling what will happen. The director must be able to respond to any situation, and he must have the leadership ability to make the whole unit go along with his responses. |
11 | Unless you know every aspect and phase of the film-production process, you can't be a movie director. A movie director is like a front-line commanding officer. He needs a thorough knowledge of every branch of the service, and if he doesn't command each division, he cannot command the whole. |
12 | The role of a director encompasses the coaching of the actors, the cinematography, the sound recording, the art direction, the music, the editing and the dubbing and sound-mixing. Altough these can be thought of as separate occupations, I do not regard them as independent. I see them all melting together under the heading of direction |
13 | I begin rehearsals in the actors' dressing room. First I have them repeat their lines, and gradually proceed to the movements. But this is done with costumes and makeup on from the beginning; then we repeat everything on the set. The thoroughness of the rehearsals makes the actual shooting every time very short. We don't rehearse just the actors, but every part of every scene - the camera movements, the lightning, everything. |
14 | [on Kenji Mizoguchi] Of all Japanese directors I have the greatest respect for him. . . . With the death of Mizoguchi, Japanese film lost its truest creator. |
15 | [on his discovery of Toshirô Mifune during casting of Drunken Angel (1948)] I am a person who is rarely impressed by actors, but in the case of Mifune, I was completely overwhelmed. |
16 | [on Toshirô Mifune] Mifune had a kind of talent I had never encountered before in the Japanese film world. It was, above all, the speed with which he expressed himself that was astounding. The ordinary Japanese actor might need ten feet of film to get across an impression; Mifune needed only three. The speed of his movements was such that he said in a single action what took ordinary actors three separate movements to express. He put forth everything directly and boldly, and his sense of timing was the keenest I had ever seen in a Japanese actor. And yet with all his quickness, he also had surprisingly fine sensibilities. |
17 | {on witnessing the aftermath of the 1923 Tokyo earthquake, and the ensuing riots] Amid the expanse of nauseating redness lay every kind of corpse imaginable. I saw corpses charred black, half-burned corpses, corpses in gutters, corpses floating in rivers, corpses piled up on bridges, corpses blocking off a whole street at an intersection, and every manner of death possible to human beings displayed by corpses. When I involuntarily looked away, my brother scolded me, "Akira, look carefully now". Looking back on that excursion now, I realize that it must have been horrifying for my brother, too. It had been an expedition to conquer fear. |
18 | I believe that what pertains only to myself is not interesting enough to record and leave behind me. More important is my conviction that if I were to write anything at all, it would turn out to be nothing but talk about movies. In other words, take 'myself', subtract 'movies', and the result is zero. |
19 | [on Mikio Naruse] Naruse's Method consists of staging one very brief shot after another; but when we look at them placed end-to-end in the finished film, they give the impression of one long single take. The fluidity is so perfect that the cuts are invisible . . . A flow of shots that looks calm and ordinary at first glance reveals itself to be like a deep river with a quiet surface disguising a fast-raging current. |
20 | Being an artist means not having to avert one's eyes. |
21 | To have not seen the films of Ray is to have lived in the world without ever having seen the moon and the sun. |
22 | Human beings are unable to be honest with themselves about themselves. They cannot talk about themselves without embellishing. |
