Nobuhiko Obayashi

Nobuhiko Obayashi

Birth : 1938-01-09, Onomichi, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan

Death : 2020-04-10

History

Nobuhiko Obayashi (January 9, 1938 – April 10, 2020) was a Japanese director, screenwriter and editor of films and television advertisements who is well known for his surreal visual style. He began his career as a pioneering figure in Japanese experimental film during the 1960s before transitioning to directing more mainstream works such as television and feature films. Though he remains mostly unknown outside of Japan, he has made a prolific number of films in his 50 years of working with the medium.

Profile

Nobuhiko Obayashi
Nobuhiko Obayashi

Movies

Labyrinth of Cinema
Producer
The only movie theater on the Onomichi seafront is about to close its doors. Its last night of screenings will be an all-night marathon of Japanese war films. When lightning strikes the theater, three young men in the audience find themselves thrown back in time into the world inside the screen.
Labyrinth of Cinema
The Mysterious Old Pianist / The Director John
The only movie theater on the Onomichi seafront is about to close its doors. Its last night of screenings will be an all-night marathon of Japanese war films. When lightning strikes the theater, three young men in the audience find themselves thrown back in time into the world inside the screen.
Labyrinth of Cinema
Editor
The only movie theater on the Onomichi seafront is about to close its doors. Its last night of screenings will be an all-night marathon of Japanese war films. When lightning strikes the theater, three young men in the audience find themselves thrown back in time into the world inside the screen.
Labyrinth of Cinema
Screenplay
The only movie theater on the Onomichi seafront is about to close its doors. Its last night of screenings will be an all-night marathon of Japanese war films. When lightning strikes the theater, three young men in the audience find themselves thrown back in time into the world inside the screen.
Seijo Story: 60 Years of Making Films
Self
After meeting as college students in the cinema town of Seijo, husband and wife Nobuhiko and Kyoko Obayashi have gone on to direct and produce acclaimed films together for 60 years.
Labyrinth of Cinema
Director
The only movie theater on the Onomichi seafront is about to close its doors. Its last night of screenings will be an all-night marathon of Japanese war films. When lightning strikes the theater, three young men in the audience find themselves thrown back in time into the world inside the screen.
Extro
Self
Dives deep into the tragicomic world of the"towns-people" stand-ins working at Warp Station Edo, a popular shooting location for samurai dramas, through a piercing study of a 63-year-old extra. Utilizing mockumentary stylings, this ambitious film forms a compelling commentary on the aspirations that shape film production and the feelings that a simple, ho-hum life can evoke.
Film Director Nobuhiko Obayashi: His Promise
Self
Director Nobuhiko Obayashi is often dubbed "the cinematic magician." 2 and a half years ago, he was diagnosed with cancer with 3 months to live. But that did not deter him from making movies. Currently, he's in post-production on the second film he's done since being diagnosed. He's driven by the message of his late friend, the maestro Akira Kurosawa: "Movies have the power to stop fighting. Look 400 years ahead and keep on shooting." We follow Obayashi's extraordinary career and his mission to use the big screen to send out a message of peace.
Hanagatami
Screenplay
Spring, 1941. Sixteen-year-old Toshihiko attends school in the coastal town of Karatsu, where his aunt cares for his ailing cousin. Immersed in the seaside's nature and culture, Toshihiko soon befriends the town's other extraordinary adolescents as they all contend with the war's gravitational pull.
Hanagatami
Editor
Spring, 1941. Sixteen-year-old Toshihiko attends school in the coastal town of Karatsu, where his aunt cares for his ailing cousin. Immersed in the seaside's nature and culture, Toshihiko soon befriends the town's other extraordinary adolescents as they all contend with the war's gravitational pull.
Hanagatami
Director
Spring, 1941. Sixteen-year-old Toshihiko attends school in the coastal town of Karatsu, where his aunt cares for his ailing cousin. Immersed in the seaside's nature and culture, Toshihiko soon befriends the town's other extraordinary adolescents as they all contend with the war's gravitational pull.
Seven Weeks
Editor
Relatives gather from afar in wintery Ashibetsu upon the death of patriarch Mitsuo. A mysterious woman named Nobuko suddenly shows up. Her appearance gradually exposes wartime secrets and Mitsuo's unknown past.
Seven Weeks
Screenplay
Relatives gather from afar in wintery Ashibetsu upon the death of patriarch Mitsuo. A mysterious woman named Nobuko suddenly shows up. Her appearance gradually exposes wartime secrets and Mitsuo's unknown past.
