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Shinji Higuchi

Shinji Higuchi
樋口 真嗣
Higuchi stands next to a poster of his 2016 film Shin Godzilla. He wears a T-Shirt emblazoned with the text "Greetings from Monster Island", featuring an illustration of Megalon, Gigan, Godzilla, and Jet Jaguar posing in the 1973 film Godzilla vs. Megalon.
Higuchi in 2016
Born (1965-09-22) September 22, 1965 (age 59)
Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan
NationalityJapanese
Occupations
  • Film director
  • special effects director
  • screenwriter
  • storyboard artist
Years active1984–present
Notable work

Shinji Higuchi (Japanese: 樋口 真嗣, Hepburn: Higuchi Shinji, born September 22, 1965) is a Japanese filmmaker. Known for his tokusatsu blockbusters, Higuchi is considered one of Japan's leading filmmakers of the 21st century.[1][2][3]

Higuchi became known for his work on Gamera: Guardian of the Universe, for which he won the Special Technology Award at the 19th Japan Academy Film Prize. In 2005, he made his feature directorial debut on Lorelei: The Witch of the Pacific Ocean. His second feature film, Sinking of Japan (2006), was second place at the Bunshun Kiichigo Awards. His 2015 live-action two-part film adaptation of Hajime Isayama's manga series, Attack on Titan, won the Excellence in Theatrical Live Action Film award at the 2016 VFX-JAPAN Awards.[4] In 2017, Higuchi and Hideaki Anno won the Director of the Year award at the 40th Japan Academy Film Prize, for their work on the 2016 kaiju film, Shin Godzilla. His 2022 film, Shin Ultraman, was a major success in Japan,[5] and has received generally positive reviews from critics internationally.[6]

Biography

Early life

Higuchi was born on September 22, 1965,[7] in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. When Higuchi was in junior high school, his aunt took him on a tour of Toho Studios, where she worked on commercials. Upon watching Toho's special effects crew at work, Higuchi became inspired and frequently visited the filming sets.[8]

In 2019, Higuchi told French interviewers about his education: "At the end of high school, when I had to pass the entrance examinations to universities, I failed everything. But since I was in a very popular high school, the school leaders refused to let me leave empty-handed! [laughs] So they said to me: 'you have to pass an exam, any!' I ended up passing my entrance examination for the Japanese Post Office, as a civil servant. I was sorted, locked up in a warehouse."[9]

Early career

Higuchi entered the Japanese film industry in 1984, working as an assistant modeler on The Return of Godzilla.[7] Two years later, he directed the special effects for Daicon's tokusatsu fan film Yamata no Orochi no Gyakushū.[10]

As a key Daicon/Gainax member, he played an important part in the creation of one of the most popular anime series, Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995). He was a writer and art director/storyboarder for the series. He was also the namesake for the show's protagonist, Shinji Ikari.[11] He later voice-acted a musician modeled after himself in two episodes of Karekano.[12]

Higuchi made his directorial debut in 1992 with the disaster film The Day the Sun Fissured: The Great Tokyo Earthquake which he produced for Tokyo Fire Department.[13]

Personal affairs

Higuchi supports Japan's whaling and consumptions of whale meats in general, and have appeared in the 2023 pro-whaling documentary film by Keiko Yagi, the director of the 2015 film Behind The Cove.[14] The 2023 documentary featured the pro-whaling claim to highlight the necessity of whaling to control the marine ecosystem to prevent declines of fish stocks by whales, which largely affected public opinion regards the issues in Japan. The Fisheries Agency of Japan withdrew the claim in 2009 at the annual meeting of International Whaling Commission, but didn't correct it domestically afterwards.[14][15] Yagi and Higuchi remarked that "Godzilla is closely connected to whales and environmental issues in naming of the character and other aspects",[a] and expressed their supports for whaling and skeptical views towards veganism.[14][26]