23 | When I start on a film I always have a number of ideas about my project. Then one of them begins to germinate, to sprout, and it is this which I take and work with. My films come from my need to say a particular thing at a particular time. The beginning of any film for me is this need to express something. It is to make it nurture and grow that I write my script- it is directing it that makes my tree blossom and bear fruit. |
24 | I like unformed characters. This may be because, no matter how old I get, I am still unformed myself. |
25 | Good Westerns are liked by everyone. Since humans are weak, they want to see good people and great heroes. Westerns have been done over and over again, and in the process a kind of grammar has evolved. I have learned much from this grammar of the Western. |
26 | It is quite enough if a human being has but one field where he is strong. If a human being were strong in every field it wouldn't be nice for other people, would it? |
27 | So long as my pictures are hits I can afford to be unreasonable. Of course, if they start losing money then I've made some enemies. |
28 | In all my films, there's three or maybe four minutes of real cinema. |
29 | With a good script, a good director can produce a masterpiece. With the same script, a mediocre director can produce a passable film. But with a bad script even a good director can't possibly make a good film. For truly cinematic expression, the camera and the microphone must be able to cross both fire and water. The script must be something that has the power to do this. |
30 | The characters in my films try to live honestly and make the most of the lives they've been given. I believe you must live honestly and develop your abilities to the full. People who do this are the real heros. |
31 | Human beings share the same common problems. A film can only be understood if it depicts these properly. |
32 | For me, film-making combines everything. That's the reason I've made cinema my life's work. In films painting and literature, theatre and music come together. But a film is still a film. |
Facts
# | Fact |
---|---|
1 | The Akira Kurosawa School of Film was launched in April 2015, offering an online Master of Fine Arts in Digital Filmmaking. |
2 | His family, when traced back a few generations, were samurais from the Akita Prefecture. Kurosawa said later that his father, who was tall, with a commanding presence and worked as a fitness instructor, had a bearing he thought was samurai-like. Unlike his father, Kurosawa himself was never athletically inclined. |
3 | Like his fellow World Cinema masters, Ingmar Bergman (who started in live theater) and Federico Fellini (who started in journalism) he came to cinema via circumvention after working as a painter. |
4 | A theoretical interpretation of his work can be found in "Akira Kurosawa and Intertextual Cinema" by James Goodwin, published by Johns Hopkins in 1994. |
5 | Interviewed in "World Directors in Dialogue" by Bert Cardullo (Scarecrow Press, 2011). |
6 | Father of Kazuko Kurosawa. |
7 | Father of Hisao Kurosawa. |
8 | Awarded the Kyoto Prize, 1994. |
9 | Awarded the French Legion of Honor, 1984. |
10 | His mentor was 'Kajiro Yamamoto'. |
11 | Is not related to Kiyoshi Kurosawa. |
12 | He was made a Fellow of the British Film Institute in recognition of his outstanding contribution to film culture. |
13 | Many of the characters in his period films were loosely based on historical figures. |
14 | He believed his years as an assistant director were invaluable. In Japanese cinema at that time, assistant directors dabbled in virtually every aspect of film production and Kurosawa, among other things, learned all about editing, set-decorating, costume-design and working with actors. Almost all of the assistant directors in Kurosawa's day were aspiring to become full-fledged directors. He felt that it was a shame that, in more modern Japanese cinema and in America, the assistant director doesn't accrue as much experience and usually permanently stays as an assistant director throughout his career and that there would be a great number of excellent directors had they had his training. |
15 | He was a fan of the work of Sergei M. Eisenstein, who, like Kurosawa, edited his own films. |
