Masato Harada is a Japanese film director and screenwriter. At the youthful age of seventeen, he knew he wanted to make films and decided to continue his education outside of Japan. He studied English in Great Britain and in 1972 discovered Howard Hawks’ films. Attending film festivals, he met Hawks in San Sebastian and he became his role model and mentor. Soon Harada moved to Los Angeles and worked as a film critic and journalist. Thanks to the years spent abroad and far from his home country, he became a harsh social critic, which is apparent in his films Kamikaze takushî (Kamikaze Taxi, 1995) and Baunsu ko gaurusu (Leaving, 1997). He made his directing debut with the film Saraba eiga no tomoyo: Indian samaa (1979), and later made the action drama Saraba itoshiki hito yo (1987), sci-fi Ganheddo (1989), drama Kin'yű fushoku rettô: Jubaku (Spellbound, 1999), mystic thriller Inugami (2001), action drama Totsunyűseyo! Asama sansô jiken (2002), drama Jiyű ren'ai (Bluestockings, 2005), horror Densen uta (The Suicide Song , 2007), crime drama Môryô no hako (The Shadow Spirit, 2007) and drama Kuraimâzu hai (The Climbers High, 2008). He appeared as actor in films The Last Samurai (2003) by Edward Zwick and Huo Yuan Jia (Fearles, 2006) by Ronny Yu.