Seven Weeks
Director
Relatives gather from afar in wintery Ashibetsu upon the death of patriarch Mitsuo. A mysterious woman named Nobuko suddenly shows up. Her appearance gradually exposes wartime secrets and Mitsuo's unknown past.
Casting Blossoms to the Sky
Screenplay
In 2011, a journalist arrives in Nagaoka, a Japanese village that underwent destruction during both World War II and the 2004 Chūetsu earthquakes, and is now notable for the fireworks it launches annually in memory of the victims of war. She is there for two reasons: firstly, to learn about the experiences of Nagaoka's inhabitants, and secondly, to watch a stage play written by an enigmatic student of her ex-boyfriend, which depicts the bombing of the city during WWII.
Casting Blossoms to the Sky
Editor
In 2011, a journalist arrives in Nagaoka, a Japanese village that underwent destruction during both World War II and the 2004 Chūetsu earthquakes, and is now notable for the fireworks it launches annually in memory of the victims of war. She is there for two reasons: firstly, to learn about the experiences of Nagaoka's inhabitants, and secondly, to watch a stage play written by an enigmatic student of her ex-boyfriend, which depicts the bombing of the city during WWII.
Casting Blossoms to the Sky
Director
In 2011, a journalist arrives in Nagaoka, a Japanese village that underwent destruction during both World War II and the 2004 Chūetsu earthquakes, and is now notable for the fireworks it launches annually in memory of the victims of war. She is there for two reasons: firstly, to learn about the experiences of Nagaoka's inhabitants, and secondly, to watch a stage play written by an enigmatic student of her ex-boyfriend, which depicts the bombing of the city during WWII.
Constructing a House
Self
Interview-based documentary looking back on the making and reception of Nobuhiko Ōbayashi's 1977 film House.
Scenery to Remember
Producer
A successful illustrator, Hinohara Takehiro, lives a happy life with his wife Toshiko, who has supported him all these years since the early struggling days, and their two sons. Feeling unwell, Toshiko has a check up one day and is told, out of the blue, that her days are numbered. When Toshiko is allowed out of the hospital temporarily, Takehiro and Toshiko travel to Hamakaze station. The town has changed a great deal in 18 years, however, the apartment where they started their married life is still there. People and scenery they used to cherish and the invaluable memories come vividly through. Starting at the place where their life as a couple began, the two prepare for "the day" while cherishing their remaining time. During the Bon festival, when the spirits of the deceased are believed to return to the living, Takehiro takes his sons to the firework display at Hamakaze and see the smiling face of Toshiko.
Scenery to Remember
Director
A successful illustrator, Hinohara Takehiro, lives a happy life with his wife Toshiko, who has supported him all these years since the early struggling days, and their two sons. Feeling unwell, Toshiko has a check up one day and is told, out of the blue, that her days are numbered. When Toshiko is allowed out of the hospital temporarily, Takehiro and Toshiko travel to Hamakaze station. The town has changed a great deal in 18 years, however, the apartment where they started their married life is still there. People and scenery they used to cherish and the invaluable memories come vividly through. Starting at the place where their life as a couple began, the two prepare for "the day" while cherishing their remaining time. During the Bon festival, when the spirits of the deceased are believed to return to the living, Takehiro takes his sons to the firework display at Hamakaze and see the smiling face of Toshiko.
Song of Goodbye
Writer
It is the second work of the Oita trilogy of Obayashi . Following " Nigori Snow ", Ise Masazo draws a song written by composers and songwriter "Farewell of 22 years old " as a motif and draws a story of love that spans two generations of mother and daughter.
Song of Goodbye
Director
It is the second work of the Oita trilogy of Obayashi . Following " Nigori Snow ", Ise Masazo draws a song written by composers and songwriter "Farewell of 22 years old " as a motif and draws a story of love that spans two generations of mother and daughter.
Switching - Goodbye Me
Director
After his parent's divorce, Kazuo Saito moves with his mother from Onomichi and must leave his girlfriend behind. At his new school, Kazuo is surprised to reunite with his childhood friend Kazumi. After talking about old times, they walk to a place from their childhood called the “Lonely Watering Place” but the two accidentally fall into the water. They quickly crawl out, but suddenly realize that they have switched bodies!
What's a Director?
Works commemorating the 70th anniversary of the founding of Japan mapping Supervision Association
The Motive
Writer
Four people are discovered brutally murdered in an up-scale high-rise apartment. All the victims appear to be family, but as the investigation deepens it is discovered that one of the victims isn't related to the family.