16 | He named the film that made him want to work in cinema as Abel Gance's film La roue (1923), particularly certain kinetic shots of trains. |
17 | His favorite Japanese director was Kenji Mizoguchi. |
18 | Although his "samurai" films are considered the archetypal samurai films over the rest of the world, they were actually considered atypical in Japan. Most Japanese samurai films had been set in the 18th & 19th centuries, when a peaceful Japan was at the peak of its nationalism, with the largest number of bushido code-adhering samurai. Kurosawa's films typically feature individualistic "ronin" (masterless samurai) rather than true "samurai" and a majority are set in the far more chaotic feudal periods (16th-17th centuries) when the Japanese were engaged in civil war. |
19 | He was infamous for his perfectionism. Among the related tales are his insisting a stream be made to run in the opposite direction in order to get a better visual effect, and having the roof of a house removed, later to be replaced, because he felt the roof's presence to be unattractive in a short sequence filmed from a train. He also required that all the actors in his period films had to wear their costumes for several weeks, daily, before filming so that they would look lived in. |
20 | One his closest friends was Ishirô Honda, the writer-director behind Gojira (1954). |
21 | Several of his films have been remade in America as westerns. Seven Samurai (1954) ("The Seven Samurai") was remade as The Magnificent Seven (1960), and Yojimbo (1961) ("The Bodyguard") was remade as A Fistful of Dollars (1964). In addition, The Hidden Fortress (1958) ("The Hidden Fortress") was a major inspiration for the "Star Wars" saga, which takes many inspirations from westerns and is often referred to as a space western. Common story elements include Gen. Makabe, who became Obi-Wan Kenobi; Princess Yuki, who became Princess Leia and whose trick of disguising herself as a handmaiden would later be used by Queen Amidala; and the farmers from whose viewpoint the film is told, Matashichi and Tahei, whose constant bickering inspired C-3PO and R2-D2. |
22 | He was a fan of the films of Satyajit Ray. |
23 | He was born the youngest of four children for Isamu and Shima Kurosawa. As a child, he revered his elder brother Heigo. While young Akira was mainly into painting, Heigo was a film-lover and worked as a "benshi", a narrator/ commentator for foreign silent films. Akira's love for film was handed down from his brother. Unfortunately, Heigo suffered from depression and committed suicide. Short thereafter, both Akira's eldest brother and only sister died from illnesses, leaving Akira the only remaining child. His siblings' deaths (particularly that of Heigo) was a traumatic experience for Akira and is thought to have considerably darkened his world view. |
24 | He worked with most of his cast and crew members repeatedly, similarly to the way his idol John Ford used the same people again and again. When Kurosawa was at his working peak, it was widely thought that if he didn't work with an actor or crew member again, the implication was that he did not like them. |
25 | His two favorite actors to work with were apparently Takashi Shimura and, more famously, Toshirô Mifune. Kurosawa made 16 films with Mifune (almost always in a leading role) and 21 films with Shimura (in either a leading or supporting role). |
26 | In the 1990s he referred to Kagemusha (1980), which some have considered a great film on its own, as a mere "dress rehearsal" for Ran (1985) (both are epics about failing emperors set roughly in the same historical era), with the latter film having been his passion for roughly a decade before he made it. |
27 | Ranked #6 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Greatest directors ever!" [2005] |
28 | His Dodes'ka-den (1970), Dersu Uzala (1975) and Kagemusha (1980) were Oscar-nominated for "Best Foreign Language Film". "Dersu Uzala" won. Rashômon (1950) won an Honorary Award as the most outstanding foreign language film released in the United States during 1951. |
