is a Japanese film studio located in

Bunkyō is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. Situated in the middle of the ward area, Bunkyō is a residential and educational center. Beginning in the Meiji period, literati like Natsume Sōseki, as well as ...

. The name ''Nikkatsu'' amalgamates the words Nippon Katsudō Shashin, literally "Japan Motion Pictures". Shareholders are Nippon Television Holdings (35%) and SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation (28.4%).

History

Founding in 1912

Nikkatsu is Japan's oldest major movie studio, having been founded on September 10, 1912, when several production companies and theater chains, Yoshizawa Shōten, Yokota Shōkai, Fukuhōdō and M. Pathe, consolidated under the name Nippon Katsudō Shashin. The company enjoyed its share of success. It employed such notable film directors as Shozo Makino and his son

Masahiro Makino was a Japanese film director. He directed more than 260 films, primarily in the chanbara and yakuza film, yakuza genres. His real name was , but he took the stage name Masahiro, the kanji for which he changed multiple times (including , , and ). ...

. During World War II, the government ordered the ten film companies that had formed by

1941 The Correlates of War project estimates this to be the deadliest year in human history in terms of conflict deaths, placing the death toll at 3.49 million. However, the Uppsala Conflict Data Program estimates that the subsequent year, 1942, wa ...

to consolidate into two.

Masaichi Nagata was a Japanese businessman and served as president of Daiei Film. The self-proclaimed creator of Gamera, he produced the kaiju's second film ''Gamera vs. Barugon'', with the remainder of the Gamera#Films, Showa ''Gamera'' films produced instead ...

, founder of

Daiei Film Daiei Film Co. Ltd. ( Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ''Daiei Eiga Kabushiki Kaisha'') was a Japanese film studio. Founded in 1942 as Dai Nippon Film Co., Ltd., it was one of the major studios during the postwar Golden Age of Japanese cinema, produci ...

and a former Nikkatsu employee, counter-proposed that three companies be formed and the suggestion was approved. Nikkatsu, set to merge with the two weakest companies, Shinkō Kinema and Daito, were verbally displeased. The committee formed to establish the value of each company retaliated by purposefully undervaluing Nikkatsu, which led to Shinkō becoming the dominant head of production. The reformed Nikkatsu continued to prosper as an exhibition company but ceased all film production. The postwar film industry expanded rapidly and, in

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...

, Nikkatsu president Kyusaku Hori began construction of a new production studio. A graduate of

Tokyo Keizai University (Tokyo University of Economics) is a private university in Kokubunji, Tokyo, Kokubunji, Tokyo, Japan. Overview It has campuses at the cities of Kokubunji, Tokyo, Kokubunji and Musashimurayama, Tokyo, Musashimurayama. The predecessor of the sch ...

, Hori had joined the company in 1951 after quitting his initial employment as the manager of Sanno Hotel (now rebuilt as Sanno Park Tower).

Golden Age

Under Hori, Nikkatsu is considered to have had its "Golden Age". The company began making movies again in

1954 Events January * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown–IBM experiment: The first public demonstration of a machine translation system is held in New York, at the head ...

. Many assistant directors from other studios, including

Shōhei Imamura was a Japanese film director. His main interest as a filmmaker lay in the depiction of the lower strata of Japanese society. A key figure in the Japanese New Wave, who continued working into the 21st century, Imamura is the only director from J ...

and

Seijun Suzuki , born (24 May 1923 – 13 February 2017), was a Japanese filmmaker, actor, and screenwriter. His films are known for their florid visual style, absurd humour, and a playful rejection of traditional film grammar. He made 40 predominately ...

from

Shochiku is a Japanese entertainment company. Founded in 1895, it initially managed '' kabuki'' theaters in Kyoto; in 1914, it also acquired ownership of the Kabuki-za theater in Tokyo. In 1920, Shochiku entered the film production industry and establis ...

, moved to Nikkatsu with the promise of advancement to full director status within one or two years. Suzuki made dozens of films for Nikkatsu from 1956 onwards, developing an increasingly inventive visual style, but was controversially fired following the release of his 40th, ''

Branded to Kill is a 1967 Japanese black comedy yakuza film directed by Seijun Suzuki and starring Joe Shishido, Koji Nanbara, Annu Mari and Mariko Ogawa. The story follows contract killer Goro Hanada as he is recruited by a mysterious woman named Misako fo ...

'' (1967), which Hori deemed "incomprehensible". The company made a few

samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

films and historical dramas but by

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Janu ...

had decided to devote its resources to the production of urban youth dramas,

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

action Action may refer to: * Action (philosophy), something which is done by a person * Action principles the heart of fundamental physics * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video gam ...

and

gangster A gangster (informally gangsta) is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from ''Organized crime, mob'' and the suffix ''wikt:-ster, -st ...

films. From the late 1950s to the start of the 1970s, they were renowned for their "borderless action" (''mukokuseki akushun'') movies, designed for the youth market, whose directors included Suzuki, Toshio Masuda, and

Takashi Nomura Takashi Nomura (野村孝) (February 18, 1927 – May 5, 2015) was a Japanese film director for studios including Nikkatsu. The Criterion Collection described him as a "prominent, stylistically daring director". In 1955, he joined Nikkatsu Film ...

. The studio also employed such stars as Yujiro Ishihara, Akira Kobayashi, Joe Shishido, Tetsuya Watari, Ruriko Asaoka, Chieko Matsubara and, later,

Meiko Kaji is a Japanese actress and singer. Since the 1960s, she has appeared in over 100 film and television roles, most prominently in the 1970s with her most famous roles as outlaw characters, best known for her performances in the film series '' Stra ...

and

Tatsuya Fuji is a Japanese actor. He was born in Beijing and raised in Yokohama. In 1962, Fuji joined Nikkatsu Company and began his acting career with small roles in Nikkatsu film. In 1968, Fuji married actress Izumi Ashikawa. He gained popularity throug ...