The Motive
Director
Four people are discovered brutally murdered in an up-scale high-rise apartment. All the victims appear to be family, but as the investigation deepens it is discovered that one of the victims isn't related to the family.
The Last Snow
Director
A story of two men, one recently bereaved, the other with a wife in a coma. From the popular song.
Farewell
Director
Yuichi Kosaka is a salaried businessman in Ueda city. His achievements have not been improved recently, and he is betrayed by the manager of takada. Takada, who is related to the company's executives, is very strict with him. Every night late, Yuichi is often dissatisfied with his wife, Kazue, and his daughter Sanae.On the other day Yuichi ran the car aiming at his home village. However, it is lost in the mountain road which should know well. An old public telephone keeps in sight, and yuichiro stops the car before it. It was Yuichi who had been able to find the name of the old high school classmate, Tai in the old telephone book, and dial, and was surprised to hear the voice of the big. It was because the voice was as it was 30 years ago. The telephone was connected to the past.
The Stupid Teacher
The Director John
Film director Mario Baba meets a mysterious gentleman, and realizes he is a important man from his boyhood. The two chase each other around, causing a lot of commotion.
The Stupid Teacher
Editor
Film director Mario Baba meets a mysterious gentleman, and realizes he is a important man from his boyhood. The two chase each other around, causing a lot of commotion.
The Stupid Teacher
Writer
Film director Mario Baba meets a mysterious gentleman, and realizes he is a important man from his boyhood. The two chase each other around, causing a lot of commotion.
The Stupid Teacher
Director
Film director Mario Baba meets a mysterious gentleman, and realizes he is a important man from his boyhood. The two chase each other around, causing a lot of commotion.
Shinobugawa
Director
It is the 1950’s, and the protagonist, identified only as ‘I,’ has come from Tokyo to study, burdened by the high expectations of his poor family in northeastern Japan. He meets a young woman named Shino who works in a small restaurant in the Komagome area of Tokyo. They fall in love, and he takes her to his family home through the heavy snow for their wedding. He introduces Shino to his elderly parents and his sister; they spend their wedding night together listening to bells ringing on sleighs gliding past across the moonlit snow. The next morning, wrapped in their small world of happiness, they go to a hot spring in the mountains to begin their honeymoon.
The Nagaharu Yodogawa Story: A Cineaste's Life in Kobe
Editor
Depicts the life of Nagaharu Yodogawa.
The Nagaharu Yodogawa Story: A Cineaste's Life in Kobe
Screenplay
Depicts the life of Nagaharu Yodogawa.
The Nagaharu Yodogawa Story: A Cineaste's Life in Kobe
Director
Depicts the life of Nagaharu Yodogawa.
One Summer's Day
Director
Veteran filmmaker Nobuhiko Obayashi rounds out the second of his two trilogies about his hometown of Onomichi with this film about the budding relationship between a young lad and an eccentric old man. Fifth-grader Yuta (Takuro Atsugi) is a typical city child looking forward to a summer of reading comic books and playing video games. Instead, he is bundled off to his grandparent's house on the Inland Sea. His grandfather, Yuta's parents explain, has been acting strangely as of late -- he eats the offerings in the family altar and once tried to lead attendants at a funeral in a rousing round of calisthenics. Since his mother and father are swamped with work, and his elder sister (Nana Sano) is studying for college entrance exams, Yuta has been asked to look after Grandpa. The old man takes Yuta on a tour of Onomichi, regaling him with 70 years of its history. Along the way, Grandpa slips in and out of the past, increasingly unable to discern between the two.
Legend of the Cat Monster
Original Music Composer
In the year 198X, a young screenwriter, Ryohei Shimura, has been in a slump lately. Then an opportunity arises. He is asked to write a script for the comeback film of Akiko Ryuzoji, the legendary beauty who was known as Japan's Cleopatra. Ryohei met Akiko right away, but he couldn't believe his eyes. Akiko was young and good-looking, even though she was already an old woman. Ryohei moved into Akiko's house to work on his scenario. A film director, Mizumori, who lives with Akiko at the mansion, warns Ryohei, “Don't sleep with Akiko,” he says. In fact, Ryohei was chosen for the job for a surprising reason...
Legend of the Cat Monster
Editor
In the year 198X, a young screenwriter, Ryohei Shimura, has been in a slump lately. Then an opportunity arises. He is asked to write a script for the comeback film of Akiko Ryuzoji, the legendary beauty who was known as Japan's Cleopatra. Ryohei met Akiko right away, but he couldn't believe his eyes. Akiko was young and good-looking, even though she was already an old woman. Ryohei moved into Akiko's house to work on his scenario. A film director, Mizumori, who lives with Akiko at the mansion, warns Ryohei, “Don't sleep with Akiko,” he says. In fact, Ryohei was chosen for the job for a surprising reason...
