born Nov. 20, 1915, Ise, Japan
Japanese film director.
After working in the animation department of the Tōhō film studio, he directed his first film, The Girl at Dojo Temple (1946). He introduced sophisticated Western-style comedy to Japan in films such as The Woman Who Touched Legs (1952) and Mr. Pū (1953). He gained international acclaim for his antiwar films The Burmese Harp (1956) and Fires on the Plain (1959) and the documentary Tokyo Olympiad (1965). His other major films include Conflagration (1958), My Enemy the Sea (1963), and An Actor's Revenge (1963).