# Kei Kumai > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Kei_Kumai > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Kei_Kumai.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kei_Kumai > Source revision: 1348136038 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Japanese film director (1930–2007) Kei Kumai Born (1930-06-01)1 June 1930 Azumino, Nagano Prefecture, Japan[citation needed] Died 23 May 2007(2007-05-23) (aged 76) Occupation Film director Spouse Akiko Kumai **Kei Kumai** (熊井 啓, *Kumai Kei*; 1 June 1930 – 23 May 2007) was a Japanese film director. After his studies in literature at Shinshu University, he began work as a director's assistant.[1] He won the [Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award](/source/Directors_Guild_of_Japan_New_Directors_Award) for his second film, *[Nihon rettō](/source/A_Chain_of_Islands)*, in 1965.[2] His 1972 film *[Shinobu Kawa](/source/Shinobu_Kawa)* was entered into the [8th Moscow International Film Festival](/source/8th_Moscow_International_Film_Festival).[3] His 1973 film *[Rise, Fair Sun](/source/Rise%2C_Fair_Sun)* was entered into the [24th Berlin International Film Festival](/source/24th_Berlin_International_Film_Festival).[4] *[Sandakan No. 8](/source/Sandakan_No._8)* received widespread acclaim for tackling the issue of a woman forced into prostitution in Borneo before the outbreak of World War II. [Kinuyo Tanaka](/source/Kinuyo_Tanaka) won the [Best Actress Award](/source/Silver_Bear_for_Best_Actress) at the [25th Berlin International Film Festival](/source/25th_Berlin_International_Film_Festival) for her performance.[5] The film was nominated for the [Best Foreign Language Film](/source/Academy_Award_for_Best_Foreign_Language_Film) at the [48th Academy Awards](/source/48th_Academy_Awards).[6] Kumai's follow-up film was 1976's *[Cape of North](/source/Cape_of_North)*, starring French actress [Claude Jade](/source/Claude_Jade) as a Swiss nun who falls in love with a Japanese engineer on a trip from Marseilles to [Yokohama](/source/Yokohama). His 1986 film *[The Sea and Poison](/source/The_Sea_and_Poison)* won the [Silver Bear - Special Jury Prize](/source/Jury_Grand_Prix) at the [37th Berlin International Film Festival](/source/37th_Berlin_International_Film_Festival).[7] In 1992, his film *[Luminous Moss](/source/Luminous_Moss_(film))* was entered into the [42nd Berlin International Film Festival](/source/42nd_Berlin_International_Film_Festival).[8] Other works include *[Death of a Tea Master](/source/Death_of_a_Tea_Master)* starring [Toshirō Mifune](/source/Toshir%C5%8D_Mifune) as [Sen no Rikyū](/source/Sen_no_Riky%C5%AB) (Silver Lion at the [46th Venice International Film Festival](/source/46th_Venice_International_Film_Festival)), and the 2002 film *[The Sea Is Watching](/source/The_Sea_Is_Watching)*, based on [Akira Kurosawa](/source/Akira_Kurosawa)'s posthumous script. Kumai was married to the writer and researcher [Akiko Kumai](/source/Akiko_Kumai).[9] He died in 2007 at age 76.[10] ## Filmography - *[Mutekiga Ore o Yondeiru](/source/Mutekiga_Ore_o_Yondeiru)* (1960) (screenplay) - *[The Long Death](/source/The_Long_Death)* (1964) - *[A Chain of Islands](/source/A_Chain_of_Islands)* (1965) - *[The Sands of Kurobe](/source/The_Sands_of_Kurobe)* (1968) - *[Apart from Life](/source/Apart_from_Life)* (1970) - *[Shinobu Kawa](/source/The_Long_Darkness)* (1972) - *[Rise, Fair Sun](/source/Rise%2C_Fair_Sun)* (1973) - *[Sandakan No. 8](/source/Sandakan_No._8)* (1974) - *[Cape of the North](/source/Cape_of_the_North)* (1976) - *[Ogin-sama](/source/Ogin-sama)* (1978) - *[Tempyō no Iraka](/source/Tempy%C5%8D_no_Iraka)* (1980) - *[Nihon no Atsui Hibi Bōsatsu: Shimoyama Jiken](/source/Nihon_no_Atsui_Hibi_B%C5%8Dsatsu%3A_Shimoyama_Jiken)* (1981) - *[The Sea and Poison](/source/The_Sea_and_Poison_(film))* (1986) - *[Death of a Tea Master](/source/Death_of_a_Tea_Master)* (1989) - *[Shikibu Monogatari](/source/Shikibu_Monogatari)* (1990) - *[Luminous Moss](/source/Luminous_Moss_(film))* (1992) - *[Deep River](/source/Deep_River_(film))* (1995) - *[To Love](/source/To_Love_(1997_film))* (1997) - *[Darkness in the Light](/source/Darkness_in_the_Light_(film))* (2001) - *[The Sea Is Watching](/source/The_Sea_Is_Watching)* (2002) ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["映画監督の熊井啓氏が死去"](http://www.sankei.co.jp/enak/2007/glace/may/kiji/23obits_kumaikei.html). Fuji Sankei Shinbun. Retrieved 2 November 2019. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-DGJ1_2-0)** ["Nihon Eiga Kantoku Kyōkai Shinjinshō"](https://web.archive.org/web/20101122022302/http://dgj.or.jp/award_g/) (in Japanese). Directors Guild of Japan. Archived from [the original](http://www.dgj.or.jp/award_g/) on 22 November 2010. Retrieved 11 December 2010. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Moscow1973_3-0)** ["8th Moscow International Film Festival (1973)"](https://web.archive.org/web/20130116194922/http://www.moscowfilmfestival.ru/miff34/eng/archives/?year=1973). *MIFF*. Archived from [the original](http://www.moscowfilmfestival.ru/miff34/eng/archives/?year=1973) on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2013-01-03. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-imdb_4-0)** ["IMDB.com: Awards for Rise, Fair Sun"](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0203316/awards). *imdb.com*. Retrieved 2010-07-02. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-berlinale_5-0)** ["Berlinale 1975: Prize Winners"](http://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1975/03_preistr_ger_1975/03_Preistraeger_1975.html). *berlinale.de*. Retrieved 2010-07-11. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Oscars1976_6-0)** ["The 48th Academy Awards (1976) Nominees and Winners"](http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1976). *oscars.org*. Retrieved 2012-03-18. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Berlinale_1987_7-0)** ["Berlinale: 1987 Prize Winners"](http://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1987/03_preistr_ger_1987/03_Preistraeger_1987.html). *berlinale.de*. Retrieved 2011-03-03. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Berlinale_1992_8-0)** ["Berlinale: 1992 Programme"](http://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1992/02_programm_1992/02_Programm_1992.html). *berlinale.de*. Retrieved 2011-05-27. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-:0_9-0)** ["作家の熊井明子さん死去、84歳 「私の部屋のポプリ」シリーズ：朝日新聞デジタル"](https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASSB21VN3SB2UCVL018M.html). *朝日新聞デジタル* (in Japanese). 2024-10-02. Retrieved 2024-12-30. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** ["Kei Kumai, 76, Japanese Director Who Specialized in True Stories, Dies (Published 2007)"](https://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/25/movies/25kumai.html). 2007-05-25. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20231210194230/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/25/movies/25kumai.html) from the original on 2023-12-10. Retrieved 2024-12-30. ## External links - [Kei Kumai](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0474743/) at [IMDb](/source/IMDb_(identifier)) - [Kei Kumai](http://www.jmdb.ne.jp/person/p0091730.htm) at the [Japanese Movie Database](/source/Japanese_Movie_Database) (in Japanese) v t e Films directed by Kei Kumai The Long Death (1964) A Chain of Islands (1965) The Sands of Kurobe (1968) Apart from Life (1970) The Long Darkness (1972) Rise, Fair Sun (1973) Sandakan No. 8 (1974) Cape of the North (1976) Ogin-sama (1978) Tempyō no Iraka (1980) Nihon no Atsui Hibi Bōsatsu: Shimoyama Jiken (1981) The Sea and Poison (1986) Death of a Tea Master (1989) Shikibu Monogatari (1990) Luminous Moss (1992) Deep River (1995) To Love (1997) Darkness in the Light (2001) The Sea Is Watching (2002) v t e Blue Ribbon Award for Best Newcomer 1950s Shin Saburi (1950) Rentarō Mikuni (1951) Yoshitarō Nomura (1953) So Yamamura (1954) Tsuneo Kobayashi (1955) Kōji Nanbara (1955) Yoshirō Kawazu (1956) Yūjirō Ishihara (1957) Shohei Imamura (1958) 1960s Nagisa Ōshima (1960) Shima Iwashita (1961) Kirio Urayama (1962) Junya Sato (1963) Mako Midori (1964) Kei Kumai (1965) Tetsuya Watari (1966) 1970s Tomokazu Miura (1975) Shinobu Otake (1975) Mieko Harada (1976) Nobuhiko Obayashi (1977) Toshiyuki Nagashima (1978) Kenichi Kaneda (1979) 1980s Daisuke Ryu (1980) Kōichi Satō (1981) Jun Miho (1982) Tomoyo Harada (1983) Shōji Kaneko (1983) Kōji Kikkawa (1984) Yuki Saito (1985) Narimi Arimori (1986) Masahiro Takashima (1987) Naoto Ogata (1988) Ayako Kawahara (1989) 1990s Riho Makise (1990) Joji Matsuoka (1990) Hikari Ishida (1991) Yuki Sumida (1992) Gorō Kishitani (1993) Kyōko Tōyama (1993) Sawa Suzuki (1994) Makiko Esumi (1995) Ninety-nine (1996) Kōki Mitani (1997) Hitomi Satō (1997) Rena Tanaka (1998) Ryuhei Matsuda (1999) 2000s Tatsuya Fujiwara (2000) Ko Shibasaki (2001) Nakamura Shidō (2002) Manami Konishi (2002) Satomi Ishihara (2003) Anna Tsuchiya (2004) Mirai Moriyama (2004) Mikako Tabe (2005) Muga Tsukaji (2006) Rei Dan (2006) Yui Aragaki (2007) Yuriko Yoshitaka (2008) Lily Franky (2008) Masaki Okada (2009) Daisaku Kimura (2009) 2010s Toma Ikuta (2010) Nanami Sakuraba (2010) Mana Ashida (2011) Makita Sports (2012) Haru Kuroki (2013) Fuka Koshiba (2014) Anna Ishii (2015) Izumi Okamura (2016) Shizuka Ishibashi (2017) Sara Minami (2018) Nagisa Sekimizu (2019) 2020s Daiken Okudaira (2020) Yuumi Kawai (2021) Kōki (2022) Sōya Kurokawa (2023) Ikoi Hayase (2024) Ryuta Shibuya (2025) Authority control databases International ISNI VIAF GND FAST WorldCat National United States France BnF data Japan Czech Republic Spain Netherlands Israel Academics CiNii Other IdRef Open Library SNAC Yale LUX --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Kei Kumai](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kei_Kumai) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kei_Kumai?action=history)). 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