Legend of the Cat Monster
Director
In the year 198X, a young screenwriter, Ryohei Shimura, has been in a slump lately. Then an opportunity arises. He is asked to write a script for the comeback film of Akiko Ryuzoji, the legendary beauty who was known as Japan's Cleopatra. Ryohei met Akiko right away, but he couldn't believe his eyes. Akiko was young and good-looking, even though she was already an old woman. Ryohei moved into Akiko's house to work on his scenario. A film director, Mizumori, who lives with Akiko at the mansion, warns Ryohei, “Don't sleep with Akiko,” he says. In fact, Ryohei was chosen for the job for a surprising reason...
I Want to Hear the Wind's Song
Editor
A heartwarming, based-on-true-story of how a hearing-impaired couple, Masahiro and Namiko, knew each other, got married and began participating in the Triathlon. The story is told in flashbacks as Namiko awaits childbirth.
I Want to Hear the Wind's Song
Writer
A heartwarming, based-on-true-story of how a hearing-impaired couple, Masahiro and Namiko, knew each other, got married and began participating in the Triathlon. The story is told in flashbacks as Namiko awaits childbirth.
I Want to Hear the Wind's Song
Director
A heartwarming, based-on-true-story of how a hearing-impaired couple, Masahiro and Namiko, knew each other, got married and began participating in the Triathlon. The story is told in flashbacks as Namiko awaits childbirth.
Sada
Editor
Based on real-life events, this erotic thriller tells the sad and sadistic tale of a Japanese geisha whose behavior spiraled out of control.
Sada
Writer
Based on real-life events, this erotic thriller tells the sad and sadistic tale of a Japanese geisha whose behavior spiraled out of control.
Sada
Director
Based on real-life events, this erotic thriller tells the sad and sadistic tale of a Japanese geisha whose behavior spiraled out of control.
三毛猫ホームズの黄昏ホテル
Director
The second TV movie Obayashi Nobuhiko directed based on Akagawa Jiro's Mikeneko Holmes series.
三毛猫ホームズの推理
Director
A detective film by Nobuhiko Ōbayashi. Made for TV.
Goodbye for Tomorrow
Director
People from all walks of life (a high-school student, a middle-aged businessman, a yakuza chief, etc.) all receive mysterious messages from loved ones who were killed 3 months earlier in a shipwreck. They are instructed to go to a small island in the Inland Sea that evening. At the stroke of midnight, the lost ship emerges from the sea and they are given a brief time to say their final words to their lost loved ones, before the deceased must once again board the ship and it sinks back into the depths.
金なら返せん!
Turning Point
Screenplay
A middle-aged journalist looking to make her big break. After working the same beat on the "women's page", Yumiko gets promoted to editorials.
Turning Point
Director
A middle-aged journalist looking to make her big break. After working the same beat on the "women's page", Yumiko gets promoted to editorials.
Samurai Kids
Editor
A special effects filled fantasy adventure, in which an 8 year old boy encounters an ancient samurai warrior who is only six inches tall.
Samurai Kids
Director
A special effects filled fantasy adventure, in which an 8 year old boy encounters an ancient samurai warrior who is only six inches tall.
Haruka, Nostalgia
Writer
Ayase Shinsuke, a popular writer of a series of girl novels, visits Otaru, the town he grew up in. He meets a strange boy who calls himself by the author's real name.
Haruka, Nostalgia
Director
Ayase Shinsuke, a popular writer of a series of girl novels, visits Otaru, the town he grew up in. He meets a strange boy who calls himself by the author's real name.
Russian Lullabies
Director
Film director Nobuhiko Obayashi went to Russia in 1992 and visited, with his crew, five families from five different cities and asked one member of each family to record their daily life in their homes on video. Using old lullabies as background, the documentary reveals the intimacy, joys, fears and expectations of these families.
Russian Lullabies
Self
Film director Nobuhiko Obayashi went to Russia in 1992 and visited, with his crew, five families from five different cities and asked one member of each family to record their daily life in their homes on video. Using old lullabies as background, the documentary reveals the intimacy, joys, fears and expectations of these families.
The Rocking Horsemen
Editor
It is 1965. High-school student Takeyoshi Fujiwara hears "Pipeline" by the Ventures, and is mesmerized by their unique sound. With three friends, he forms a band called "The Rocking Horsemen." A warm and comic glimpse into high-school and small-town life in Japan in the 60's.
