Shochiku

Shochiku Co., Ltd.
Native name
松竹株式会社
Shōchiku Kabushiki gaisha
Company typePublic (Kabushiki gaisha)
IndustryEntertainment (film)
Founded1895; 129 years ago (1895)
Founders
  • Takejirō Ōtani
  • Matsujirō Shirai
HeadquartersTsukiji 4-1-1, ,
Revenue5.4 billion yen (2021)
Number of employees
1,427 (2021)
Subsidiaries
  • Shochiku Costume
  • Shochiku Service Network
  • Shochiku Showbiz Studios
  • Shochiku Geino
  • Shochiku Broadcasting
  • Shochiku Studio
  • Shochiku Video Center
  • Shochiku Multiplex Theatres
  • Shochiku Music Publishing
Websitewww.shochiku.co.jp

Shochiku Co., Ltd. (松竹株式会社, Shōchiku Kabushiki gaisha) is a Japanese entertainment company. It started its business in 1895 by managing kabuki theaters in Kyoto, and in 1914, it also acquired ownership of the Kabuki-za theater in Tokyo. In 1920, Shochiku entered the film production industry and established the Kamata Film Studio. Currently, it is considered one of Japan's Big Four film studios and is the oldest among the Big Four. Shochiku is a member of the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan (MPPAJ).

It also produces and distributes anime films, in particular those produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks (which has a long-time partnership—the company released most, if not all, anime films produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks). Its best remembered directors include Yasujirō Ozu, Kenji Mizoguchi, Mikio Naruse, Keisuke Kinoshita and Yōji Yamada. It has also produced films by highly regarded independent and "loner" directors such as Takashi Miike, Takeshi Kitano, Akira Kurosawa, Masaki Kobayashi and Taiwanese New Wave director Hou Hsiao-hsien.

History

As Shochiku Kinema

Otani Takejiro & Shirai Matsujiro in 1932

The company was founded in 1895 as a kabuki production company and later began producing films in 1920.[1] Shochiku is considered the oldest company in Japan involved in present-day film production,[2] but Nikkatsu began earlier as a pure film studio in 1912. Founded by the brothers Takejirō Ōtani (大谷竹次郎) and Matsujirō Shirai (白井松次郎), it was named “Matsutake” in 1902 after the combined kunyomi reading of the kanji take (bamboo) and matsu (pine) from their names, reflecting the traditional three symbols of happiness: bamboo, pine, and plum. The onyomi reading of Shōchiku first appeared in 1920 with the founding of the film production subsidiary "Shōchiku Kinema Gōmei-sha".[3]

Shochiku grew quickly in the early years, expanding its business to many other Japanese live theatrical styles, including Noh and Bunraku, and established a near monopoly due to its ownership of theaters, as well as kabuki and shimpa drama troupes.[2]

The company began making films in 1920, about a decade after its main rival Nikkatsu. The company sought to break away from the prevailing pattern of jidai-geki and to emulate Hollywood standards. It was the first film studio to abandon the use of female impersonators and brought new ideas, including the star system and the sound stage to Japan. It built its main studio at Kamata, named Shochiku Kamata Studio, between Tokyo and Yokohama, and hired Henry Kotani, a Japanese who had worked in Hollywood as an actor and cameraman to direct its first film, Island Woman (Shima no Onna, 1920). It also hired the prominent theater director Kaoru Osanai to head a school at the studio, which produced the film Souls on the Road (1921), a film directed by Minoru Murata which is considered "the first landmark film in Japanese history".[4]

However, Shochiku's early history was difficult, as audiences preferred the more action-packed jidai-geki historical swashbucklers over the shinpa melodramas, and its Kamata studios were destroyed by the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, forcing a temporary relocation to Kyoto.[2]

With the reopening of its Kamata studios, Shochiku also introduced the shomin-geki genre,[5] with stories reflecting the lives of the lower-middle urban classes. These dramas proved immensely popular, and marked the start of the careers of many prominent directors (including Ozu, Naruse, and Hiroshi Shimizu) and actors (including Kinuyo Tanaka).

