Junji Sakamoto

Japanese film director

Junji Sakamoto

Junji Sakamoto at the 2018 Tokyo International Film Festival

Born|  (1958-01-01) January 1, 1958 (age 67)

Sakai, Osaka, Japan

Occupation| Film director
Years active| 1989–present

Junji Sakamoto (阪本 順治, Sakamoto Junji; born October 1, 1958 in Sakai, Osaka) is a Japanese film director.

## Career

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After working as a set assistant or assistant director under such filmmakers as Sogo Ishii and Kazuyuki Izutsu, he made his directorial debut in 1989 with Dotsuitarunen (earning the Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award[1]) and followed it up with another boxing film, Tekken, in 1990. Sakamoto became known for action films focusing on the conflicts between male characters, such as Tokarefu and New Battles Without Honor and Humanity, but has also made films centered on female characters such as Face and Awakening. He won the award for Best Director at the 24th Japan Academy Prize and at the 22nd Yokohama Film Festival for Face.[2][3] He won the Special Jury prize for My House at the Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival in 2003.[4]

Chameleon, an action film starring Tatsuya Fujiwara and Asami Mizukawa, screened at the Busan International Film Festival in 2008.[5] Children of the Dark, a thriller film shot in Thailand, was denied to screen at the Bangkok International Film Festival in 2008.[6][7] Zatoichi: The Last, a jidaigeki film starring Shingo Katori, and Strangers in the City, a thriller film starring Toru Nakamura and Manami Konishi, were both released in 2010.[8][9] Someday, an ensemble comedy film starring Yoshio Harada, won the Best Picture prize at the Yokohama Film Festival in 2011.[10] He also directed A Chorus of Angels, a 2012 film starring Sayuri Yoshinaga, to commemorate the 60th anniversary of Toei Company.[11] His 2013 film, Human Trust, starred Kōichi Satō, Yoo Ji-tae, and Vincent Gallo.[12]

## Style and influences

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A number of Sakamoto's works, such as Ōte and Biriken, are set in Osaka, particularly the Shinsekai sector. His films have also taken up such controversial topics as postwar Japanese history and the problem of national sovereignty (Out of This World or Aegis), or the trafficking of children in Asia (Children of the Dark).[13]

## Filmography

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* Dotsuitarunen (1989)
* Tekken (1990)
* Ōte (1991)
* Tokarefu (1994)
* Boxer Joe (1995)
* Biriken (1996)
* Scarred Angels (1997)
* The Goofball (1998)
* Face (2000)
* New Battles Without Honor and Humanity (2000)
* KT (2002)[14]
* My House (2003)
* Out of This World (2004)
* Aegis (2005)
* Awakening (2007)
* Chameleon (2008)
* Children of the Dark (2008)
* Zatoichi: The Last (2010)
* Strangers in the City (2010)
* Someday (2011)
* A Chorus of Angels (2012)
* Human Trust (2013)
* Joe, Tomorrow (2015)
* The Projects (2016)[15]
* Ernesto (2017)
* Another World (2019)[16]
* I Never Shot Anyone (2020)[17]
* My Brother, The Android and Me (2022)[18]
* A Winter Rose (2022)[19]
* Okiku and the World (2023)[20]
* Climbing for Life (2025)[21]

## Honors

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In 2023, Sakamoto was honoured by New York Asian Film Festival with a Lifetime Achievement Award.[22]

## References

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1. ^ "Nihon Eiga Kantoku Kyōkai Shinjinshō" (in Japanese). Directors Guild of Japan. Archived from the original on 22 November 2010. Retrieved 11 December 2010.
2. ^ 第24回 日本アカデミー賞 (in Japanese). Japan Academy Prize. Retrieved 7 November 2009.
3. ^ 第２２回ヨコハマ映画祭 ２０００年日本映画個人賞 (in Japanese). Yokohama Film Festival. Archived from the original on 28 September 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2009.
4. ^ Green, Jennifer (7 April 2003). "Las Palmas awards top prize to Mr & Mrs Iyer - News - Screen". Screen International.
5. ^ Edwards, Russell (20 October 2008). "Chameleon - Variety". Variety.
6. ^ Rithdee, Kong (19 September 2008). "Bangkok fest removes 'Children'". Variety.
7. ^ Kuipers, Richard (7 November 2008). "Children of the Dark - Variety". Variety.
8. ^ Schilling, Mark (14 May 2010). "'Zatoichi: The Last'". The Japan Times.
9. ^ Schilling, Mark (19 November 2010). "'Yukizuri no Machi (Strangers in the City)'". The Japan Times.
10. ^ Schilling, Mark (23 December 2011). "Disaster not the only reason for Japan's sluggish 2011 box office". The Japan Times.
11. ^ Shackleton, Liz (3 November 2012). "Toei sings with A Chorus Of Angels". Screen International.
12. ^ Schmidlin, Charlie (12 July 2013). "Vincent Gallo Joins Japanese Thriller 'Human Trust' Co-Starring Kôichi Satô & 'Oldboy' Star Yu Ji-Tae". IndieWire.
13. ^ Gerow, Aaron (3 September 2009). "Sakamoto Junji and Children of the Dark". Tangemania: Aaron Gerow's Japanese Film Page. Retrieved 12 September 2009.
14. ^ "KT". eiga.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 10 May 2025.
15. ^ "団地". eiga.com. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
16. ^ "半世界". eiga.com. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
17. ^ "一度も撃ってません". eiga.com. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
18. ^ "豊川悦司＆安藤政信が義兄弟、阪本順治監督が"究極の孤独"描く問題作『弟とアンドロイドと僕』公開". Cinema Cafe. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
19. ^ "冬薔薇(ふゆそうび)". eiga.com. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
20. ^ "せかいのおきく". eiga.com. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
21. ^ "てっぺんの向こうにあなたがいる". eiga.com. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
22. ^ "NYAFF 2023 Unveils Special Guests, Award Honorees and Second Wave of Films". NYAFF. 1 July 2023. Retrieved 8 July 2022.

