Akiko Ōku (大九 明子, Ōku Akiko, born October 8, 1968),[1] also romanised as Akiko Ohku, is a Japanese film director.
Ōku was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa.[2] In high school, she joined a rakugo group. While studying Politics and Economics at Meiji University, she was part of a student theatre troupe. After graduating, Ōku briefly had an office job at a subsidiary of the Ministry of Labour. She then entered a comedy acting school for one year and performed as a stand-up comedian, and afterwards, at age 27, she entered Eigabi School, a film school where director Kiyoshi Kurosawa taught, among others.
Igaito shinanai
While still at film school, Ōku won a screenwriting contest with a script that would become her theatrical feature film debut as director, 意外と死なない (Igaito shinanai, literally "don't die unexpectedly"). The film was released in 1999.[1] It is about an elementary school teacher troubled by pupils, parents, colleagues and a stalker.
Lost After School
Lost After School (original title 放課後ロストHōkago rosuto) is an anthology film released in 2014 consisting of three episodes about high school girls.[2] The film is based on the shōjo mangaWorld Gaze Clips by Ran Igarashi.[3] Each episode was directed by a different female director, the other directors besides Ōku being Chihiro Amano and Ai Nagura.[2] Ōku's segment is titled 倍音 (baion, literally "overtones").
Fantastic Girls
Fantastic Girls (original title でーれーガールズDērē gāruzu) was released in 2015.[2] It is adapted from the novel of the same title by Maha Harada. The word dērē in the title is Okayama dialect and means "very". The story is about two high-school friends in 1980 who reunite 30 years later.
Further films by Ōku include 美人が婚活してみたらBijin ga konkatsu shite mitara / Marriage Hunting Beauty (2019, based on the manga by Arako Toaru) and 私をくいとめてWatashi wo kuitomete / Hold Me Back (2020, based on the novel by Risa Wataya).
^ abcdUdagawa, Shinya (August 2014). "著名人インタビュー この人に聞きたい！ 大九明子さん［映画監督］" [Celebrity Interview - I Want to Ask this Person! Akiko Ōku, Film Director]. 13歳のハローワーク (in Japanese). Retrieved 14 November 2021.
.jpg)