In 1931, Shochiku released the first “talkie” made in Japan: The Neighbor's Wife and Mine (Madamu to nyōbō, 1930). Filming became increasingly difficult at the Kamata studios during the 1930s with the rapid industrialization of the surrounding area, such as the construction of munitions factories and metal foundries, and Shochiku decided to close the studio and relocate to Ofuna, near Kamakura in 1936. The following year, Shochiku Kinema was merged with its parent company, Shochiku Entertainment, and adopted the new name of Shochiku Corporation.[2]

As Shochiku Corporation

An old Shochiku ident until 1999

During the war years, Shochiku's president, Shiro Kido, helped establish the Dai Nippon Eiga Kyokai (Greater Japan Film association), whose purpose was to coordinate the industry's efforts with Japanese government policy. From the mid-1930s until 1945, the films produced by Shochiku and other Japanese movie companies were propagandistic. After the surrender of Japan, Kido and Shochiku's co-founder Otani were arrested and charged with Class-A war crimes by the Allied occupation authorities[2] however, Otani's charges were ultimately dropped after the list of war criminals was deemed too large.[6]

In 1953, after the end of the occupation, Kido returned to Shochiku and revived the melodramatic style of films which had been a Shochiku trademark in the pre-war era. Directors associated with Shochiku in this era included Ozu, Keisuke Kinoshita, and Noboru Nakamura. Many of the films during the 1950s were aimed primarily at female audiences. In particular, Hideo Oba's three-part What is Your Name? (Kimi no na wa?) in 1953 was the most commercially successful film of the period.[2] Ozu's Tokyo Story, made in 1953, later earned considerable accolades, being selected in the 2012 Sight & Sound international critics poll as the third best film of all time.[7]

Toho was Shochiku's primary rival during this period, competing for talent and properties as well as with the influx of Hollywood films and the rise of television.[8] By the start of the 1960s, Shochiku's films were criticized as “old-fashioned” with the popularity of rival Nikkatsu’s Taiyo-zoku youth-orientated movies. The studio responded by launching the Japanese New Wave (Nuberu bagu) which also launched the career of Nagisa Oshima among others,[5] though Oshima soon went independent; the films of Oshima and other film makers were not financially successful and the company changed its policies.[5]

However, the growing threat from television led to the bankruptcy of Shochiku’s competitors Shintoho in 1961 and Daiei in 1971, whereas Nikkatsu and Toei turned to gangster movies and soft pornography to maintain attendance, while Toho continued to thrive with its kaiju films and prestige talent roster. Shochiku held its family-orientated audience largely due to the phenomenal success of the Tora-san series directed by Yoji Yamada from 1969 through 1997. However, with the death of its star Kiyoshi Atsumi, the series came to an end, and the company faced increasing financial difficulties.[2] In 1986, Shochiku decided to focus on exporting products, such as towards a large, worldwide effort that was scheduled for 1987 to promote the company's classics throughout the west.[9]

The Ofuna studio was briefly transformed into a theme park, Kamakura Cinema World, but this was closed in 1998 and the site was sold off in 2000 to Kamakura Women's College. Since that time, Shochiku has relied on its film studio and backlot in Kyoto. Yamada’s “The Twilight Samurai” (Tasogare Seibei, 2002) was nominated for an Oscar as Best Foreign Language Picture.[2]

Shochiku served as a distributor of theatrical anime. Major titles have included the Cardcaptor Sakura films, the Mobile Suit Gundam films, Origin: Spirits of the Past, Piano no Mori, Ghost in the Shell, Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa, Fullmetal Alchemist: The Sacred Star of Milos, Sword of the Stranger, Fairy Tail the Movie: Phoenix Priestess, The Dog of Flanders and Jungle Emperor Leo.

