ABOUT YAMADA YOJI:
Born in Takarazuka (near Osaka) in 1931, Yamada was raised in Manchuria, and returned to Japan in 1947. After studying Law at Tokyo University, he worked as assistant director, and began writing scripts for Nomura and Inoue Kazuo in 1958. He directed his first film, Strangers Upstairs in 1961. His 1969 film Tora-san, Our Lovable Tramp launched the Tora-san series which has occupied him regularly since and proved the financial mainstay of Shochiku Company. Yamada also made occasional more personal films, such as Where Spring Comes Late (1970), Home From the Sea (1972) and The Yellow Handkerchief (1977), outside the series. His films have won numerous awards at home and abroad. A Distant Cry From Spring won the Special Jury Prize at Montreal Film Festival in 1980. His latest films Twilight Samurai (2002) and Hidden Blade (2004) has swept awards around the world. |
Film Facts:
