Mitsuko Baisho

Tales from Earthsea

Something bizarre has come over the land. The kingdom is deteriorating. People are beginning to act strange... What's even more strange is that people are beginning to see dragons, which shouldn't enter the world of humans. Due to all these bizarre events, Ged, a wandering wizard, is investigating the cause. During his journey, he meets Prince Arren, a young distraught teenage boy. While Arren may look like a shy young teen, he has a severe dark side, which grants him strength, hatred, ruthlessness and has no mercy, especially when it comes to protecting Teru. For the witch Kumo this is a perfect opportunity. She can use the boy's "fears" against the very one who would help him, Ged.

Dreams

Eight visually rich vignettes drawn from Kurosawa’s own dreams—fox weddings and vanished orchards, a soldier’s ghosts, a walk through Van Gogh’s canvases, nuclear nightmares, and a water-mill utopia—meditate on childhood, art, mortality, and humanity’s uneasy bond with nature.

Kagemusha

Akira Kurosawa's lauded feudal epic presents the tale of a petty thief who is recruited to impersonate Shingen, an aging warlord, in order to avoid attacks by competing clans. When Shingen dies, his generals reluctantly agree to have the impostor take over as the powerful ruler. He soon begins to appreciate life as Shingen, but his commitment to the role is tested when he must lead his troops into battle against the forces of a rival warlord.

The Ballad of Narayama

In a small village in a valley everyone who reaches the age of 70 must leave the village and go to a certain mountain top to die. If anyone should refuse they would disgrace their family. Old Orin is 69. This winter it is her turn to go to the mountain. But first she must make sure that her eldest son Tatsuhei finds a wife.

The Eel

A businessman kills his adulterous wife and is sent to prison. After his release, he opens a barbershop and meets new people, talking to almost no one except for an eel he befriended while in prison.

Vengeance Is Mine

A thief, a murderer, and a charming lady-killer, Iwao Enokizu is on the run from the police.

My Phoenix

Romance story about the first female manager of the Nihon University Phoenix

Chicken Is Barefoot

A disabled child of separated parents gets caught up in police espionage due to his uncanny ability to remember license plate numbers.

Tales from Earthsea

Something bizarre has come over the land. The kingdom is deteriorating. People are beginning to act strange... What's even more strange is that people are beginning to see dragons, which shouldn't enter the world of humans. Due to all these bizarre events, Ged, a wandering wizard, is investigating the cause. During his journey, he meets Prince Arren, a young distraught teenage boy. While Arren may look like a shy young teen, he has a severe dark side, which grants him strength, hatred, ruthlessness and has no mercy, especially when it comes to protecting Teru. For the witch Kumo this is a perfect opportunity. She can use the boy's "fears" against the very one who would help him, Ged.

Dreams

Eight visually rich vignettes drawn from Kurosawa’s own dreams—fox weddings and vanished orchards, a soldier’s ghosts, a walk through Van Gogh’s canvases, nuclear nightmares, and a water-mill utopia—meditate on childhood, art, mortality, and humanity’s uneasy bond with nature.

Kagemusha

Akira Kurosawa's lauded feudal epic presents the tale of a petty thief who is recruited to impersonate Shingen, an aging warlord, in order to avoid attacks by competing clans. When Shingen dies, his generals reluctantly agree to have the impostor take over as the powerful ruler. He soon begins to appreciate life as Shingen, but his commitment to the role is tested when he must lead his troops into battle against the forces of a rival warlord.

The Ballad of Narayama

In a small village in a valley everyone who reaches the age of 70 must leave the village and go to a certain mountain top to die. If anyone should refuse they would disgrace their family. Old Orin is 69. This winter it is her turn to go to the mountain. But first she must make sure that her eldest son Tatsuhei finds a wife.

The Eel

A businessman kills his adulterous wife and is sent to prison. After his release, he opens a barbershop and meets new people, talking to almost no one except for an eel he befriended while in prison.

Vengeance Is Mine

A thief, a murderer, and a charming lady-killer, Iwao Enokizu is on the run from the police.

My Phoenix

Romance story about the first female manager of the Nihon University Phoenix

Chicken Is Barefoot

A disabled child of separated parents gets caught up in police espionage due to his uncanny ability to remember license plate numbers.

Warm Water Under a Red Bridge

A down-and-out businessman travels to a seaside town, where he meets a woman with unusual sexual powers.

Out

When pregnant lunchbox factory worker Yayoi has finally taken all the abuse she can handle, she strangles her brutish husband and disposes of the body parts, piece by piece. She's soon joined by three down on their luck housewives who murder their own husbands and find various ways to hide the evidence.

Manhunt

A tough prosecutor is falsely accused of theft and goes on the run to clear his name. He is assisted by the beautiful daughter of a rich man.

P. P. Rider

Three high-school students tangle with indulgent yakuza and lackadaisical police as they set out in search of the class bully, who has been kidnapped.

Snowman

A near future not far from now. A couple who are tied with deep love with, Roku and Miyuki. Miyuki decide to freeze Roku had an incurable disease and wait for the development of a new medicine. Believe in the words of the doctor. He said that after 10 years he will develop a remedy.

Bandits vs. Samurai Squadron

Kumokiri Nizaemon, a former samurai warrior, has abandoned his class to become the leader of a gang of thieves. He leads his outlaws in an attempt to rob the castle of his former clan.

Time Never Stops

A family that was severely damaged by the Great East Japan Earthquake that struck in March 2011, and a family that escaped the disaster. The film depicts the collapse and rebirth of two families whose children were supposed to marry each other. A moving drama written by Yamada Taichi and starring Nakai Kiichi, Kuroki Meisa and Kamiki Ryunosuke.

Flames of Blood

​The story follows the chance meeting between Senkichi, a wandering gambler on the run, and Orin, a blind musician who offers him kindness and shelter. As their lives become intertwined, they attempt to find a sense of peace and domesticity while caught in the crossfire of the violent Bakumatsu revolution.

Threads - Our Tapestry of Love

Ren Takahashi and Aoi Sonoda were both born in 1989. They met for the first time at the age of 13 and became each other's first love, but they separated. At the age of 21, they met again. They were unable to undo their past. Now, they are 31 years old.

September 11

An anthology of short films inspired by the events of the September 11 World Trade Center attacks.

The Geisha

Yokiro was the most successful Geisha house in Western Japan during the first half of the 20th century and remains open to this day. At its peak, it was home to over 200 geisha, however behind the fabulous facade, there were many battles - between family members, men and women, and with the Yakuza. Momokawa was sold to Yokiro at age 12, and despite being the top geisha, her many complicated relationships provide unending challenges throughout her glamorous but turbulent life.

Dendera

Fifty elderly women are abandoned to die on a snow covered mountain, but instead wor together to build their own village named "Dendera." Some of the women wants to live their remaining days in peace, but others seek revenge against the villagers and their own families who left them to die.

Big & Little

His last big journey took him from Stein am Rhein to faraway Japan. Theo Plakoudakis and Marco Salituro had developed the script especially for Mathias Gnädinger. And so the popular actor filled the role of "Big Summer" with a lot of heart: The former wrestling king Anton Sommer is forced by the ten-year-old boy Hiro to accompany him to Japan. Hiro wants to become a sumo wrestler like his father. Zurich-based Stefan Jäger has staged a modern fairy tale that becomes an endearing homage to Mathias Gnädinger. He died on Good Friday 2015.

Winter's Flower

Kanno is a Yakuza. He had to kill Matsuoka who betrayed their boss. Kanno knew Matsuoka had a 3-year-old daughter named Youko. Before he gave himself to the police, he asked his trusted man to take care of her. While in prison, Kanno kept sending letters to Youko, disguising as an uncle in Brazil. 15 years later, Kanno is released. He is determined to live legitimately, however the Yakuza has not forgotten his wicked deed!

The Lady Shogun and Her Men

In the year 1716 a mysterious epidemic stickens men in the country of Japan, dropping the population of men to 1/4th of its prior state. With the drastic reduction of men, the gender roles have become reversed in Japan. Woman become the dominant members of society and males are sought out for the ability to produce children. A young man named Unoshin Mizuno hopes to marry childhood sweetheart Onobu, but due to class differences realizes this is almost impossible. To raise his social status and also save his poor family, Unoshin Mizuno enters the Ohoku (inner chambers of the Shugun's castle) and attempts to vie among 3,000 other men for the affection of the female shogun. What Unoshin Mizuno quickly learns about the Ohoku is that the men there are all beautiful, but highly ambitious and conniving. In this environment, the 7th shogun Tokugawa passes away and the new shogun Yoshimune Tokugawa takes the thrown and enters the Ohoku.

Women Can't Be Beaten

An uptight young man comes to suspect that his factory worker girlfriend has a secret involving his boorish older brother.

Mr. Kinpachi in Class 3B

A legendary television series and cultural asset, Mr. Kinpachi in Class 3B is famous for putting many social issues on the front burner of the public conscious over its long run, as filtered through the emotionally volatile lives of third year middle school students. The heartfelt relations between a devoted schoolteacher, Kinpachi Sakamoto, and his unique students have won the show high praise for several decades. Whether due to the pressures of exams, family relations, teachers and friends, graduating middle school students navigate a turbulent hormonal sea of “hope” and “frustration”, constantly shaped by the social environment of the times. Standing as a beacon in the storm and emitting messages of hope for each generation is one Japanese teacher, Kinpachi Sakamoto, who has come to be adored and admired by a nation through the adventures of Class 3B.

Doctor-X: Surgeon Michiko Daimon

Daimon Michiko is a 37-year-old freelance surgeon who is part of a questionable “doctor placement service” that has her wander from hospital to hospital. The harsh environment at the hospitals led many doctors to retire from their positions, forcing hospitals to make use of said program to fill the empty spots at least temporary. However, Michiko doesn’t look like a doctor at all with her flashy clothes and eccentric attitude. In the first episode she raises objections to a certain operation which is planned to be done by the head of a hospital who hasn’t performed an operation for a very long time. This causes Michiko to incur odium at the hospital, however, everyone becomes frozen when Michiko points out the outdated skills of the director. She also holds a scrupulous compliance when it comes to her working hours, never does any unnecessary chores that don’t require a medical license, and couldn’t care less about the power struggles within the hospitals. Nobody knows how she acquired such a top-level skill that allows her to claim exorbitant sums as reward, but her private life is an even greater mystery to everyone around her. Tanaka plays a rookie surgeon, Uchida an anesthetist, Kishibe the head of the placement service, and Ito the head of the surgical department of this institution.

Ryōmaden

Ryōmaden is the 49th NHK Taiga drama. It was shown on NHK from January 3 to November 28, 2010 spanning 48 episodes. The story centers on the life of 19th-century Japanese historical figures Iwasaki Yatarō and Sakamoto Ryōma. It has been announced that the series will be aired in several other countries, for example Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand.

Haru yo koi

A successful screenwriter looks back on her life when she learns her husband has cancer. A year-long series, starring Narumi Yasuda.

Hanzawa Naoki

Hanzawa Naoki works as a loan manager at the Osaka Nishi branch of Tokyo Central Bank. One day, Hanzawa makes a loan contract for 500 million yen with Nishi Osaka Steel Company. Hanzawa didn't want to approve the loan, but he had to due to the branch manager's order. Nishi Osaka Steel Company seems financially stable, but the company actually hides massive amounts of debt through fraudulent accounts. The company is caught. Three months later, Nishi Osaka Steel Company goes bankrupt. The bank's branch manager is Asano. He is an ambitious man and tries to shift the blame to Hanzawa. Hanzawa then attends an inquiry about the loan failure at the bank's headquarters in Tokyo. Hanzawa denies fault and promises to retrieve the 500 million yen loan. He did this because it's the only way for Hanzawa to survive as a banker.

Suzuran

In 1924, a time when both steam engine trains and early Showa Era's first train stations are just beginning. In the waiting room of Asumoe Station, a small country station, a passenger finds an abandoned baby and rushes to tell the station master, Tokiwa Jiro. The news quickly spreads and soon friends of Tokiwa's along with other townsfolk are saying that this baby must be a gift, it is Tokiwa's recently departed beloved wife reborn as a baby.

Gannibal

After causing a major incident, police officer Daigo Agawa takes his wife and daughter to live in the remote mountain village of Kuge. It seems the perfect place to recover from the ordeal, despite the mysterious disappearance of a previous officer posted there. One day, the body of an old woman is found on the mountain. The Goto family says she was attacked by a bear, but Daigo notices a human bite mark. It soon becomes clear that not all is as it seems in the village.