Shareholders

as of October 2015

Partial list of Shochiku's films

See also

References

  1. ^ Standish, Isolde (2005). A New History of Japanese Cinema: A Century of Narrative Film. New York: Continuum. ISBN 978-0826417909.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Sharpe, Jasper (2011). Historical Dictionary of Japanese Cinema. Scarecrow Press. pp. 222–225. ISBN 978-0-8108-7541-8.
  3. ^ "The Corporate Identity of Shochiku Co., Ltd". Archived from the original on 2010-11-13.
  4. ^ Mark Cousins (4 October 2006). The Story of Film. Da Capo Press. p. 56. ISBN 978-1-56025-933-6.
  5. ^ a b c Alexander Jacoby, A Critical Handbook of Japanese Film Directors, 2008, Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press, p.381.
  6. ^ Joseph L Anderson & Donald Richie (1960). The Japanese Film: Art and Industry (Expanded ed.). Charles E. Tuttle Company. pp. 163–164. ISBN 978-0691007922.
  7. ^ "Critics' top 100: BFI". bfi.org.uk. Archived from the original on February 7, 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  8. ^ Kindem, Gorham Anders (2000). The international movie industry. Carbondale : Southern Illinois University Press. p. 17.
  9. ^ "Japan's Shochiku Devoting More Attention To Export Of Product". Variety. 1986-08-20. p. 6.
  10. ^ Galbraith, Stuart (1994). Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. McFarland. pp. 49, 324.
  11. ^ a b c Galbraith, Stuart (1994). Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. McFarland. p. 323.
  12. ^ Lee, Walter W. (1973). Reference Guide to Fantastic Films. Chelsea-Lee Books. p. 239.
  13. ^ a b Galbraith, Stuart (1994). Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. McFarland. p. 325.
  14. ^ Galbraith, Stuart (1994). Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. McFarland. p. 318.
  15. ^ Galbraith, Stuart (1994). Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. McFarland. p. 319.
  16. ^ a b Galbraith, Stuart (1994). Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. McFarland. p. 321.
  17. ^ Galbraith, Stuart (1994). Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. McFarland. p. 308.
  18. ^ Galbraith, Stuart (1994). Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. McFarland. p. 320.
  19. ^ "ギララの逆襲/洞爺湖サミット危機一発". Kinema Junpo. Retrieved 27 December 2020.

Media related to Shochiku at Wikimedia Commons

Read other articles:

Artikel ini sudah memiliki daftar referensi, bacaan terkait, atau pranala luar, tetapi sumbernya belum jelas karena belum menyertakan kutipan pada kalimat. Mohon tingkatkan kualitas artikel ini dengan memasukkan rujukan yang lebih mendetail bila perlu. (Pelajari cara dan kapan saatnya untuk menghapus pesan templat ini) Ki Sarmidi Mangunsarkoro ꦏꦶꦱꦂꦩꦶꦢꦶꦩꦔꦸꦤ꧀ꦱꦂꦏꦫMenteri Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Indonesia Ke-6Masa jabatan4 Agustus 1949 – 6 Septem...

 

Family of long-necked lutes This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.Find sources: Tamburica – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (January 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) TamburicaString instrumentClassification PluckedRelated instruments Chonguri Dangubica Samica Tar (lute) Seta...

 

داتشنويي الإحداثيات 43°05′06″N 44°44′10″E / 43.084973°N 44.73603°E / 43.084973; 44.73603  تقسيم إداري  البلد روسيا[1]  خصائص جغرافية ارتفاع 626 متر[2]  معلومات أخرى 363101  رمز جيونيمز 567312  تعديل مصدري - تعديل   داتشنويي (بالروسية: Дачное) هي مدينة في جمهورية أوسيتيا...

2023 edition of the IIHF World Championship Main article: 2023 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships 2023 IIHF World ChampionshipTournament detailsHost countries  Finland LatviaDates12–28 MayOpened bySauli NiinistöTeams16Venue(s)2 (in 2 host cities)Final positionsChampions  Canada (28th title)Runner-up  GermanyThird place  LatviaFourth place United StatesTournament statisticsGames played64Goals scored354 (5.53 per game)At...

 

Insignien des Primicerius notariorum, Abbildung aus den Notitia dignitatum Als primicerius (primus in cera bzw. primus in tabula cerata, d. h. erster auf einer gewachsten Tafel mit einer Liste von Beamten) wurde in der römischen Spätantike jeder Vorsteher eines zivilen Verwaltungszweiges bezeichnet, z. B. primicerius notariorum, primicerius protectorum. Beim primicerius sacri cubiculi, mit der Aufsicht über das kaiserliche Schlafzimmer beauftragt, handelte es sich meistens um Eunuchen. Auc...