29 | He had a son Hisao (b. 20-Dec-1945), and a daughter, award-winning film costume designer Kazuko (b. 29-Apr-1954). |
30 | According to his family, he rarely thought about anything other than films. Even when at home, he would sit around silently, apparently composing shots in his head. |
31 | Unbeknownst to many people, Kurosawa had always wanted to make a Godzilla film of his own, but the executives at Toho Co., Ltd. (the Japanese studio that produces all the Godzilla films) wouldn't let him because they feared it would cost too much. |
32 | Kurosawa worshiped legendary American director John Ford, his primary influence as a filmmaker. When the two met, Ford was uncommonly pleasant to the younger Japanese filmmaker and afterwards Kurosawa dressed in a similar fashion to Ford when on film sets. |
33 | Biography in: John Wakeman, editor. "World Film Directors, Volume One, 1890- 1945". Pages 583-605. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1987. |
34 | He was voted the 6th greatest director of all time by Entertainment Weekly, making him one among only two Asians along with Satyajit Ray (who is ranked in 25th position) on a list of 50 directors and the highest ranking non-American. |
35 | Although the Japanese press tried to paint him as a tyrant, almost all of his casts and crews agreed he was a much more cool and detached presence on sets. Many also described him as "intense". |
36 | At over 6' feet tall, he was extremely large by Japanese standards, having stood a head taller than any of his colleagues. |
37 | Because he could not get film financing for a period of time in his career, he directed and even appeared in Japanese television commercials. |
38 | In December 1971, after a period of suffering from mental fatigue and frustrated with a run of unsatisfying and sub par directing work, Kurosawa attempted suicide by slashing his wrist thirty times with a razor. Fortunately, the wounds were not fatal and he made a full recovery. |
39 | His films are frequently copied and remade by American and European filmmakers. |
Pictures
Movies
Writer
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
Nioh | 2017 | Video Game based on original material by | |
The Magnificent Seven | 2016 | based on the screenplay by | |
Norainu | 2013 | TV Movie based on a script by | |
U mong pa meung | 2011 | based on screenplay by | |
Kakushi toride no san akunin | 2008 | original screenplay | |
Tsubaki Sanjûrô | 2007 | screenplay | |
Samurai 7 | 2004 | TV Series film "Shichinin no samurai" - 26 episodes | |
The Sea Is Watching | 2002 | original screenplay | |
Dora-heita | 2000 | screenplay | |
Ame agaru | 1999 | screenplay | |
Last Man Standing | 1996 | story | |
Maadadayo | 1993 | writer | |
Hachi-gatsu no rapusodî | 1991 | ||
Dreams | 1990 | written by | |
Fame | 1986 | TV Series based on the Japanese Daiei film "Rashomon" by - 1 episode | |
Runaway Train | 1985 | based on a screenplay by | |
Ran | 1985 | screenplay | |
Kagemusha | 1980 | ||
Dersu Uzala | 1975 | screenplay - as Akira Kurosava | |
Nora inu | 1973 | 1949 screenplay | |
Dodes'ka-den | 1970 | screenplay | |
Tora! Tora! Tora! | 1970 | Japanese sequences - uncredited | |
Xue cheng | 1968 | screenplay | |
Sanshiro Sugata | 1965 | 1943 screenplay "Sugata Sanshiro" and 1945 screenplay "Zoku Sugata Sanshiro" | |
Red Beard | 1965 | screenplay | |
The Outrage | 1964 | screenplay "Rashomon" | |
Jakoman to Tetsu | 1964 | and earlier screenplay | |
High and Low | 1963 | screenplay | |
Tateshi Danpei | 1962 | 1950 screenplay Tateshi danpei | |
Sanjuro | 1962 | screenplay | |
Yojimbo | 1961 | screenplay / story | |
Play of the Week | 1960 | TV Series teleplay - 1 episode | |
The Magnificent Seven | 1960 | screenplay "Shichinin no samurai" - uncredited | |
The Bad Sleep Well | 1960 | written by | |
Sengoku gunto-den | 1959 | writer | |
The Hidden Fortress | 1958 | written by | |
Nichiro sensô shôri no hishi: Tekichû ôdan sanbyaku-ri | 1957 | earlier screenplay "Techiku odan sanbyaku ri" / screenplay | |
The Lower Depths | 1957 | ||
Throne of Blood | 1957 | screenplay | |
Sanshiro Sugata | 1955 | ||