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Junji Sakamoto.

* Junji Sakamoto at IMDb
* Junji Sakamoto at the Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese)

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Films directed by Junji Sakamoto

* Dotsuitarunen (1989)
* Tekken (1990)
* Ōte (1991)
* Tokarefu (1994)
* Face (2000)
* New Battles Without Honor and Humanity (2000)
* KT (2002)
* My House (2003)
* Chameleon (2008)
* Children of the Dark (2008)
* Zatoichi: The Last (2010)
* Strangers in the City (2010)
* Someday (2011)
* Human Trust (2013)
* Okiku and the World (2023)

Awards for Junji Sakamoto

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Japan Academy Film Prize for Director of the Year

* Yoji Yamada (1978)
* Yoshitarō Nomura (1979)
* Shohei Imamura (1980)
* Seijun Suzuki (1981)
* Kōhei Oguri (1982)
* Kinji Fukasaku (1983)
* Hideo Gosha (1984)
* Juzo Itami (1985)
* Shinichiro Sawai (1986)
* Kinji Fukasaku (1987)
* Juzo Itami (1988)
* Junya Sato (1989)
* Shōhei Imamura (1990)
* Masahiro Shinoda (1991)
* Kihachi Okamoto (1992)
* Masayuki Suo (1993)
* Yoji Yamada (1994)
* Kinji Fukasaku (1995)
* Kaneto Shindo (1996)
* Masayuki Suo (1997)
* Shohei Imamura (1998)
* Hideyuki Hirayama (1999)
* Yasuo Furuhata (2000)
* Junji Sakamoto (2001)
* Isao Yukisada (2002)
* Yoji Yamada (2003)
* Yoshimitsu Morita (2004)
* Yoichi Sai (2005)
* Takashi Yamazaki (2006)
* Lee Sang-il (2007)
* Joji Matsuoka (2008)
* Yōjirō Takita (2009)
* Daisaku Kimura (2010)
* Tetsuya Nakashima (2011)
* Izuru Narushima (2012)
* Daihachi Yoshida (2013)
* Yuya Ishii (2014)
* Takashi Yamazaki (2015)
* Hirokazu Kore-eda (2016)
* Hideaki Anno & Shinji Higuchi (2017)
* Hirokazu Kore-eda (2018)
* Hirokazu Kore-eda (2019)
* Hideki Takeuchi (2020)
* Setsurō Wakamatsu (2021)
* Ryusuke Hamaguchi (2022)
* Kei Ishikawa (2023)
* Wim Wenders (2024)
* Michihito Fujii (2025)