 

Artikel ini tidak memiliki referensi atau sumber tepercaya sehingga isinya tidak bisa dipastikan. Tolong bantu perbaiki artikel ini dengan menambahkan referensi yang layak. Tulisan tanpa sumber dapat dipertanyakan dan dihapus sewaktu-waktu.Cari sumber: Marga Batak di Samosir – berita · surat kabar · buku · cendekiawan · JSTOR artikel ini perlu dirapikan agar memenuhi standar Wikipedia. Tidak ada alasan yang diberikan. Silakan kembangkan artikel ini sem...

Overview of the culture of Pakistan Truck art is a distinctive feature of Pakistani culture. Part of a series on theCulture of Pakistan History Pakistan Movement People People List of Pakistanis Pakistani name Languages Urdu Pakistani English Provincial languages Traditions Folklore Cuisine Eastern Mughlai Muhajir Hyderabadi Punjabi Saraiki Lahori Sindhi Parsi Western Balochi Hazara Pashtun Northern Chitrali Hunza Kalash Kashmiri Overseas and fusion Balti Pakistani Chinese Festivals Public ho...

 

South African rap-rave group Die AntwoordDie Antwoord performing in 2010Background informationAlso known asThe AnswerOriginCape Town, South AfricaGenresAlternative hip hopelectronic danceraveYears active2008–presentLabelsZefCherrytreeInterscopeKobaltMembers Ninja Yolandi Visser HITEK5000 Lil2Hood Websitedieantwoord.com Die Antwoord (pronounced [di ˈantvuərt], Afrikaans for The Answer) is a South African alternative hip hop group formed in Cape Town in 2008. The group comprises rap...

 

TipatTipat cantokSajianJajananTempat asalIndonesiaDaerahBaliSuhu penyajianSuhu ruangBahan utamaKetupat dan sayuran disajikan dengan bumbu kacang  Media: Tipat Tipat cantok merupakan salah satu makanan khas Bali yang terbuat dari sayuran rebus dan ketupat serta disajikan dengan bumbu kacang. Dalam bahasa Bali, tipat memiliki pengertian ketupat dan cantok memiliki pengertian diuleg/ dihaluskan dengan cobek. Sayuran yang digunakan pada umumnya adalah kacang panjang, tauge, dan kangkung....

Valine Skeletal formula of neutral valine Zwitterionic valine Ball-and-stick model Space-filling model Names IUPAC name Valine Other names 2-Amino-3-methylbutanoic acid2-Aminoisovaleric acidValic acid Identifiers CAS Number L: 72-18-4 YD/L: 516-06-3 YD: 640-68-6 Y 3D model (JSmol) L: Interactive imageL Zwitterion: Interactive image ChEBI L: CHEBI:16414 Y ChEMBL L: ChEMBL43068 Y ChemSpider L: 6050 YD/L: 1148 YD:&#x...

 

1941 film The Shepherd of the HillsFilm posterDirected byHenry HathawayScreenplay by Stuart Anthony Grover Jones Based onThe Shepherd of the Hills1907 novelby Harold Bell WrightProduced byJack MossStarring John Wayne Betty Field Harry Carey Cinematography W. Howard Greene Charles Lang Edited byEllsworth HoaglandMusic byGerard CarbonaraProductioncompanyParamount PicturesDistributed byParamount PicturesRelease date July 18, 1941 (1941-07-18) Running time98 minutesCountryUnited St...

 

Surgeon General of the United Kingdom Armed ForcesMinistry of Defence tri-Service BadgeIncumbentTimothy Hodgettssince 21 May 2021Defence Medical ServicesWebsiteDefence Medical Services The Surgeon-General of the United Kingdom Armed Forces is the most senior uniformed medical officer in the British Armed Forces. Army The post of Surgeon-General dates from 1664; there was also, from 1685, a Physician-General appointed; together, they directed the Army's medical services. These offices lap...

