Biography
Kudo honed his craft across a wide range of genres, from period dramas to sci-fi fantasy, under some of Japan’s most renowned contemporary filmmakers, including Yoshimitsu Morita, Gakuryu Ishii, and Takashi Yamazaki.
His debut feature film, “I’m Crazy”(2017), despite being an independent production, won the NETPAC Award (Best Asian Film) at the 22nd Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival. His second feature, “Unprecedented” (2021), which depicts young people unable to stay home during the COVID-19 pandemic, was officially screened in the Rebels with a Cause section at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival and was also invited to the 2022 Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival.
His third feature, “A Far Shore” (2022), premiered in the Competition section at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in July 2022. It went on to win the Audience Award at Tokyo FILMeX and received high acclaim at international festivals, including the Cairo International Film Festival, the International Film Festival of India, and Joburg Film Festival. The film was released in Japan in 2023 and continues its long-running theatrical engagement in Okinawa, nearly two years after its initial screening in June 2023 (as of February 2025).
In January 2024, Kudo was awarded the Grand Prix for Emerging Directors at the 37th Takasaki Film Festival for his directorial work on “A Far Shore”. He went on to receive the 5th Ōshima Nagisa Award, which honors promising filmmakers with international potential, as well as the Best New Director Award at the 33rd Japan Film Critics Awards and the New Director Award at the 64th Directors Guild of Japan Awards.
Kudo was born on October 31, 1983, in Kyoto Prefecture.
Filmography
[Features]
“A Far Shore” (2022)
“Unprecedented” (2021)
“I’m Crazy” (2017)
Find them on social media
Instagram @ kudo_masaaki
X @kudomasaaki
Questions for Masaaki Kudo
1. What is the first film in your memory?
“The NeverEnding Story” by Wolfgang Petersen
2. What are some of your favorite films?
“Where Is the Friend’s House?” by Abbas Kiarostami
“The 400 Blows” by François Truffaut
“Bicycle Thieves” by Vittorio De Sica
“Ida” by Paweł Pawlikowski
“The Akasaka Sisters: Soft Touch of Night” by Yuzo Kawashima
3. Which creators have you been inspired by or influenced by?
Yoshimitsu Morita (Filmmaker)
Keiichi Sokabe (Sunny Day Service, Musician)
Masahiko Kishi (Sociologist)
4. What are the films that shook your world or changed your life?
“Unknown Pleasures” by Jia Zhangke. I watched it when I was 18 years old at Umeda Garden in Osaka.
5. Are there any Japanese directors of your generation you are inspired by?
Yuya Ishii: It’s amazing that he has been active for over 10 years and continues to take on new challenges.
6. What do you think is the unique appeal of “Japanese cinema” that is not seen in films from other countries?
The conversations that emerge from the quite unique nature of the Japanese language. I am sure it has many aspects that may not be well understood by people from other countries, and since Japanese people tend to be rather expressionless compared to others, some things may be difficult to grasp. However, I hope you will appreciate the unique Japanese visual technique of conveying meaning of what is left unseen in the images.
7. Where do you think your passion for filmmaking comes from?
A pleasure and excitement to discover something new every time I roll the camera.
8. What are you interested in outside of films and filmmaking?
Baseball, mountain climbing, bathhouse, Youtube and Tik Tok
9. Where’s your happy place? When do you feel most relaxed?
When I’m at the Zen temple across from my house on a quiet afternoon.
10. What are the customs or phenomena that are unique to Japan that you want other people to know?
It’s the food, after all. No matter which region of Japan you visit, you’ll always find delicious local dishes. This applies not only to Japanese cuisine but also to international dishes, which we adapt using unique Japanese ingredients. I think the most wonderful thing about Japanese culture is that you can enjoy incredible food in every part of the country.
11. Where would you be in 10 years?
I want to find new expressions than now. I want to like my work more than I do now.
ABOUT YOUR FILM “A FAR SHORE“
1. What is your favorite moment in the film? (without spoilers)
Towards the end of the film, when the protagonist is gazing at the garden, feeling down, and her son comes in and sits next to her.
2. Why did you decide to write/make this film?
I became interested in the lives of young single mothers and their children in Okinawa.
3. Were there any films that you watched as a reference or a source of inspiration?
“Mouchette” by Robert Bresson
“Rosetta” by Luc Dardenne, Jean-Pierre Dardenne
“Pigs and Battleships” by Shōhei Imamura
“Street of Shame” by Kenji Mizoguchi
4. Was there any music you were listening to or book you were reading while you were making this film?
“Thanks” by Tsubaki (Theme song of this film)
“Tynsagunu Hana” (Folk song of Okinawa)
“Commercial Fishes and Shellfishes of Okinawa” (Book)
5. Any behind-the-scenes anecdotes or episodes you’d like to share?
All the crew, as well as some of the cast, carried smartphones to record everyday scenes in Okinawa like diaries and shared them with me. I incorporated the scenes that had the biggest impact on me into the script — that became the foundation of the story.
Message to our audience about “A Far Shore”
Hi, I’m Masaaki Kudo, the director. “A Far Shore” is a reflection of the reality I witnessed firsthand in Okinawa, where I went to for my research in 2018. Okinawa’s poverty rate exceeds 29%, far surpassing the national average. The scars of war still run deep there, and even today, children continue to face the crisis of poverty. Why has it come to this? As I conducted my research, I was confronted with a reality beyond my control. Even though I couldn’t solve this issue, I felt compelled to make this film. I wanted to face Aoi, the protagonist, with a pure heart and I wanted people to see her journey. That was my sole motivation in making this film. I wasn’t trying to save anyone or change the world—I simply wanted to pose the question to the audience: How did things end up this way? This may not be an easy film to watch, but I would be truly grateful if you take the time to see it.