The Rocking Horsemen
Director
It is 1965. High-school student Takeyoshi Fujiwara hears "Pipeline" by the Ventures, and is mesmerized by their unique sound. With three friends, he forms a band called "The Rocking Horsemen." A warm and comic glimpse into high-school and small-town life in Japan in the 60's.
Chizuko's Younger Sister
Theme Song Performance
The Kitao family is coping with the loss of the eldest daughter, Chizuko, who was killed in a freak accident the year prior. When the other daughter Mika is suddenly in a dangerous situation, Chizuko returns as a ghost to save her; reunited with her sister, Mika begins spending time with Chizuko again.
Chizuko's Younger Sister
Editor
The Kitao family is coping with the loss of the eldest daughter, Chizuko, who was killed in a freak accident the year prior. When the other daughter Mika is suddenly in a dangerous situation, Chizuko returns as a ghost to save her; reunited with her sister, Mika begins spending time with Chizuko again.
Chizuko's Younger Sister
Director
The Kitao family is coping with the loss of the eldest daughter, Chizuko, who was killed in a freak accident the year prior. When the other daughter Mika is suddenly in a dangerous situation, Chizuko returns as a ghost to save her; reunited with her sister, Mika begins spending time with Chizuko again.
Why She Won't Marry
Director
Making of 'Dreams'
Editor
This 150-minute documentary, directed by Nobuhiko Ôbayashi on the set of Akira Kurosawa's Dreams, features behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with cast and crew.
Making of 'Dreams'
Self
This 150-minute documentary, directed by Nobuhiko Ôbayashi on the set of Akira Kurosawa's Dreams, features behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with cast and crew.
Making of 'Dreams'
Director
This 150-minute documentary, directed by Nobuhiko Ôbayashi on the set of Akira Kurosawa's Dreams, features behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with cast and crew.
Beijing Watermelon
Director
Shunzo is a popular greengrocer in a town near Tokyo. His life, and the lives of his wife Michi, and their two children, undergoes a dramatic change when he encounters Li, a poor college student from China.
My Heart Belongs to Daddy
Editor
My Heart Belongs to Daddy
Director
The Discarnates
Director
Harada is a successful scenario writer, and his best buddy has just announced an intention to propose to Harada's ex-wife. Recovering from the shock, Harada indulges in melancholy, mainly on his failure as a husband and father, and goes to a 'Rakugo' (sit-down comedy) show, where a friendly man in the audience invites him home. Harada is puzzled at the strong resemblance of this man and his wife to his own parents, who were killed nearly 30 years ago when he was twelve.
The Strange Pair
Director
Based on the comic book by Jūzō Yamasaki and Kei Sadayasu.
The Strange Pair
Screenplay
Based on the comic book by Jūzō Yamasaki and Kei Sadayasu.
The Strange Pair
Editor
Based on the comic book by Jūzō Yamasaki and Kei Sadayasu.
The Drifting Classroom
Editor
An entire Japanese international grade school—and all within—are mysteriously transported to a foreboding desert wasteland. As the story unfolds, the diminishing student body weathers this apocalyptic crisis while searching for clues about their surroundings, and dealing with psychological breakdown and dangerous exterior forces.
The Drifting Classroom
Adaptation
An entire Japanese international grade school—and all within—are mysteriously transported to a foreboding desert wasteland. As the story unfolds, the diminishing student body weathers this apocalyptic crisis while searching for clues about their surroundings, and dealing with psychological breakdown and dangerous exterior forces.
The Drifting Classroom
Director
An entire Japanese international grade school—and all within—are mysteriously transported to a foreboding desert wasteland. As the story unfolds, the diminishing student body weathers this apocalyptic crisis while searching for clues about their surroundings, and dealing with psychological breakdown and dangerous exterior forces.
Bound for the Fields, the Mountains, and the Seacoast
Director
During the fervently nationalist months leading up to World War II, a rebellious teenager is transferred to a new primary school in a small Inland Sea town. He vies with the school’s reigning bully, who takes a romantic interest in his older stepsister. When they learn she’s going to be sold to a brothel to pay off her father’s debts, they form an uneasy alliance to free her.
April Fish
Editor
A Francophile filmmaker in a creative rut tries to pass off a free-spirited young actress as his movie-star wife in order to fool a chief from the South Seas.
April Fish
Screenplay
A Francophile filmmaker in a creative rut tries to pass off a free-spirited young actress as his movie-star wife in order to fool a chief from the South Seas.