Pour les articles homonymes, voir Dix-Huit-Février. Éphémérides Février 1er 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29             18 janvier 18 mars Chronologies thématiques Croisades Ferroviaires Sports Disney Anarchisme Catholicisme Abréviations / Voir aussi (° 1852) = né en 1852 († 1885) = mort en 1885 a.s. = calendrier julien n.s. = calendrier grégorien Calendrier Calendrier perpétuel Liste de calendriers Naissan...

 

3-Methylcatechol Names Preferred IUPAC name 3-Methylbenzene-1,2-diol Other names 2,3-Dihydroxytoluene3-Methylpyrocatechol Identifiers CAS Number 488-17-5 Y 3D model (JSmol) Interactive image ChEBI CHEBI:18404 ChemSpider 333 ECHA InfoCard 100.006.975 PubChem CID 340 UNII 0HUZ4Q9R8C Y CompTox Dashboard (EPA) DTXSID9060071 InChI InChI=1S/C7H8O2/c1-5-3-2-4-6(8)7(5)9/h2-4,8-9H,1H3Key: PGSWEKYNAOWQDF-UHFFFAOYSA-N SMILES CC1=C(C(=CC=C1)O)O Properties Chemical formula C7H8O2 Molar mas...

 

Season of television series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season of television series Law & Order: Special Victims UnitSeason 9Season 9 U.S. DVD coverStarring Christopher Meloni Mariska Hargitay Richard Belzer Diane Neal Ice-T Adam Beach BD Wong Tamara Tunie Dann Florek Country of originUnited StatesNo. of episodes19ReleaseOriginal networkNBCOriginal releaseSeptember 25, 2007 (2007-09-25) –May 13, 2008 (2008-05-13)Season chronology← PreviousSeason 8 Next&#...

Municipal building in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England Nottingham Council HouseNottingham Council House, Old Market SquareGeneral informationTypeMunicipal HeadquartersArchitectural styleNeo-BaroqueClassification Listed Building – Grade II*Designated4 February 1988Reference no.1270582 LocationNottingham, England, United KingdomAddressOld Market Square, Nottingham NG1 2DTCoordinates52°57′12″N 01°08′55″W / 52.95333°N 1.14861°W / 52.95333; -1.14861Co...

 

Dam in Folsom, CaliforniaFolsom DamFolsom Dam releaseLocationFolsom, CaliforniaCoordinates38°42′28″N 121°09′23″W / 38.7077°N 121.1565°W / 38.7077; -121.1565Construction began1951; 73 years ago (1951)[1]Opening date1956; 68 years ago (1956)[1]Construction costUS$81.5 millionOperator(s)U.S. Bureau of ReclamationDam and spillwaysImpoundsAmerican RiverHeight340 ft (100 m)[2]Len...

 

Тетраподоморфы Eusthenopteron foordiЧетвероногие в широком смысле. Сверху: зелёная литория, акантостега; Снизу: обыкновенная сипуха, обыкновенная лисица Научная классификация Домен:ЭукариотыЦарство:ЖивотныеПодцарство:ЭуметазоиБез ранга:Двусторонне-симметричныеБез ранга:Вто�...

Para otros usos de este término, véase Sucre (desambiguación). Este artículo o sección tiene referencias, pero necesita más para complementar su verificabilidad. Busca fuentes: «Estado Sucre» – noticias · libros · académico · imágenesEste aviso fue puesto el 18 de abril de 2017. Sucre Estado de VenezuelaBanderaEscudo Lema: Lealtad es Amor por Sucre. Coordenadas 10°33′N 63°12′O / 10.55, -63.2Capital CumanáEntidad Estado de Venezuela...

 

J.L. Peixoto in the UNAM José Luís Peixoto (born 4 September 1974, in Galveias, Portalegre, Portugal[1]), is a Portuguese writer. His novels that are in English are Blank Gaze (UK title)/The Implacable Order of Things (US title) and The Piano Cemetery. His works have been published in France, Italy, Greece, Bulgaria, Turkey, Finland, Holland, Spain (Spanish and Catalan), Czech Republic, Croatia, Belarus, Brazil, United States, United Kingdom, and Hungary. His novels have been transl...