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* e

Mainichi Film Award for Best Screenplay

* Eijirō Hisaita (1946)
* Keinosuke Uekusa (1947)
* Mansaku Itami (1948)
* Kogo Noda (1949)
* Yasujirō Ozu (1949)
* Kaneto Shindo (1950)
* Keisuke Kinoshita (1951)
* Akira Kurosawa (1952)
* Shinobu Hashimoto (1952)
* Hideo Oguni (1952)
* Keisuke Kinoshita (1953-1954)
* Toshio Yasumi (1955)
* Shinobu Hashimoto (1956)
* Yoshikata Yoda (1957)
* Shinobu Hashimoto (1958)
* Yōko Mizuki (1959)
* Shinobu Hashimoto (1960)
* Zenzo Matsuyama (1961)
* Natto Wada (1962)
* Akira Kurosawa (1963)
* Hideo Oguni (1963)
* Ryūzō Kikushima (1963)
* Eijirō Hisaita (1963)
* Yasutarō Yagi (1964)
* Naoyuki Suzuki (1965)
* Shinobu Hashimoto (1966)
* Hisashi Yamanouchi (1967)
* Shohei Imamura (1968)
* Keiji Hasebe (1968)
* Tsutomu Tamura (1969)
* Yoji Yamada (1970)
* Akira Miyazaki (1970)
* Mamoru Sasaki (1971)
* Nagisa Ōshima (1971)
* Fumio Ishimori (1972)
* Yoji Yamada (1973)
* Akira Miyazaki (1973)
* Yoshitaka Asama (1973)
* Shinobu Hashimoto (1974)
* Yoji Yamada (1974)
* Takehiro Nakajima (1975)
* Nobuo Yamada (1976)
* Yoji Yamada (1977)
* Yoshitaka Asama (1977)
* Kaneto Shindo (1978)
* Masaru Baba (1979)
* Yōzō Tanaka (1980)
* Sō Kuramoto (1981)
* Motomu Furuta (1982)
* Yoshitarō Nomura (1982)
* Nagisa Ōshima (1983)
* Yoshimitsu Morita (1983)
* Haruhiko Arai (1984)
* Shinichiro Sawai (1984)
* Kenji Nakagami (1985)
* Yūji Kato (1985)
* Yuya Uchida (1986)
* Isao Takagi (1986)
* Juzo Itami (1987)
* Toshio Kamata (1988)
* Hiroo Matsuda (1989)
* Taichi Yamada (1990)
* Kōki Mitani (1991)
* Tokyo Sunshine Boys (1991)
* Shōichi Maruyama (1992)
* Yoichi Sai (1993)
* Wui Sin Chong (1993)
* Zenzo Matsuyama (1993)
* Yōzō Tanaka (1994)
* Ryōsuke Hashiguchi (1995)
* Masayuki Suo (1996)
* Kōki Mitani (1997)
* Takehiro Nakajima (1998)
* Nobuhiro Suwa (1999)
* Tomokazu Miura (1999)
* Makiko Watanabe (1999)
* Yoji Yamada (2000)
* Yoshitaka Asama (2000)
* Emiko Hiramatsu (2000)
* Kankurō Kudō (2001)
* Wui Sin Chong (2002)
* Miwa Nishikawa (2003)
* Kenta Fukasaku (2003)
* Norio Kida (2003)
* Haruhiko Arai (2004)
* Kenji Uchida (2005)
* Masato Katō (2006)
* Aya Watanabe (2007)
* Ryōsuke Hashiguchi (2008)
* Yōzō Tanaka (2009)
* Yūki Satō (2010)
* Kaneto Shindo (2011)
* Yang Yong-hi (2012)
* Haruhiko Arai (2013)
* Momoko Andō (2014)
* Masato Harada (2015)
* Kōsuke Mukai (2016)
* Yuya Ishii (2017)
* Katsumi Nojiri (2018)
* Junji Sakamoto (2019)
* Shōichi Maruyama(2020)
* Keisuke Yoshida (2021)
* Chie Hayakawa (2022)
* Junji Sakamoto (2023)
* Ryusuke Hamaguchi (2024)

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Yokohama Film Festival Award for Best Director

* Kazuhiko Hasegawa / Chūsei Sone (1980)
* Seijun Suzuki (1981)
* Kichitaro Negishi (1982)
* Banmei Takahashi (1983)
* Yoshimitsu Morita (1984)
* Toshiharu Ikeda (1985)
* Shinji Sōmai (1986)
* Hiroyuki Nasu (1987)
* Shunichi Kajima / Kazuo Hara (1988)
* Shusuke Kaneko / Shunichi Nagasaki (1989)
* Takeshi Kitano (1990)
* Shun Nakahara (1991)
* Takeshi Kitano (1992)
* Masayuki Suo (1993)
* Yoichi Sai (1994)
* Junji Sakamoto (1995)
* Shūsuke Kaneko / Shunji Iwai (1996)
* Masayuki Suo (1997)
* Rokuro Mochizuki (1998)
* Kiyoshi Kurosawa / Itsumichi Isomura (1999)
* Yoshimitsu Morita (2000)
* Junji Sakamoto (2001)
* Isao Yukisada (2002)
* Ryōsuke Hashiguchi / Hideyuki Hirayama (2003)
* Ryūichi Hiroki (2004)
* Tetsuya Nakashima (2005)
* Kazuyuki Izutsu (2006)
* Miwa Nishikawa (2007)
* Masayuki Suo (2008)
* Yōjirō Takita (2009)
* Akira Ogata (2010)
* Takashi Miike (2011)
* Sion Sono (2012)
* Daihachi Yoshida (2013)
* Azuma Morisaki (2014)
* Mipo O / Momoko Andō (2015)
* Hirokazu Kore-eda / Ryōsuke Hashiguchi (2016)
* Ryōta Nakano (2017)
* Kazuya Shiraishi (2018)
* Ryusuke Hamaguchi / Takahisa Zeze (2019)
* Rikiya Imaizumi (2020)
* Hideo Jojo (2021)
* Keisuke Yoshida (2022)
* Keiichi Kobayashi (2023)
* Yuya Ishii (2024)
* Yu Irie (2025)

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