Ikimono no kiroku | 1955 | story | |
Asunaro monogatari | 1955 | screenplay | |
Kieta chutai | 1955 | ||
Seven Samurai | 1954 | screenplay | |
My Wonderful Yellow Car | 1953 | writer | |
Ikiru | 1952 | written by | |
Sword for Hire | 1952 | ||
Araki Mataemon: Kettô kagiya no tsuji | 1952 | ||
Kedamono no yado | 1951 | ||
The Idiot | 1951 | ||
Beyond Love and Hate | 1951 | ||
Rashômon | 1950 | screenplay | |
Tateshi Danpei | 1950 | ||
Jiruba Tetsu | 1950 | ||
Scandal | 1950 | ||
Desertion at Dawn | 1950 | ||
Stray Dog | 1949 | writer | |
Jakoman and Tetsu | 1949 | writer | |
Jigoku no kifujin | 1949 | writer | |
The Quiet Duel | 1949 | writer | |
Shozo | 1948 | writer | |
Drunken Angel | 1948 | written by | |
Snow Trail | 1947 | ||
Subarashiki nichiyôbi | 1947 | ||
Yottsu no koi no monogatari | 1947 | segment "Hatsukoi" | |
Waga seishun ni kuinashi | 1946 | screenplay - uncredited | |
The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail | 1945 | ||
Zoku Sugata Sanshirô | 1945 | ||
Appare Isshin Tasuke | 1945 | screenplay | |
Ichiban utsukushiku | 1944 | ||
Dohyosai | 1944 | ||
Sanshiro Sugata | 1943 | writer | |
Tsubasa no gaika | 1942 | ||
Seishun no kiryû | 1942 | ||
Uma | 1941 | uncredited |
Director
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
Maadadayo | 1993 | ||
Hachi-gatsu no rapusodî | 1991 | ||
Dreams | 1990 | ||
Ran | 1985 | ||
Kagemusha | 1980 | ||
Dersu Uzala | 1975 | as Akira Kurosava | |
Dodes'ka-den | 1970 | ||
Uma no uta | 1970 | TV Movie documentary | |
Red Beard | 1965 | ||
High and Low | 1963 | ||
Sanjuro | 1962 | ||
Yojimbo | 1961 | ||
The Bad Sleep Well | 1960 | ||
The Hidden Fortress | 1958 | ||
The Lower Depths | 1957 | ||
Throne of Blood | 1957 | ||
Ikimono no kiroku | 1955 | ||
Seven Samurai | 1954 | ||
Ikiru | 1952 | ||
The Idiot | 1951 | ||
Rashômon | 1950 | ||
Scandal | 1950 | ||
Stray Dog | 1949 | ||
The Quiet Duel | 1949 | ||
Drunken Angel | 1948 | ||
Subarashiki nichiyôbi | 1947 | ||
Waga seishun ni kuinashi | 1946 | ||
Asu o tsukuru hitobito | 1946 | ||
The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail | 1945 | ||
Zoku Sugata Sanshirô | 1945 | ||
Ichiban utsukushiku | 1944 | ||
Sanshiro Sugata | 1943 | ||
Uma | 1941 | some scenes, uncredited |
Assistant Director
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
Uma | 1941 | assistant director / second unit director | |
Enoken no songokû: songokû zenko-hen | 1940 | chief assistant director | |
Enoken no zangiri Kinta | 1940 | chief assistant director | |
Roppa no shinkon ryoko | 1940 | chief assistant director | |
Nonki Yokocho | 1939 | chief assistant director | |
Chushingura (Go) | 1939 | chief assistant director | |
Enoken no gatchiri jidai | 1939 | chief assistant director | |
Enoken no bikkuri jinsei | 1938 | chief assistant director | |
Tsuzurikata kyoshitsu | 1938 | chief assistant director | |
Tôjûrô no koi | 1938 | chief assistant director | |
Chinetsu | 1938 | chief assistant director | |
Utsukushiki taka | 1937 | chief assistant director | |
Enoken no chakkiri Kinta 'Go', kaeri wa kowai, mateba hiyori | 1937 | third assistant director | |
Enoken no chakkiri Kinta 'Zen' - Mamayo sandogasa - Ikiwa yoiyoi | 1937 | third assistant director | |
Nadare | 1937 | third assistant director | |
Nihon josei dokuhon | 1937 | third assistant director | |
A Husband's Chastity: Fall Once Again | 1937 | third assistant director | |
Otto no teiso - haru kitareba | 1937 | third assistant director | |
Sengoku guntô-den - Dai nibu: Akatsuki no zenshin | 1937 | third assistant director | |
Sengoku guntô-den - Dai ichibu: Toraôkami | 1937 | third assistant director | |
Tokyo rapusodei | 1936 | third assistant director | |
Enoken's Ten Millions 2 | 1936 | third assistant director | |
Enoken no senman chôja | 1936 | third assistant director | |
Shojo Hanazono | 1936 | third assistant director |
Editor
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
Maadadayo | 1993 | ||
Hachi-gatsu no rapusodî | 1991 | ||
Ran | 1985 | ||
500,000 | 1963 | uncredited | |
Yojimbo | 1961 | ||
The Bad Sleep Well | 1960 | ||
The Hidden Fortress | 1958 | ||
