was a Japanese

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

and

film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...

best known outside Japan for the 1960s

tokusatsu is a Japanese term for live-action films or television programs that make heavy use of practical special effects. Credited to special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya, ''tokusatsu'' mainly refers to science fiction film, science fiction, War fi ...

TV series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming platf ...

Ultraman The , also known as ''Ultraman'', is a Japanese science fiction media franchise owned and produced by Tsuburaya Productions, which began with the television series '' Ultra Q'' in 1966. The franchise has expanded into many television shows, fi ...

'' and ''

Ultraseven is a List of Japanese television series, Japanese ''tokusatsu'' Science fiction on television, science fiction television series created by Eiji Tsuburaya. It is the second entry (third overall) in the Ultra Series and was produced by Tsuburaya ...

'', as well as for his

auteur An (; , ) is an artist with a distinctive approach, usually a film director whose filmmaking control is so unbounded and personal that the director is likened to the "author" of the film, thus manifesting the director's unique style or thematic ...

erotic Eroticism () is a quality that causes sexual feelings, as well as a philosophical contemplation concerning the aesthetics of sexual desire, sensuality, and romantic love. That quality may be found in any form of artwork, including painting, sculp ...

ATG-produced

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

trilogy A trilogy is a set of three distinct works that are connected and can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, and video games. Three-part works that are considered components of ...

, , and . He was also known for his film adaptations of

Japanese horror Japanese horror, also known as J-horror, is horror fiction derived from popular culture in Japan, generally noted for its unique thematic and conventional treatment of the horror genre differing from the traditional Western representation of horr ...

author

Edogawa Rampo , better known by the pen name , was a Japanese author and critic who played a major role in the development of Japanese mystery and thriller fiction. Many of his novels involve the detective hero Kogoro Akechi, who in later books was the ...

. Jissoji possessed a very distinctive

visual style In the visual arts, style is a "...distinctive manner which permits the grouping of works into related categories" or "...any distinctive, and therefore recognizable, way in which an act is performed or an artifact made or ought to be performed a ...

that was notable even in

Japanese cinema The , also known domestically as , has a history that spans more than 100 years. Japan has one of the oldest and largest film industries in the world; as of 2022, it was the fourth largest by number of feature films produced, producing 634 fi ...

which is known internationally for its visual style. Every project he directed, from children's action shows to disturbing adult films had an uncompromising approach to cinematic story telling. His episodes of the ''Ultraman'' TV shows are unique and quite unusual for children's television. His career is also unusual in that he went back and forth from children's television to film projects that were sexually provocative in some way or another. It is perhaps this aspect of his work that has prevented wider distribution of his films.

Sadomasochistic Sadism () and masochism (), known collectively as sadomasochism ( ) or S&M, is the derivation of pleasure from acts of respectively inflicting or receiving pain or humiliation. The term is named after the Marquis de Sade, a French author known ...

and

non-consensual Consent occurs when one person voluntarily agrees to the proposal or desires of another. It is a term of common speech, with specific definitions used in such fields as the law, medicine, research, and sexual consent. Consent as understood in ...

sexual practices Human sexual activity, human sexual practice or human sexual behaviour is the manner in which humans experience and express their sexuality. People engage in a variety of sexual acts, ranging from activities done alone (e.g., masturbation) t ...

are featured in many of his film works with women receiving the brunt of the abuse. Most of his work is not available outside Japan or with English subtitles. Other notable films include: * , a visually sumptuous telling of the famed Japanese printmaker's life centering on the years he was forced to make pornographic prints for a living. * , a live-action

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

/horror film. * , Jissoji directed the lead segment of this horror

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs, or related fiction/non-fiction excerpts by different authors. There are also thematic and g ...

. * , Jissoji contributed a selection in this anthology of

short film A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...

s based on the writings of

Natsume Sōseki , born , was a Japanese novelist. He is best known for his novels ''Kokoro'', ''Botchan'', ''I Am a Cat'', ''Kusamakura (novel), Kusamakura'' and his unfinished work ''Light and Darkness (novel), Light and Darkness''. He was also a scholar of Br ...

. He died of

stomach cancer Stomach cancer, also known as gastric cancer, is a malignant tumor of the stomach. It is a cancer that develops in the Gastric mucosa, lining of the stomach. Most cases of stomach cancers are gastric carcinomas, which can be divided into a numb ...

, aged 69, in his birth city of

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

in 2006 just after starting work on a revival of his ''Silver Mask'' live action children's show.

Filmography

* '' The Father of Ultra Q'' (1966) * '' Mujo'' (1970) * ''Mandala'' (1971) * ''Poem'' (1972) * ''

'' (1979) * ''

Lanterns on Blue Waters is a 1983 Japanese television film. Akio Jissoji was the director. Nippon Television produced the film. Story It is about a Japanese American in Hawaii, Kosaku Yamanami, who recalls his life during historical events. A family get-together takes ...

'' (1983) * '' Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis'' (1987) * '' Ultra Q The Movie: Legend of the Stars'' (1990) * '' Murder on D Street'' (1998)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jissoji, Akio 1937 births 2006 deaths Deaths from stomach cancer in Japan Japanese film directors Japanese television directors Film people from Tokyo People from Shinjuku