April Fish
Director
A Francophile filmmaker in a creative rut tries to pass off a free-spirited young actress as his movie-star wife in order to fool a chief from the South Seas.
His Motorbike, Her Island
Editor
After a series of chance meetings a shiftless motorbike enthusiast Ko begins a romance with a carefree girl Miyo, after teaching her to ride. When Miyo proves herself a biker prodigy Ko begins to fear that she is destined to crash.
His Motorbike, Her Island
Director
After a series of chance meetings a shiftless motorbike enthusiast Ko begins a romance with a carefree girl Miyo, after teaching her to ride. When Miyo proves herself a biker prodigy Ko begins to fear that she is destined to crash.
Four Sisters
Director
Four sisters with no consanguinity are living together since childhood. When facing misfortune and grievances in lives, they give support and encouragement to each other, even sacrifice oneself to help others...
Miss Lonely
Screenplay
A lonely high schooler suddenly meets the love of his life out of thin air. Is she a real person or a figment of his imagination?
Miss Lonely
Director
A lonely high schooler suddenly meets the love of his life out of thin air. Is she a real person or a figment of his imagination?
The Island Closest to Heaven
Editor
A high school girl travels to the island of New Caledonia and has magical adventures.
The Island Closest to Heaven
Director
A high school girl travels to the island of New Caledonia and has magical adventures.
Kenya Boy
Director
This cartoon, based on a popular manga, centers on an 11-year-old boy who goes to Africa with his father in 1941. Because he is Japanese, the father is detained by the British. The boy joins up with a beautiful native girl, and the adventure begins, a sort of Young Indy Jones meets Tarzan. Written by Rob Richardson
The Deserted City
Original Music Composer
After noticing in the news there was a fire in an old canal town, Eguchi recalls visiting there a decade ago as a university student.
The Deserted City
Director
After noticing in the news there was a fire in an old canal town, Eguchi recalls visiting there a decade ago as a university student.
Lover, Come Back To Me
Director
Ken Ota is a Japanese-American GI. He comes to Hiroshima after WW2 looking for his big sister, but finds Keiko, a bomb victim with a keloid scar on her shoulder.
The Little Girl Who Conquered Time
Dialogue
Yoshiyama Kazuko is in the 3rd grade of junior high. One day, she's cleaning in the laboratory, she notices of the smell of lavender, and faints. Since then, she has acquired a mysterious power to travel time.
The Little Girl Who Conquered Time
Editor
Yoshiyama Kazuko is in the 3rd grade of junior high. One day, she's cleaning in the laboratory, she notices of the smell of lavender, and faints. Since then, she has acquired a mysterious power to travel time.
The Little Girl Who Conquered Time
Director
Yoshiyama Kazuko is in the 3rd grade of junior high. One day, she's cleaning in the laboratory, she notices of the smell of lavender, and faints. Since then, she has acquired a mysterious power to travel time.
Zokubutsu zukan
Cute Devil
Director
While Ryoko is in Vienna studying music, her boyfriend dies in a traffic accident. Ryoko believes that she has psychic powers which killed him, and when she returns to Japan she is sent to a mental hospital. While recovering, her brother-in-law, Kouji, decides to look after her, and she goes to his house to act as a governess for Kouji's sister Keiko's daughter, Alice – who Ryoko becomes increasingly sure had something to do with her sister Fuyuko’s death.
The Unspoiled Diamond
A college student has an affair with a married, middle-aged teacher.
I Are You, You Am Me
Director
9th-graders Kazuo and Kazumi take a tumble at a temple in a small seacoast town in Japan. Through supernatural intervention, their minds and bodies are switched, and the result is a touching and hilarious coming-of-age comedy as they attempt to survive the pressures of junior high school life.
School in the Crosshairs
Director
Mitamura Yuka is a normal, shy high school student. Except for the fact that she has psychic powers. When a new student with similar powers begins to show her skills, creating a force of psychic Nazi student enforcers, Yuka and her friends vow to stop her. But behind it all is a mysterious force that will put Yuka's powers to the ultimate test!
MOMENT
A light-hearted portrayal of three strange days in the life of a high school girl who is told she will die in three days. The best entertainment of student films, which became a legend. Many students aspired to film after seeing this film and many others gave up directing at the time.
Temptation of Angel
Producer
A story of the everyday life of a couple living together, ordinary but full of warmth and love. Starring Miura and Yamaguchi's first movie since making public of their romance--their real-life story on the screen.