The Lower Depths | 1957 | ||
Asunaro monogatari | 1955 | ||
Seven Samurai | 1954 | ||
The Idiot | 1951 | ||
Rashômon | 1950 | ||
Snow Trail | 1947 | uncredited | |
Waga seishun ni kuinashi | 1946 | ||
Zoku Sugata Sanshirô | 1945 | uncredited | |
Sanshiro Sugata | 1943 | ||
Uma | 1941 |
Producer
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
Kagemusha | 1980 | executive producer / producer | |
Dodes'ka-den | 1970 | planner / producer | |
Sanshiro Sugata | 1965 | producer | |
High and Low | 1963 | associate producer | |
Yojimbo | 1961 | producer | |
The Bad Sleep Well | 1960 | producer | |
The Hidden Fortress | 1958 | producer | |
The Lower Depths | 1957 | producer | |
Throne of Blood | 1957 | producer | |
Stray Dog | 1949 | associate producer | |
Haru no tawamure | 1949 | associate producer |
Soundtrack
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
The 62nd Annual Academy Awards | 1990 | TV Special performer: "Happy Birthday to You" | |
Drunken Angel | 1948 | lyrics: "Janguru bugi" |
Sound Department
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
Tôjûrô no koi | 1938 | dubbing supervisor |
Miscellaneous
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
China Gate | 1998 | in tribute to |
Thanks
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
Nosferatu vs. Father Pipecock & Sister Funk | 2014 | special thanks | |
A Little Bit Zombie | 2012 | acknowledgment to the works of | |
Elefantes sobre una telaraña | 2011 | Short thanks - as Kurosawa | |
U mong pa meung | 2011 | film dedicated to | |
Star Wars: The Clone Wars | 2010 | TV Series in memory of - 1 episode | |
777 | 2007 | Short dedicatee | |
Black Santa's Revenge | 2007 | Short special thanks | |
Yau doh lung fu bong | 2004 | dedicatee | |
Ame agaru | 1999 | in memory of | |
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai | 1999 | personal thanks | |
Visions of Light | 1992 | Documentary special thanks: AFI |
Self
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
Fûshi kaden | 2007 | Documentary short | Himself |
Kurosawa Akira: Tsukuru to iu koto wa subarashii | 2002 | TV Series documentary short | Himself |
Eiga ni koishite aishite ikite Akira Kurosawa & Hayao Miyazaki | 1993 | TV Movie | Himself |
Takeshi no big talk | 1993 | TV Movie | Himself |
Waga eiga jinsei | 1993 | TV Movie | Himself |
Akira Kurosawa Making 'Rhapsody in August' | 1991 | Video documentary | Himself |
MAKING OF DREAMS: Kurosawa Akira and Ôbayashi Nobuhiko- Eiga no Taiwa | 1990 | Video documentary | Himself |
The 62nd Annual Academy Awards | 1990 | TV Special | Himself - Honorary Award Recipient |
The 58th Annual Academy Awards | 1986 | TV Special | Himself - Nominee: Best Director & Co-Presenter: Best Picture |
A.K. | 1985 | Documentary | Himself |
Étoiles et toiles | 1985 | TV Series documentary | Himself |
The South Bank Show | 1980 | TV Series documentary | Himself |
Billy Baxter Presents Diary of the Cannes Film Festival with Rex Reed | 1980 | TV Movie documentary | Himself |
75 Years of Cinema Museum | 1972 | Documentary | Himself |
The 42nd Annual Academy Awards | 1970 | TV Special | Himself - Commenting on New Freedom and Trends in Film: Pre-Recorded |
Archive Footage
Title | Year | Status | Character |
---|---|---|---|
49º premis Sant Jordi de cinematografía | 2005 | TV Special | Himself |
Tsukuru to iu koto wa subarashii! Kurosawa Akira: Korega Kuroswa sasupensu da | 2003 | Video documentary short | Himself |
Tsukuru to iu koto wa subarashii! Kurosawa Akira: Shikisai wo te ni ireta Kurosawa Akira | 2003 | Video documentary short | Himself |
Great Performances | 2000 | TV Series | Himself |
Kurosawa Akira kara no messêji: Utsukushii eiga o | 2000 | Video documentary | Himself |
The 71st Annual Academy Awards | 1999 | TV Special | Himself - Memorial Tribute |
Arena | 2016 | TV Series documentary | Himself |
And the Oscar Goes To... | 2014 | TV Movie documentary | Himself |
Hodo Station | 2013 | TV Series | Himself |
What Is Cinema? | 2013 | Documentary | Himself |
Cinema 3 | 2010 | TV Series | Himself |
Kyôiku terebi no gyakushû: Yomigaeru kyoshô no kotoba | 2009 | TV Movie | Himself |
