“If you yourself do not burn like the fish that live in the depths of the sea,
there will be no light anywhere.”
This quote was filmmaker Oshima Nagisa's personal motto,
which is now engraved on his tombstone.
Oshima first came upon this quote by Akashi Kaijin (1901-1939), a poet who suffered from leprosy, when he was 20 years old. During his lifetime, Oshima initiated the "Shochiku Nouvelle Vague" (New Wave), shot numerous masterpieces after founding an independent film production, won the award for Best Director at Cannes, and continued to work with a global vision. Alongside such achievements, he served on the jury of the Pia Film Festival for years and watched hundreds of 8mm films submitted to the competition to encourage the next generation of filmmakers.
The Oshima Prize will be awarded, along with this quote, to young filmmakers who continue to break new ground and step out into the world,
just like Oshima Nagisa did long ago.
WHAT IS THE OSHIMA PRIZE?
The Oshima Prize will be awarded to young, new talents who pioneer the future of film and attempt to spread their wings around the world.
The PFF Award Competition discovers new talents in film.
The PFF Scholarship nurtures these discovered talents.
The Oshima Prize will then launch these talents onto the global stage.
We look forward to presenting this new award to next-generation filmmakers who follow in the footsteps of Oshima Nagisa, who aimed high and took on challenges on an international scale.
OSHIMA NAGISA
Born in 1932 in Kyoto, Japan, Oshima Nagisa graduated with a degree in law from Kyoto University and joined Shochiku Studios as an assistant director in 1954. He made his directorial debut in 1959 with A Town of Love and Hope. He then directed works that presented fresh techniques such as Cruel Story of Youth (1960) and Night and Fog in Japan (1960), catapulting him into the limelight. In 1961, he left Shochiku and founded his production company Sozo-sha. He went on to direct numerous works including Sing a Song of Sex (1967), Death by Hanging (1968), Boy (1969), The Ceremony (1971) and more. After founding Oshima Productions in 1975, his Japan-France co-production In the Realm of the Senses (1976) received high international acclaim, and he won the award for Best Director at the 31st Cannes Film Festival for Empire of Passion (1978). He directed other internationally produced films such as Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983) and Max mon amour (1986). His last film was Taboo (1999). He was awarded the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of Arts and Letters) in 2001 from the French Ministry of Culture. Oshima passed away in 2013 at the age of 80. He was a member of the Pia Film Festival jury from 1979 to 1988, and 1992.
CRITERIA FOR SELECTION
- Filmmakers working in Japan with around three theatrically released works.
- As a general rule, the filmmaker must have released a work the prior year.
Method of Evaluation
Every year, five filmmakers will be nominated by people in the movie industry of all nationalities, age, and careers, based in Japan and elsewhere, who are well versed in Japanese cinema, e.g. film festival directors, festival programmers, movie journalists, etc. The jury will then select one recipient.
PRESIDENT OF THE JURY
Due to the passing of Sakamoto Ryuichi, the President of the Jury since the first Oshima Prize, Kurosawa Kiyoshi, who has been a member of the jury since the first prize is serving as the new President of the Jury.
Kurosawa Kiyoshi / Filmmaker
Filmmaker Kurosawa Kiyoshi was born in 1955 in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. He became a finalist in the 4th Pia Film Festival 1981 with Shigarami gakuen, which he self-produced as a university student. He first garnered international attention with Cure in 1997 and has been awarded three times at the Cannes Film Festival for Pulse (2000), Tokyo Sonata (2008), and Journey to the Shore (2015). His more recent works include Seventh Code (2013), which was awarded Best Director at the Rome Film Fest, the France/Belgium/Japan co-production Daguerreotype (2016), and To the Ends of the Earth (2019), filmed in Uzbekistan. He has spoken at length about the beauty of Oshima Nagisa's Death by Hanging and Sing a Song of Sex with genuine respect for the late master filmmaker.
THE JURY
Araki Keiko / Director, Pia Film Festival
Araki Keiko joined Pia Film Festival (PFF) in 1990 and became PFF's first general director in 1992. Since then, she has been influential in discovering and nurturing young filmmaking talent through the PFF Award Competition, while organizing retrospectives of such masters as Douglas Sirk and Michael Haneke - the first time in Asia - for the film fest's Invited Works section that presents the past and future of cinema. In recent years, she has focused on introducing not only PFF-related works but also Japanese independent film in general to viewers outside of Japan, and continues to work towards communicating the appeal of Japanese cinema to a wide audience.
She invited Oshima Nagisa to serve as the President of the Jury in the 15th Pia Film Festival in 1992.
The Winner
Kudo Masaaki
Born on October 31, 1983, in Kyoto Prefecture. After graduating from the Visual Arts College Osaka, inspired by director Nagisa Oshima, he joined Shochiku Studios. He studied under directors such as Morita Yoshimitsu, Ishii Gakuryu, and Yamazaki Takashi. His first feature film directorial work, "I'm Crazy" (2019), won the NETPAC Award at the 22nd Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival in 2019. His second feature, "Unprecedented" (2021), scheduled for release in 2024, was officially screened in the Rebels with A Cause section at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. His third work, "A Far Shore," was selected for the competition section of the 56th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in July 2022 and won the Audience Award at the 23rd Tokyo FILMeX the same year. Moreover, in January 2024, he won the New Director's Grand Prix & Best New Actor Award (Hanase Kotone) at the 37th Takasaki Film Festival.
CEREMONY & COMMEMORATIVE SCREENING
| COMMEMORATIVE SCREENING |
Date: Sunday, March 17, 2024 Place: Marunouchi Hall, Tokyo More information |
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| CEREMONY |
Date: Monday, March 18, 2024 Place: Marunouchi Hall, Tokyo |
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