Yoji YAMADA
山田洋次
Yoji YAMADA, born in Osaka Prefecture in 1931, worked as an assistant director at the Shochiku production company after graduating from his law studies at Tokyo University. He made his directorial debut in 1961 with A STRANGER UPSTAIRS. In Japan, he is best known for the TORA-SAN series (1969–2019). With over 90 films and numerous awards to his credit, he is considered a grand master of Japanese cinema. In 2010, he received the Berlinale Camera for his life’s work. His films THE TWILIGHT SAMURAI (2002 / NC ’09) and NAGASAKI: MEMORIES OF MY SON (2015 / NC ’16) were both screened at Nippon Connection.