The Making of 'Drunken Angel' | 2007 | Video documentary short | Himself |
Challenging Kurosawa: Yoshimitsu Morita Remakes 'Sanjuro' | 2007 | TV Movie documentary | Himself |
Cinema mil | 2005 | TV Series | Himself |
Awards
Won Awards
Year | Award | Ceremony | Nomination | Movie |
---|---|---|---|---|
2001 | Award of the Japanese Academy | Awards of the Japanese Academy | Best Screenplay | Ame agaru (1999) |
1999 | Lifetime Achievement Award | Awards of the Japanese Academy | ||
1999 | Special Award | Blue Ribbon Awards | For his work. | |
1999 | Special Award | Mainichi Film Concours | For his work. | |
1998 | Special Award | Nikkan Sports Film Awards | For his work. | |
1992 | Lifetime Achievement Award | Directors Guild of America, USA | ||
1990 | Honorary Award | Academy Awards, USA | For cinematic accomplishments that have inspired, delighted, enriched and entertained worldwide ... More | |
1987 | BAFTA Film Award | BAFTA Awards | Best Foreign Language Film | Ran (1985) |
1987 | ALFS Award | London Critics Circle Film Awards | Director of the Year | Ran (1985) |
1986 | Amanda | Amanda Awards, Norway | Best Foreign Feature Film (Årets utenlandske spillefilm) | Ran (1985) |
1986 | Blue Ribbon Award | Blue Ribbon Awards | Best Film | Ran (1985) |
1986 | Bodil | Bodil Awards | Best European Film (Bedste europæiske film) | Ran (1985) |
1986 | BFI Fellowship | British Film Institute Awards | ||
1986 | David | David di Donatello Awards | Best Foreign Director (Migliore Regista Straniero) | Ran (1985) |
1986 | Golden Jubilee Special Award | Directors Guild of America, USA | ||
1986 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Film | Ran (1985) |
1986 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Director | Ran (1985) |
1986 | Akira Kurosawa Award | San Francisco International Film Festival | ||
1985 | LAFCA Award | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards | Best Foreign Film | Ran (1985) |
1985 | Career Achievement Award | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards | ||
1985 | NBR Award | National Board of Review, USA | Best Director | Ran (1985) |
1985 | OCIC Award | San Sebastián International Film Festival | Ran (1985) | |
1982 | Career Golden Lion | Venice Film Festival | ||
1981 | BAFTA Film Award | BAFTA Awards | Best Direction | Kagemusha (1980) |
1981 | Blue Ribbon Award | Blue Ribbon Awards | Best Film | Kagemusha (1980) |
1981 | César | César Awards, France | Best Foreign Film (Meilleur film étranger) | Kagemusha (1980) |
1981 | David | David di Donatello Awards | Best Foreign Director (Migliore Regista Straniero) | Kagemusha (1980) |
1981 | Silver Ribbon | Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists | Best Foreign Director (Regista del Miglior Film Straniero) | Kagemusha (1980) |
1981 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Film | Kagemusha (1980) |
1981 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Director | Kagemusha (1980) |
1981 | Readers' Choice Award | Mainichi Film Concours | Kagemusha (1980) | |
1980 | Palme d'Or | Cannes Film Festival | Kagemusha (1980) | |
1980 | Hochi Film Award | Hochi Film Awards | Best Film | Kagemusha (1980) |
1979 | Honorary Prize | Moscow International Film Festival | For the contribution to the cinema. | |
1978 | Critics Award | French Syndicate of Cinema Critics | Best Foreign Film | Dersu Uzala (1975) |
1977 | David | David di Donatello Awards | Best Foreign Director (Migliore Regista Straniero) | Dersu Uzala (1975) |
1977 | Silver Ribbon | Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists | Best Foreign Director (Regista del Miglior Film Straniero) | Dersu Uzala (1975) |
1975 | Golden Prize | Moscow International Film Festival | Dersu Uzala (1975) | |
1975 | FIPRESCI Prize | Moscow International Film Festival | Dersu Uzala (1975) | |
1971 | OCIC Award | Venice Film Festival | Dodesukaden (1970) | |
1966 | Blue Ribbon Award | Blue Ribbon Awards | Best Film | Akahige (1965) |
1966 | Kinema Junpo Award | Kinema Junpo Awards | Best Film | Akahige (1965) |
1966 | Kinema Junpo Award | Kinema Junpo Awards | Best Director | Akahige (1965) |
