Director Yasujiro Ozu is known as one of the world's greatest masters of Japanese cinema, alongside Akira Kurosawa.
Ozu's films do not have dramatic story developments and at first glance depict simple, mundane scenes of everyday life, but they exude the flavor of Japanese life and living, making the viewer feel nostalgic.
Each cut in each work is beautiful and is said to be so addictive that you'll want to watch it over and over again.
Among the Ozu team that supported the beauty of Ozu's films, the staff member known as the "Arts and Crafts Selection" was the former head of Toya, Yamada Hayao. Yamada responded to Ozu's requests by providing advice not on props or stage sets, but on Japanese culture, including art and crafts.
It also suggested things related to tea, flower vases in the tokonoma alcove, and the placement of utensils on the table, as seen from Ozu's unique low camera angle.
Director Ozu, who was particular about authenticity in everything he did, disliked fakes, even if only the edge of something was visible, and always had the real thing prepared.
I assisted with four or five of Ozu's films, including his first all-color film, "Red Spider Lily," and it goes without saying that Toya's pottery was used in them.
We continue to make the same vases, teacups, etc. that were actually used in the film.
Additionally, Toya's main store in Ginza, Tokyo, was a meeting place for Director Ozu and his staff when they went out to have fun in Ginza. Apparently, he would watch TV in a tatami room at the back of the store and wait for everyone to gather before going out for drinks.
The building has now become the Toya Building and there is no trace of what it was back then, but the first-class sensibility that Ozu demanded still lives on in the products that Toya makes.
At the Kyoto Shop, items selected and prepared by Yamada, such as the bamboo electric umbrellas and fishing lanterns used in the film, are still in use today.
OZU 120: THE COMPLETE OZU YASUJIRO
(※Quoted from the OZU 120: THE COMPLETE OZU YASUJIRO website)
The Harvard Film Archive, run by Harvard University in the suburbs of Boston on the east coast of the United States, is known as the world's leading university-run film archive.
To commemorate the 120th anniversary of the birth of Yasujiro Ozu, one of Japan's most famous film directors, the Harvard Film Archive will be holding a special exhibition called "The Complete Ozu Yasujiro" from June 9th.
Toya's previous head, Yamada Jun'yo, served as a member of the "Arts and Crafts Selection" staff, responding to director Ozu's requests and providing advice on Japanese culture, including arts and crafts, rather than on props or stage sets.
For this commemorative exhibition, we cooperated by displaying several items, including the teacups used in the film.
[Venue]: Harvard Film Archive
[Event period]: June 9th (Thursday) to August 13th (Sunday) 2023 *Ended [Details]: "The Complete Ozu Yasujiro" will be held at Harvard to commemorate the 120th anniversary of Yasujiro Ozu's birth
>>> OZU 120: THE COMPLETE OZU YASUJIRO
Presented by the Harvard Film Archive and Shochiku, in with the Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies and the Japan Foundation, this complete Ozu Yasujiro retrospective offers the rare opportunity to see all of Ozu's extant films screened on 35mm. Five new prints were created for this occasion as the first installment of a multi-year partnership with Shochiku to create a legacy partnership 35mm collection at the HFA, a partnership that will be celebrated with a special event in September. Seen together, Ozu's impressive oeuvre demonstrates the industrial method of a prolific artist who distilled cinema to its most essential elements over three decades of filmmaking.
Among the Ozu group that supported the beauty of director Ozu's films, the staff member known as the "Takugei Kansen" was Tosai's previous head, Hayao Yamada. Instead, I provided advice on Japanese culture such as arts and crafts. He also suggested things related to tea and how to place the vases on the table, such as the vase in the alcove, seen from director Ozu's unique low camera angle. At the Yasujiro Ozu Special Exhibition at Harvard University this time, we exhibit several items such as the hot water cup used in the movie.
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