Mar 31, 2023

Get to Know Indie Film Directors Koji Yamamura

In this series, we will introduce you to some of the most interesting independent animators working today who, through their short films and other projects, are changing our ideas about what is possible in this medium.

This week's topic is Koji Yamamura, a superstar of Japanese independent animation.

In one paragraph: Yamamura's films are like chameleons. Each one looks different from the one before it, but there is no doubt that they are his creations. While his earlier films were primarily aimed at children and celebrated the splendor of the mundane and the beauty of the moment, his later works explore a more complex world, with morally confused protagonists struggling to find their place and purpose in a harsh, cold, and chaotic environment.

Where to begin: Well, we should start with the masterpiece Franz Kafka: The Country Doctor (2007), but since it is not officially online, let's move on to The Head Mountain (2002). Yamamura's first major success won best picture in Annecy and Zagreb and was nominated for an Academy Award. In this film, a stingy man accumulates all kinds of things in his trashy house. He is surrounded by garbage, blocking the entrance to despair. He wastes nothing. He shares nothing. He enjoys nothing. It's a funny and compassionate view of petty, anti-social people.

Next film to watch: Old Crocodile (2005). After the success of "Mt. Using more sparse graphics, Yamamura explored yet another greedy character, this time one whose choices are based solely on self-preservation. He destroys his family and friends in order to survive. In the end he is rewarded, but at a price...

Other major works: A House (1992), Bavel's Book (1996), Your Choice!(1999), The Old Crocodile (2005)

Influences: "Argentine literary figure Jorge Luis Borges has been a constant influence from his twenties to the present. Although he has already passed away, I still read his books over and over again, and whenever a new Japanese translation comes out, I always buy it. Other influences may be from film directors. There are too many to list here, but if I had to venture a guess, it would be Jacques Tati.

There are so many influences from animation artists that it's hard to narrow it down to two or three, but Yury Norstein and Priit Perun are still my influences. However, looking back on my life, I think the biggest influence on me was a motorcycle crash when I was three years old. I don't remember much about this accident, but I think it really focused me on drawing, on myself, and on the outside world."

says: "Being independent may cause financial problems. But on the other hand, short animation can be under your control. I think the best thing to do is to find what you really want to make, even if you don't have the money. Working in the commercial realm, you don't have the freedom to work on what you want to work on. Work on what you really enjoy."

What I'm working on now "It's a two-year project, to be completed around May of this year It's a two-year project, to be completed around May of this year. One of them is the first collaborative project between contemporary Japanese literature and animation. Author Hideo Furukawa will read from his original work, and an animation will be created based on it. The other, a co-production with Miyu Productions, is tentatively titled A Picture in A Soulless Room and will use the pin-screen technique.