Filmography

Year Title Director SFX director Storyboard artist Miscellaneous Notes Ref(s)
1984 The Return of Godzilla No No No Yes Assistant modeler [7]
1985 Yamata no Orochi no Gyakushū No Yes No No [10]
1987 Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise No No No Yes Assistant director [27]
1988 Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis No No Yes No [28]
Gunbuster No No Yes No [29]
1991 The Cat No Yes No No With Kazuo Sagawa; uncredited
Mikadroid No Yes No No [30]
1992 The Day the Sun Fissured: The Great Tokyo Earthquake Yes No No No [10]
1994 Giant Robo: The Day the Earth Stood Still No No Yes No
1995 Gamera: Guardian of the Universe No Yes No No [10]
Neon Genesis Evangelion No No Yes Yes Screenwriter [31]
1996 Space Ship Remnant 6 No Yes No No [32]
Gamera 2: Attack of Legion No Yes No No [33]
1997 The End of Evangelion No Yes No No [34]
1998 Love & Pop No Yes No No [35]
1999 Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris No Yes No No [36]
Betterman No No Yes No
2000 Sakuya: Slayer of Demons No Yes No No [37]
2001 Pistol Opera No Yes No No [38]
The Princess Blade No Yes No No [39]
2003 Pokémon: Jirachi—Wish Maker No No Yes No [40]
Dino Crisis 3 No No Yes No
Dragon Head No No No Yes Visual effects designer [41]
2005 Lorelei: The Witch of the Pacific Ocean Yes Yes No No [10]
2006 Sinking of Japan Yes No No No [10]
Onimusha No No Yes No
2007 Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone No No Yes No [42]
2008 Hidden Fortress: The Last Princess No No Yes No [7]
2009 Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance No No Yes No [43]
2010 Monster Magnitude: 9 Yes No No Yes Screenwriter
2012 Giant God Warrior Appears in Tokyo Yes No No No [44]
The Floating Castle Yes No No No [45]
Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo No No Yes No [46]
2013 Kill la Kill No No Yes No
2014 Garm Wars: The Last Druid No No Yes No [47]
2015 Attack on Titan Yes No No No [48]
Attack on Titan: End of the World Yes No No No [49]
2016 Shin Godzilla Yes Yes Yes No [50]
2018 Dragon Pilot: Hisone and Masotan Yes No No No [51]
2020 The 12 Day Tale of the Monster that Died in 8 No No No Yes Original story [52]
2021 Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time No No Yes No [53]
2022 Ribbon No Yes No No [54]
Shin Ultraman Yes No No No [55]
Kamen Rider Black Sun No No No Yes Visual concept designer [56]
2023 Baian the Assassin, M.D. No No No Yes Trailer creator [57]
Baian the Assassin, M.D. 2 No No No Yes Trailer creator [58]
Kyrie No No No Yes Actor [59]
2024 Brush of the God No No No Yes Actor [60]
TBA The Bullet Train Yes [61]

Accolades

Award ceremony Year Work(s) Category Result Note(s) Ref.
Japan Academy Film Prize 1996 Gamera: Guardian of the Universe Special Technology Won [62]
2013 The Floating Castle Director of the Year Nominated With Isshin Inudo [63]
2017 Shin Godzilla Director of the Year Won With Hideaki Anno [64]
Line News Awards 2022 Cultural Person Won [65]
46th Japan Academy Film Prize 2023 Shin Ultraman Director of the Year Nominated [66]

Notes

  1. ^ Production of the 1954 film involved several whale-related aspects; Godzilla's name was based on the nickname of the man who loved whale meats,[16] and early ideas of the monster were a giant octopus to attack a whaling vessel in Indian Ocean, or a gigantic whale monster attacks Tokyo.[17][18] Godzilla favors to prey on whales,[19][20][21] and Godzilla and Godzilla Junior were depicted either to prey on or slaughter whales in Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster[22][23] and Godzilla vs. Destoroyah[24] respectively. Additionally, MV Brigitte Bardot owned by Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was at one point named MV Godzilla with a paint of Godzilla on it, and the vessel was used for anti-whaling activities against Japan by the NPO.[25]

References

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  2. ^ "【独占】樋口真嗣監督に聞く、庵野秀明氏とシン・ウルトラマンで目指す「断絶の解消」" [(Exclusive) Interview with Director Shinji Higuchi: 'Elimination of discontinuity' for Shin Ultraman with Hideaki Anno]. Business + IT (in Japanese). p. 1. Archived from the original on November 30, 2022. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
  3. ^ "【樋口真嗣監督インタビュー】特撮映画の牽引者は、『シン・ウルトラマン』でなにを描くのか？" [(Interview with director Shinji Higuchi) What will the tokusatsu film leader draw in Shin Ultraman?]. Pen Online (in Japanese). May 13, 2022. Archived from the original on November 30, 2022. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
  4. ^ Inc, Natasha. "CGとVFXの祭典、VFX-JAPANアワードで「バクマン。」が実写映画部門の頂点に". 映画ナタリー (in Japanese). Retrieved August 4, 2022. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
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  9. ^ Dupuy, Julien; Mauro, Fabien (July 3, 2019). "Le ravageur de mondes, entretien avec Shinji Higuchi" [The Ravager of Worlds, interview with Shinji Higuchi]. Otomo (in French). No. 4. Paris: Ynnis Editions. ISBN 978-23-76970-64-4.
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