The Adventures of Kosuke Kindaichi
Film director
Obayashi’s take on the famous Kosuke Kindaichi series, made popular partly thanks to the numerous movie-adaptions by Kon Ichikawa, the most known being The Inugami Family. Kosuke Kindaichi is the most famous detective in Japan. Kindaichi gets a new case to figure out who has beheaded a valuable statue and made off with its head.
The Adventures of Kosuke Kindaichi
Director
Obayashi’s take on the famous Kosuke Kindaichi series, made popular partly thanks to the numerous movie-adaptions by Kon Ichikawa, the most known being The Inugami Family. Kosuke Kindaichi is the most famous detective in Japan. Kindaichi gets a new case to figure out who has beheaded a valuable statue and made off with its head.
Take Me Away!
Director
Kyoko met Tetsu during her trip to San Francisco. Soon they fell in love but getting married was not in his mind. They were to meet again back in Tokyo but Tetsu didn't turn up. She went to look for him in San Francisco but all she found was him with his new girlfriend. Kyoko went back to Tokyo and eventually married a big corporate CEO...
The Visitor in the Eye
Tennis referee
Komori Tiaki is a budding tennis student, however one day in training her coach hits the ball into her eye accidentally. She is taken to hospital but it advised that she will never regain the sight in her eye. Her coach knows of a mysterious doctor 'Blackjack' who lives in a secluded house, who might be able to help. 'Blackjack' agrees to do the operation, but for a 'substantial reward'! Her sight is regained, but now she starts to see a mysterious man that is invisible to those around her....
The Visitor in the Eye
Director
Komori Tiaki is a budding tennis student, however one day in training her coach hits the ball into her eye accidentally. She is taken to hospital but it advised that she will never regain the sight in her eye. Her coach knows of a mysterious doctor 'Blackjack' who lives in a secluded house, who might be able to help. 'Blackjack' agrees to do the operation, but for a 'substantial reward'! Her sight is regained, but now she starts to see a mysterious man that is invisible to those around her....
House
Husband (uncredited)
Hoping to find a sense of connection to her late mother, Gorgeous takes a trip to the countryside to visit her aunt at their ancestral house. She invites her six friends, Prof, Melody, Mac, Fantasy, Kung Fu, and Sweet, to join her. The girls soon discover that there is more to the old house than meets the eye.
House
Special Effects
Hoping to find a sense of connection to her late mother, Gorgeous takes a trip to the countryside to visit her aunt at their ancestral house. She invites her six friends, Prof, Melody, Mac, Fantasy, Kung Fu, and Sweet, to join her. The girls soon discover that there is more to the old house than meets the eye.
House
Producer
Hoping to find a sense of connection to her late mother, Gorgeous takes a trip to the countryside to visit her aunt at their ancestral house. She invites her six friends, Prof, Melody, Mac, Fantasy, Kung Fu, and Sweet, to join her. The girls soon discover that there is more to the old house than meets the eye.
House
Director
Hoping to find a sense of connection to her late mother, Gorgeous takes a trip to the countryside to visit her aunt at their ancestral house. She invites her six friends, Prof, Melody, Mac, Fantasy, Kung Fu, and Sweet, to join her. The girls soon discover that there is more to the old house than meets the eye.
Death at an Old Mansion
Original Music Composer
When a woman and her bridegroom are found dead in a double suicide the day after their wedding, it is up to the detective (Akira Nakao) to figure out what could possibly have motivated them. Carefully and systematically, he pieces together the inner lives of the two.
Happy Dinosaur's Album
Director
A short film by Obayashi Nobuhiko of people gathering by a beautiful lake in Canada.
Sutanpîdo kantorî
Director
A short film by Obayashi Nobuhiko made while making a commercial for Hitachi.
Orere orara
Director
A short film by Obayashi Nobuhiko of a collection of photos by Shinoyama Kishin of the Rio Carnival.
Evil Spirits of Japan
Original Music Composer
Murase is a bodyguard of yakuza group. Ochiai is a police officer who once was a student activist. When they meet, they are surprised how identical they look.
海の記憶=さびしんぼう・序
Director
A short film by Obayashi Nobuhiko.
Foreign Correspondent - The Case of a Filmmaker
Director
This is a work of Nobuhiko Obayashi when he was around 30 years old. This semi-documentary from the perspective of a young designer visiting Japan from Northern Europe tells the story of the filmmaker Nobuhiko Obayashi and his friends who the young designer encounters in Japan.
Foreign Correspondent - The Case of a Filmmaker
Himself
This is a work of Nobuhiko Obayashi when he was around 30 years old. This semi-documentary from the perspective of a young designer visiting Japan from Northern Europe tells the story of the filmmaker Nobuhiko Obayashi and his friends who the young designer encounters in Japan.
