Wakamatsu named Filmmaker of The Year
By Patrick Frater
Prolific and provocative, the Japanese auteur Wakamatsu Koji is to receive the 'Asian Filmmaker of the Year' award at October's Busan film festival.
The festival said it was recognising him "to honor his spirit of independent film as a rebellious auteur and his never-ending passion for cinema." It described Wakamatsu as the "anchor of the Japanese independent film industry," working both as a director of low-budget films and as producer of controversial works by others.
"This year, despite his age of 76, Wakamatsu completed three masterworks in a row –11.25 The Day He Chose His Own Fate, Kaien Hotel in Blue, and The Millennial Rapture – and surprised the global film industries," said Busan in a statement.
Over 50 years as a film-maker, Wakamatsu has clocked up over 100 films. He has ranged from 'Pink Eiga' erotica through to the more overtly political. And notable works include Affairs Within Walls (1965), Violated Angels (1967), Netorare Sosuke(1992) , Cycling Chronicles: Landscapes The Boy Saw (2004) and United Red Army(2008). His Caterpillar won the Silver Bear (pictured) in Berlin in 2010.
Past recipients have included Mohsen Makhmalbaf, the late Edward Yang, Yash Chopra and last year Tsui Hark.
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