Umechan Sensei

Umechan Sensei is a Japanese television drama series. It debuted on April 2, 2012. It is about a girl named Umeko Shimomura who, despite being overshadowed by her talented older brother and sister, and despite being thought of as a clumsy child, decides to follow in her father's footsteps and become a doctor. It is the 86th NHK Asadora.

Black Pean

Seishiro Tokai (Kazunari Ninomiya) works as a surgeon at a university hospital. He possesses excellent technique with suture and carries a surgery success rate of 100%. Due to his arrogant attitude and personality, he comes into conflict with those around him. A new doctor tries to introduce the latest medical device for surgery, which doesn't need a surgeon's hand. Seishiro Tokai is skeptical of the device. He faces the university hospital administration and reveals corruption and hidden past behind the medical device.

Shitamachi Rocket

Tsukuda Kohei was once a researcher with the Aerospace and Science Exploration Agency and now runs Tsukuda Industries, a small factory which was left by his father. Although his relationship with his teenage daughter Rina is somewhat strained, business at Tsukuda Industries has gradually started to improve. But Tsukuda puts too much effort into his dream of developing a rocket engine and business declines little by little. One day, a major client suddenly declares that it is dropping Tsukuda Industries. Then, Tsukuda Industries gets sued by a big rival company, Nakashima Industries, for patent infringement. Tsukuda Industries’ reputation is hurt and financing from banks is also in a desperate situation. In the midst of this, Teikoku Heavy Industries, one of Japan’s leading corporations, offers to buy a patent which Tsukuda Industries possesses for 2 billion yen

Involvement in Family Affairs

Sato, a young woman from a modest family, marries Kenta, a young man from a well-to-do and respected family. She settles in the family's home, where she meets the father, Keiichi, a strict man, Mihoko, the unfriendly sister-in-law and Akito, the elder brother. Although not everyone sees the union of Kenta and Sato in a very good light, the father seems to have great plans for our heroine.

Blackboard

"Blackboard ~ Jidai to Tatakatta Kyoushitachi~," revolves around teachers in different time periods having to deal with the problems of that era. The first episode stars Sakurai as Shirahama, a junior high school teacher who taught his students about "dying for your country" during wartime. After later losing his right arm in the war, he returns to teaching but is burdened and conflicted by what he taught his students in the past. The second episode of "Blackboard ~Jidai to Tatakatta Kyoushitachi~" stars Sato Koichi as a teacher during the 1980s having to deal with school violence. Shida Mirai plays a delinquent student, and Kanjiya Shihori plays another teacher at the school. Set in modern-day Japan, tackles the story of forbidden teacher-student relationships. Matsushita Nao plays a devoted English teacher who's offering personal lessons for a pupil (played by Kamiki Ryunosuke), who barely can read or write.

Last Friends

Follow the life of Michiru Aida, a beauty parlor assistant who returns to Tokyo after 4 years. Bullied by her seniors at work and abused by her boyfriend, she is reunited with her best friend during high school, Ruka Kishimoto, a skilled motocross racer. Takeru, a make-up artist, is introduced to Ruka by her housemate, Eri and thus begin a journey of friendship.

Miyamoto Musashi

Musashi Miyamoto left his village and ended up fighting in the battle of Sekigahara with his friend Matahachi, but Musashi Miyamoto lost Matahachi. He goes back to the village to inform Matahachi's family about what happened. At the village, he is persecuted by people there. Musashi Miyamoto becomes worn down physically and mentally. At this time, Soho Takuan appears in front of Musashi Miyamoto. He then rebuilds his life with his sword. Musashi begins to travel for warrior training. He meets many masters of the sword and grows as a person.

Take Five: Should we Steal for Love?