Confession
Colorfully edited vignettes of young characters having fun in the town of Onomichi.
Confession
Editor
Colorfully edited vignettes of young characters having fun in the town of Onomichi.
Confession
Director of Photography
Colorfully edited vignettes of young characters having fun in the town of Onomichi.
Confession
Director
Colorfully edited vignettes of young characters having fun in the town of Onomichi.
Japanese Erotica: Five Films on Love and Sex from the Japanese Underground of the Experimental Cinema
Director
A program of five films on love and sex from the Japanese underground of the experimental cinema, assembled by avant-garde cineaste Takahiko Iimura, and shown at the American Cinematheque from January 19 to 25, 1967.
Emotion
Writer
Experimental short film depicting the life, perhaps real, perhaps a dream, of a young girl named Emi. Emi travels to the city where she encounters her counterpart, Sari, and falls in love with…a vampire?
Emotion
Camera Operator
Experimental short film depicting the life, perhaps real, perhaps a dream, of a young girl named Emi. Emi travels to the city where she encounters her counterpart, Sari, and falls in love with…a vampire?
Emotion
Director
Experimental short film depicting the life, perhaps real, perhaps a dream, of a young girl named Emi. Emi travels to the city where she encounters her counterpart, Sari, and falls in love with…a vampire?
Complexe
Writer
Nobuhiko Obayashi's short experimental film shows off persistence in film editing in the early 60s.
Complexe
Director of Photography
Nobuhiko Obayashi's short experimental film shows off persistence in film editing in the early 60s.
Complexe
Editor
Nobuhiko Obayashi's short experimental film shows off persistence in film editing in the early 60s.
Complexe
Director
Nobuhiko Obayashi's short experimental film shows off persistence in film editing in the early 60s.
An Eater
Director
A meditation on eating people and quiet waitresses.
An Eater
Director of Photography
A meditation on eating people and quiet waitresses.
Remembrance
Original Music Composer
A woman and boy visit an ominous graveyard.
Remembrance
Editor
A woman and boy visit an ominous graveyard.
Nakasendo
Director
An experimental film edited from footage of the Japanese countryside.
Remembrance
Director
A woman and boy visit an ominous graveyard.
Onomichi
Director
A non-narrative tribute to the seaside town of Onomichi, where Obayashi grew up and where most of these films were made.
T-shi no gogo
Director
An Obayashi film made with Takabayashi Yoichi.
Thursday
Editor
A young couple go on a picnic in the forest, where the woman reveals that she is pregnant.
Thursday
Director of Photography
A young couple go on a picnic in the forest, where the woman reveals that she is pregnant.
Thursday
Screenplay
A young couple go on a picnic in the forest, where the woman reveals that she is pregnant.
Thursday
Director
A young couple go on a picnic in the forest, where the woman reveals that she is pregnant.
The Girl in the Picture
Original Music Composer
Obayashi 8mm short about a man who reminisces about a girl in his past (played by Obayashi's soon-to-be wife Kyoko)
The Girl in the Picture
Director of Photography
Obayashi 8mm short about a man who reminisces about a girl in his past (played by Obayashi's soon-to-be wife Kyoko)
The Girl in the Picture
Editor
Obayashi 8mm short about a man who reminisces about a girl in his past (played by Obayashi's soon-to-be wife Kyoko)
The Girl in the Picture
Screenplay
Obayashi 8mm short about a man who reminisces about a girl in his past (played by Obayashi's soon-to-be wife Kyoko)
The Girl in the Picture
Obayashi 8mm short about a man who reminisces about a girl in his past (played by Obayashi's soon-to-be wife Kyoko)
The Girl in the Picture
Director
Obayashi 8mm short about a man who reminisces about a girl in his past (played by Obayashi's soon-to-be wife Kyoko)
Dandanko
Editor
A short scene of a mother and her little son playing ball games on a set of steps together.
Dandanko
Director
A short scene of a mother and her little son playing ball games on a set of steps together.
Youth・Cloud
Director
A short visualization of a poem by Fukunaga Takehiko.
King Kong
Director
A puppet animation Obayashi made while he was a teenager.
The Stupid Teacher
Director
An animated film Obayashi made while still a child.
Popeye's Treasure Island
Director
An animated short Obayashi made while still a child.
Making of  いい旅チャレンジ20,000 km 清水港線・旅の表情
Making of Nobuhiko Obayashi's TV Program in 1980 called 「いい旅チャレンジ20,000km清水港線・旅の表情』