1966 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Film | Akahige (1965) |
1965 | OCIC Award | Venice Film Festival | Akahige (1965) | |
1965 | San Giorgio Prize | Venice Film Festival | Akahige (1965) | |
1964 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Film | Tengoku to jigoku (1963) |
1964 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Screenplay | Tengoku to jigoku (1963) |
1959 | Silver Berlin Bear | Berlin International Film Festival | Best Director | Kakushi-toride no san-akunin (1958) |
1959 | FIPRESCI Prize | Berlin International Film Festival | Kakushi-toride no san-akunin (1958) | |
1959 | Blue Ribbon Award | Blue Ribbon Awards | Best Film | Kakushi-toride no san-akunin (1958) |
1959 | Diploma of Merit | Jussi Awards | Foreign Director | Shichinin no samurai (1954) |
1954 | Special Prize of the Senate of Berlin | Berlin International Film Festival | Ikiru (1952) | |
1954 | Silver Lion | Venice Film Festival | Shichinin no samurai (1954) | |
1953 | Kinema Junpo Award | Kinema Junpo Awards | Best Film | Ikiru (1952) |
1953 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Film | Ikiru (1952) |
1953 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Screenplay | Ikiru (1952) |
1951 | Blue Ribbon Award | Blue Ribbon Awards | Best Screenplay | Rashômon (1950) |
1951 | NBR Award | National Board of Review, USA | Best Director | Rashômon (1950) |
1951 | Golden Lion | Venice Film Festival | Rashômon (1950) | |
1951 | Italian Film Critics Award | Venice Film Festival | Rashômon (1950) | |
1949 | Kinema Junpo Award | Kinema Junpo Awards | Best Film | Yoidore tenshi (1948) |
1949 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Film | Yoidore tenshi (1948) |
1948 | Mainichi Film Concours | Mainichi Film Concours | Best Director | Subarashiki nichiyôbi (1947) |
Nominated Awards
Year | Award | Ceremony | Nomination | Movie |
---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | CFCA Award | Chicago Film Critics Association Awards | Best Foreign Language Film | Madadayo (1993) |
1992 | Award of the Japanese Academy | Awards of the Japanese Academy | Best Director | Hachi-gatsu no kyôshikyoku (1991) |
1992 | Award of the Japanese Academy | Awards of the Japanese Academy | Best Screenplay | Hachi-gatsu no kyôshikyoku (1991) |
1991 | Award of the Japanese Academy | Awards of the Japanese Academy | Best Director | Dreams (1990) |
1987 | BAFTA Film Award | BAFTA Awards | Best Screenplay - Adapted | Ran (1985) |
1986 | Oscar | Academy Awards, USA | Best Director | Ran (1985) |
1986 | César | César Awards, France | Best Foreign Film (Meilleur film étranger) | Ran (1985) |
1986 | David | David di Donatello Awards | Best Foreign Film (Miglior Film Straniero) | Ran (1985) |
1981 | BAFTA Film Award | BAFTA Awards | Best Film | Kagemusha (1980) |
1965 | Golden Lion | Venice Film Festival | Akahige (1965) | |
1964 | Edgar | Edgar Allan Poe Awards | Best Foreign Film | Tengoku to jigoku (1963) |
1963 | Golden Lion | Venice Film Festival | Tengoku to jigoku (1963) | |
1961 | Golden Berlin Bear | Berlin International Film Festival | Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru (1960) | |
1961 | Golden Lion | Venice Film Festival | Yôjinbô (1961) | |
1959 | Golden Berlin Bear | Berlin International Film Festival | Kakushi-toride no san-akunin (1958) | |
1957 | Golden Lion | Venice Film Festival | Kumonosu-jô (1957) | |
1956 | Palme d'Or | Cannes Film Festival | Ikimono no kiroku (1955) | |
1954 | Golden Lion | Venice Film Festival | Shichinin no samurai (1954) | |
1953 | DGA Award | Directors Guild of America, USA | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures | Rashômon (1950) |
2nd Place Awards
Year | Award | Ceremony | Nomination | Movie |
---|---|---|---|---|
1986 | NSFC Award | National Society of Film Critics Awards, USA | Best Director | Ran (1985) |
1985 | LAFCA Award | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards | Best Director | Ran (1985) |
1985 | NYFCC Award | New York Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Director | Ran (1985) |