Takashi Shimizu (清水 崇 Shimizu Takashi, born 27 July 1972) is a Japanese people filmmaker. He is best known for being the creator of the Ju-On, and directing four of its films, internationally, in both Japan and the U.S. According to film scholar Wheeler Winston Dixon, Shimizu is "one of a new breed of Japanese horror directors" who prefers to "suggest menace and violence rather than directly depict it".[Wheeler Winston Dixon, Rutgers University Press, 11 July 2007, Film Talk: Directors at Work, Retrieved 10 November 2014 (see page xi Introduction last paragraph), ]
Early life
Shimizu was born on 27 July 1972, in
Maebashi,
Tokyo.
He attended Wakamiya Elementary School and Maebashi City Fourth Junior High School before graduating from Gunma Prefectural Chuo High School. He initially enrolled in Kindai University but dropped out. He then enrolled in
Nihon University where he met future collaborator and film producer Takashige Ichise. Together they went on to develop
Ju-On.
Career
After graduating, he was given the opportunity to direct a short film for Kansai TV's horror omnibus "Gakkou no Kaidan G" when writer and director
Kiyoshi Kurosawa, who was teaching a filmmaking class that Shimizu, then working as an assistant director, attended, was impressed by a three-minute short film Shimizu had written and directed. The short films would end up being
Katasumi and
4444444444, later serving as forerunners to the
Ju-On.
Shortly afterwards, Shimizu made his directorial debut with the supernatural horror, (2000), starring Takashi Matsuyama, Takako Fuji, Yūrei Yanagi and Chiaki Kuriyama in lead roles, followed by its sequel, . Despite the films releasing in Direct-to-video, they were met with critical acclaim.
However, the English remakes were met with a widespread mixed reception, albeit their commercial success. The Sony Pictures quickly greenlit a sequel, as Shimizu was offered to direct, but chose to produce instead, prompting a replacement in form of Toby Wilkins. The film was met with overwhelmingly negative reception, despite commercial success in both its direct-to-video and theatrical releases. Following the negative reception, Shimizu returned to Japanese cinema, and has continued focusing his work there.
Filmography
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Katasumi and 4444444444, stories from "School Ghost Story G" (1998) (TV)
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(2000) (Video)
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(2000) (Video)
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Kubitsuri Kikyu (????) (Video)
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Shin rei bideo V: Honto ni atta kowai hanashi - kyoufushin rei shashin-kan (2000) (Video)
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Shin rei bideo VI: Honto ni atta kowai hanashi - kyoufu tarento taikendan (2000) (Video)
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(2001)
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(2002)
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(2003)
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The Grudge (2004)
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Marebito (2004)
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Dark Tales of Japan, episode Blonde Kwaidan, (2004) (TV)
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The Great Horror Family (2004–2005) (TV)
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Reincarnation, (2005)
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The Grudge 2 (2006)
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Ghost vs. Alien 03 (2007)
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Ten Nights of Dream (2006)
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The Shock Labyrinth 3D (2009)
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Tormented (2011)
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Scared of the Dark (2013)
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Flight 7500 (2014)
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Kiki's Delivery Service (2014), live-action adaptation of the novel of the same name
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NightCry (2015), live-action trailer for the video game NightCry, formerly known as Project Scissors
[ 'Clock Tower' Spiritual Successor Gets a Live-Action]
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(2017, executive producer)
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Innocent Curse (2017)
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Howling Village (2019)
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Suicide Forest Village (2021)
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Homunculus (2021)
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Ox-Head Village (2022)
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Immersion (2023)
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Sana (2023)
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Sana: Let Me Hear (2024)
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Survey Regarding Mouth (2026)
Accolades
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2022 — Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award at 21st New York Asian Film Festival.
External links
