Makoto Wada

Makoto Wada (和田誠), born in 1936 and died on October 7, 2019 at the age of 83, was a Japanese film director, screenwriter and author. His career began in 1984 when he made his debut as a director with the live-action film Mahjong Hōrōki (麻雀放浪記), which ranked fourth in that year’s Kinema Junpo Top Ten Japanese Films.

In 1988 Wada directed the film Kaito Ruby (快盗ルビイ) and won the Blue Ribbon Award for Best Director for that work. He went on to direct several other films, including Kowagaru Hitobito (害怕的人/こわがる人々) and Around Midnight (大约在午夜), many of which starred the well-known actor Hiroyuki Sanada (真田広之). Sanada was one of Wada’s most frequent male collaborators, appearing with him five times in films such as Everybody’s Home (大家的家), Around Midnight, Mahjong Hōrōki, Kaito Ruby and Kowagaru Hitobito.

In addition to his film work, Wada published several books related to cinema, including Questions and Answers on Film Past and Present (映画今昔問答/电影今昔问答) and Films That Seem Forgotten Yet Impossible to Forget (似乎遗忘又无法忘记的电影). He also co-authored a book with comedy master Koki Mitani (三谷幸喜) titled This, Again, Is a Different Story (这又是一个不同的故事).

Over his career Wada received numerous honors. In 1988 he won the Blue Ribbon Award for Best Director for Kaito Ruby. In 1985 he was nominated for Best Screenplay at the 8th Japan Academy Prize for his work on Mahjong Hōrōki. In 2020 he was posthumously given the 93rd Kinema Junpo Special Award in recognition of his contributions to Japanese cinema.

Wada’s collaborators were not limited to actors; he also worked repeatedly with screenwriters and other film professionals. Besides Hiroyuki Sanada, frequent collaborators included Toshiaki Karasawa (唐沢寿明), Akira Nagoya (名古屋章), Koki Mitani, Takashi Sasano (笹野高史) and Hitomi Satō (佐藤仁美).

Wada died of pneumonia on October 7, 2019, at the age of 83. His works and contributions have had a notable impact on Japanese film history and are respected within the industry.