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is a Japanese documentary filmmaker and author based in
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. He is known for his observational method of documentary filmmaking. Soda obtained a degree in religious studies from the
University of Tokyo , abbreviated as or UTokyo, is a public research university located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1877, the university was the first Imperial University and is currently a Top Type university of the Top Global University Project by ...
in 1993 and a BFA in filmmaking from the
School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by ...
in New York, where he has remained since, in 1997.


Career

Soda worked as a television director for
NHK , also known as NHK, is a Japanese public broadcaster. NHK, which has always been known by this romanized initialism in Japanese, is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee. NHK operates two terrestr ...
from 1997 to 2005. In 2005, he shot ''Campaign (Senkyo)'' (2007, 120 minutes), depicting a political campaign in Kawasaki, Japan by Kazuhiko Yamauchi, an inexperienced outsider candidate officially endorsed by the Japanese Liberal Democratic Party. When completed, it was invited to the forum section of
Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...
in 2007.
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...
broadcast a 52-minute version, which won the
Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...
in 2008. The TV version was broadcast under a different title, ''Campaign! The Kawasaki Candidate'' as part of the '' Why Democracy?'' series, a global media event co-produced by 33 broadcasters around the world, including the
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...
, CBC, and
NHK , also known as NHK, is a Japanese public broadcaster. NHK, which has always been known by this romanized initialism in Japanese, is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee. NHK operates two terrestr ...
. The 120-minute theatrical version won the Best Documentary Award at the Belgrade International Documentary Film Festival in 2008. From 2005 to 2007, Soda shot ''Mental (Seishin)'' (2008, 135 minutes), which focuses on the lives of patients in a small mental clinic Chorale Okayama in Japan. The film was world-premiered at the
Pusan International Film Festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, previously Pusan International Film Festival, PIFF), held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan (''also'' Pusan), South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festi ...
in 2008, and won the Best Documentary Award (PIFF Mecenat Award) there. It also won the Best Documentary Award at the
Dubai International Film Festival The Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF, ar, مهرجان دبي السينمائي الدولي) is the leading film festival in the Arab region. The 12th edition of DIFF took place from December 9 – 16, 2015. In 2018, the DIFF announc ...
in December 2008. Other awards include Special Jury Mention at the 2009
Miami International Film Festival The Miami Film Festival (formerly Miami International Film Festival) is an annual film festival in Miami, Florida, that showcases independent American and international films with a special focus on Ibero-American films. The competitive film fest ...
, Outstanding Documentary Award at the 2009
Hong Kong International Film Festival The Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF), is one of Asia’s oldest international film festivals. Founded in 1976, the festival features different movies, filmmakers from different countries in Hong Kong. HKIFF screens around 230 films ...
, and Inter-religious Jury Prize at
Visions du Reel Vision, Visions, or The Vision may refer to: Perception Optical perception * Visual perception, the sense of sight * Visual system, the physical mechanism of eyesight * Computer vision, a field dealing with how computers can be made to gain un ...
in 2009. In September 2010, Soda premiered a documentary, ''Peace'' (2010, 75 minutes), as the opening film of the
DMZ International Documentary Film Festival DMZ International Documentary Film Festival (), also known as DMZ Docs, is a South Korean film festival for documentary films jointly presented by Gyeonggi Province, Paju and Goyang. Launched in 2009, it is held annually for seven days in Septe ...
(DMZ Docs). ''Peace'' depicts the lives of people with disabilities and cats in Okayama, Japan, and was initially commissioned by DMZ Docs as a short documentary. ''Peace'' later won the Audience Award at
Tokyo Filmex TOKYO FILMeX (東京フィルメックス) is an international film festival established in 2000. The film festival was launched by Office Kitano, the agency and production company co-founded by leading actor-filmmaker Takeshi Kitano. TOKYO FILM ...
, Buyens-Chagoll Award at
Visions du Reel Vision, Visions, or The Vision may refer to: Perception Optical perception * Visual perception, the sense of sight * Visual system, the physical mechanism of eyesight * Computer vision, a field dealing with how computers can be made to gain un ...
, and Best Documentary Award at the Hong Kong International Film Festival. In 2009, Soda started shooting ''Theater 1'' and ''Theatre 2'', a documentary series about a playwright/theater director Oriza Hirata and his company, Seinendan. The series was world-premiered at the Busan International Film Festival in 2012, and won the Young Jury's Prize at the Festival des 3 Continents in Nantes, France in 2012.


Works


Fiction films

* ''A Night in New York'' (1995), writer/director/editor * ''A Flower and a Woman'' (1995), writer/director/editor * ''Freezing Sunlight'' (1996), writer/director/editor * ''The Flicker'' (1997), writer/director/editor


Documentary films

* ''Campaign'' (2007), writer/director/editor/producer * ''Mental'' (2008), writer/director/editor/producer * ''Peace'' (2010), writer/director/editor/producer * ''Theatre 1'' (2012), writer/director/editor/producer * ''Theatre 2'' (2012), writer/director/editor/producer * ''Campaign 2'' (2013), writer/director/editor/producer * ''Oyster Factory'' (2015), writer/director/editor/producer * ''The Big House'' (2018), director/editor/producer *''Inland Sea'' (2018), director/editor/producer *''Zero'' (2020), director/editor/producer


Books

* ''Mental Illness and Mosaic'' (Chuohoki Publishing), 2009 * ''The Reason Why I Make Documentaries'' (Kodansha Publishing), 2010 * ''Theatre vs. Film - Can a Documentary Capture Fiction?'' (Iwanami Publishing), 2012


References


External links


Official Website

Official blog
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Soda, Kazuhiro Japanese documentary filmmakers People from Tochigi Prefecture 1970 births Living people University of Tokyo alumni