Shinji Aoyama

13.07.1964, Kitakyushu, Japan

 

Director
Aoyama is a Japanese screenwriter, composer and writer. He got interested in film after watching Coppola’s Apocalypse Now (1979) and Godard’s Crazy Pete (1965) and Two or Three Things I Know About Her (1967). He graduated from the Rikkyo University and had his first experiences on film sets as assistant director, mostly assisting to Kiyoshi Kurosawa on his films Jigoku no keibîn (1992), Katte ni shiyagare! Goudatsu-keikaku (1995) and Katte ni shiyagare!! Dasshutsu keikaku (1995), as well as to Fridrik Thór Fridriksson on his international co-production Á köldum klaka (1995). His directing debut was the film Kyôkasho ni nai! (1995), shot on video. He made his first feature film Helpless for distribution in film theaters in 1996. The next film that brought him attention, a FIPRECI award and the award of the ecumenical jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 2000 Yurîka (Eureka, 2000). Both films together with a Sad Vacation (2007) form sort of a Kitakyushu saga. Some of his other films are the drama Desert Moon (Tsuki no sabaku, 2001), mystery Lakeside Murder Case (Reikusaido mâdâ kêsu, 2004), sci-fi My God, My God, Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me? (Eri Eri rema sabakutani, 2005), drama Tôkyô kôen (2011) that won the Golden Leopard in 2011, and drama The Backwater (Tomogui, 2013). He also made short features and documentary films. Besides directing and writing screenplays, from 2000, he has started to write film critiques. In that same year he wrote his first novel Eureka, based on his own film. Afterwards, he wrote and published ten more novels.

Filmography


Films by this director

Sad Vacation

(2007.)

Directed by: Shinji Aoyama
PHOTOGRAPHY: Masaki Tamura
Synopsis:

This film bring a new story involving some characters from Aoyama’s older films Helpless (1996) and Eureka (2000). Kenji was left by his mother when he was five years old. Soon afterwards, his father committed suicide and Kenji is left completely alone. Now he is a grown man and does not have any stability in his life. He cannot hold down a job and takes care of a daughter of his deceased friend. He also takes in a boy whose father died during their illegal entry into China. Suddenly he meets hi...

35 mm, color, 110 min

Eureka

(Yurîka, Japan, France, 2000)

Directed by: Shinji Aoyama
PHOTOGRAPHY: Masaki Tamura
Synopsis:

Naoki i Kozue Tamura, brat i sestra tinejdžerskih godina, te sredovječni vozač autobusa Makoto Sawai jedine su preživjele žrtve otmičara autobusa, i trpe posljedice te traume. Naoki i Kozue prestali su govoriti i ići u školu te se otuđili od roditelja, a ni Makoto se ne može vratiti normalnom život te odluči napustiti suprugu i odati se lutanju. Naokina i Kozueina majka napušta obitelj, a nešto kasnije otac im pogiba u prometnoj nesreći, pa brat i sestra ostaju živjeti sami...

b/w and color, 220'
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