Up till 20 years ago, together with his father and 3 other people, Homura Masayoshi was part of the legendary group of thieves that called themselves 「TAKE FIVE」. This group stole from the rich who had acquired their wealth through immoral means. Due to an incident, Masayoshi decided to retire from the group, and settled into his life as a professor of Psychology at a reputable university. One day, he runs into a mysterious homeless woman, who passes him a picture of a Leonardo Da Vinci's painting, which prompts him to re-enter the world of thievery and resurrect 「TAKE FIVE」. Sasahara Rui joined the Burglary Division in the footsteps of her father, who had died in an accident involving a burglary heist. She wows to take down 「TAKE FIVE」 and stop them from stealing again. What was the real reason for the disbanding of 「TAKE FIVE」 20 years ago? Who is the mysterious homeless woman and what is the significance of the Da Vinci picture she had given to Masayoshi? How did Rui's father really died?

Roppongi Class

Miyabe Arata, owner of the Roppongi Nidaime Miyabe bar, fights against those who have absolute power. His goal is to take revenge on Nagaya Holdings, a giant in the Japanese food industry. The owner of the holding companies, as well as his son, had a destructive influence on Miyabe Arata's life in the past.

Two Weeks

Daichi has served time for murder, and is now living a life without hope. One day he is suddenly told by his former love that he has an 8 year old daughter called Hana, who is suffering from leukemia. Although he is shocked, when it becomes clear he can save Hana by being her donor, fatherly love overwhelms him and he finds meaning in life again. However, a conspiracy leads to his arrest for murder. Unless he takes the transplant surgery scheduled in two weeks, he can’t save his daughter’s life. Desperate, he starts his great escape.

Detective Story

After five years of service as a cop in San Francisco, Shunsaku Kudo becomes a private detective in Tokyo.

Gift

An unconscious young man is found inside the closet of a missing billionaire. Amnesiac, he is given the name Yukio and kept close to Naomi—the woman who was supposed to disappear alongside the billionaire, Shibata—in case he ever recovers his memories of the night he was rescued and the whereabouts of Shibata and his fortune.

Late Blooming Sunflower My Life Renewed

"Late blooming Sunflower -My life renewed-" is a story of 7 young adults living their ordinary days near the Shimanto river of Kochi prefecture, renowned as the last of the crystal clear streams. Somewhat nostalgic, somewhat new, they hold on to their dreams and insecurities. It's a true-to-life portrayal of the days in young adulthood.

Ruri's Island

Ruri, having been abandoned by her mother to a foster care facility, lives a life of reckless abandonment. When Nakama Yuzo, a kind man but for a trigger-happy temper, runs into Ruri he realizes that perhaps she's the child he's been looking for. Yuzo lives in Hatomijima, a small insland in Okinawa where the population is 49 and the average age group is 61. There are no children. The island has only one school - a primary school. If a child is not enrolled in the school, it will be closed. As a result, society will abandon the island and in a few years, it will cease to have any inhabitants. To save their island, the locals decide to bring in a foster child. Ruri is their candidate, and with her she brings the hope of the island's survival.

Kawa no Hotori de

Toshi-chan and BB live in a hut with a blue sheet on the banks of the Tama River. Having lived there for several years, they are familiar with the area. The two of them gather cans across town from 4 am in the morning and sleep at 7 pm in order to save money on electricity at night. While they do not have substantial income, they are not particularly concerned about money. They are carefree each day and take pride in being homeless men who can support themselves. Nao, a young female actress from a small theatre company, visits Toshi-chan and BB one day. She is playing a heroine who has a grand romance with the leader of homeless men in her next performance and asks to interview them. This is the beginning of a long night for the trio…

Detective Akechi Kogoro

Dangerous hacker group “Phantom 20” is known internationally. They begin an attack on Hikari Bank in Japan. Kenjiro Namikoshi (Teruyuki Kagawa) is the chief of the criminal investigation section at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. He leads the investigation into the group. Kenjiro Namikoshi thinks of Kogoro Akechi (Hidetoshi Nishijima) who holds vast knowledge on hacking and leads BD team hacker group. To ask him for advisor help on the investigation, Kenjiro Namikoshi sends Yoshio Kobayashi (Atsushi Ito).

Tokyo Tower

A story about a young man named Masaya, whose lifelong dream is to go build a life in Tokyo. Masaya thinks his life in his hometown is uncool. A few years later, he manages to move to Tokyo but not without any consequences. In Tokyo, he learns the hard way about the meaning of life, survival, love, insecurities, desperation and hope. He also learns the struggles of living in a big city and trying to fix his relationship with his parents, especially his mom.