. Director

began his career there and between 1958 and 1966 made for them such notable films as '' Pigs and Battleships'' (

1961 Events January * January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union. * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...

), '' The Insect Woman'' (

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...

) and '' The Pornographers'' (

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

Daikaiju genre

Strangely during the height of the popularity of Japan's 1960s daikaiju (giant monster) genre, Nikkatsu only produced one

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', that debuted in the eponymous 1954 film, directed and co-written by Ishirō Honda. The character has since become an international pop culture icon, appearing in various media: 33 Japanese films p ...

-type monster movie, 1967's ''Daikyoju Gappa'' (''Giant Beast Gappa''), released internationally as '' Gappa: The Triphibian Monster'' and '' Monster from a Prehistoric Planet'', a film generally regarded as a remake of the 1961 British film '' Gorgo''.

Roman Porno

By 1971 the increased popularity of television had taken a heavy toll on the film industry and in order to remain profitable Nikkatsu turned to the production of Roman Porno, which focus on sex,

violence Violence is characterized as the use of physical force by humans to cause harm to other living beings, or property, such as pain, injury, disablement, death, damage and destruction. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines violence a ...

, S&M and romance. Hori resigned over the change in focus, and many stars and directors left the company. A few, including the film directors Yasuharu Hasebe, Keiichi Ozawa, Shōgorō Nishimura, and

Koreyoshi Kurahara (31 May 1927 – 28 December 2002) was a Japanese screenwriter and director. He is perhaps best known for directing ''Nankyoku Monogatari, Antarctica'' (1983), which won several awards and was entered into the 34th Berlin International Film ...

, stayed. It also witnessed the emergence of such new directors as Tatsumi Kumashiro, Masaru Konuma and Chūsei Sone. Between 1974 and 1986, Nikkatsu promoted a number of their leading Roman Porno actresses of the popular BDSM niche under the epithet . They include

Naomi Tani is a Japanese pink film actress who is best known for her appearances in Nikkatsu's ''Roman Porno'' films with an Sadism and masochism, S&M theme during the 1970s. Life and career Early Born October 20, 1948, in the Hakata-ku, Fukuoka, Hakata w ...

(1974–1979), Junko Mabuki (1980–1981),

Izumi Shima is a Japanese mainstream film actress who is best known for her roles in Nikkatsu's Roman Porno film series. Life and career Shima was born Keiko Ishida () in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo, Japan on December 3, 1953. Ishida made her acting deb ...

(1982–1983), Nami Matsukawa (1983), Miki Takakura (1983–1985), and Ran Masaki (1985-1986). The advent of

home video Home video is recorded media sold or Video rental shop, rented for home viewing. The term originates from the VHS and Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotapes, but has carried over to optical disc formats such as DVD and Blu-ray. ...

brought an end to active production at Nikkatsu. ''Bed Partner'' (1988) was the last release in the venerable 17-year Roman Porno series. Nikkatsu declared bankruptcy in 1993.

Sushi Typhoon

In 2005, the company was sold to Index Holdings and in 2010, a revived Nikkatsu studio announced new production of ''Sushi Typhoon'', a movie series made in partnership with a U.S. distributor. The Sushi Typhoon arm of Nikkatsu creates low-budget horror, science fiction, and fantasy films aimed at an international audience. By 2011, the company had produced seven feature films.

Later history

On March 3, 2025, Nikkatsu announced the establishment of NK Animation which would continue to handle the company's animation planning and production division.

Ownership

*1912 Nippon Katsudō Shashin K.K. was established by the merger of four film companies: Yoshizawa Shōten, Yokota Shōkai, Fukuhōdō and M. Pathe. *1993 applied for Corporate Reorganization Act. *1996 acquired by a Japanese leisure company

Namco was a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company founded in 1955. It operated video arcades and amusement parks globally, and produced video games, films, toys, and arcade cabinets. Namco was one of the most influential c ...

. *2005 sold to Index Holdings, a Japanese holding company which has interests in media contents industries.

Actors from Nikkatsu

;Male ;Female

Prominent directors

Tomu Uchida , born Tsunejirō Uchida, was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. Uchida chose the stage name Tomu, a transliteration of the English Tom, written in Kanji characters meaning "to spit out dreams". Biography Early career After leaving junio ...

(1927-1932; 1936–1940; 1955) * Yuzo Kawashima *

* Shouhei Imamura * Keiichi Ozawa * Toru Murakawa * Yasuharu Hasebe * Toshio Masuda *

* Buichi Saitō

Cultural references

In 2011, the French director Yves Montmayeur produced a documentary about the Pink Film period at Nikkatsu called ''Pinku Eiga: Inside the Pleasure Dome Of Japanese Erotic Cinema''.Todd Brown
"Acclaimed Documentarian Yves Montmayeur Launches 'Pinku Eiga: Inside the Pleasure Dome Of Japanese Erotic Cinema' "
''ScreenAnarchy'', June 2, 2011

References

Bibliography

* ; p. 228-9 * *

External links

Official website

Corporate Overview
{{Authority control Japanese film studios Mass media companies established in 1912 Nippon Television 1912 establishments in Japan Former Bandai Namco Holdings subsidiaries International sales agents Companies formerly listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange IXIT Corporation Bunkyō