Noburo Ofuji at Cannes 1953 / Venice 1956

[Roger Macy]

Hi Cathy,
Firstly, may I take up your reference to "as it was the first time that animation from Japan had been seen in Europe". Contrary to some statements I've read, "Le Diable au Palais Yoshida" = Chinsetsu Yoshida goten, 1928,was shown at the Studio Diamant, Paris in 1929 along with Kinugasa's Jūjirō. Paris had a well-established weekly listings publication, La Semaine a Paris. In 1929 Feb 08 at p87, before the 8th arrondissement listings is Studio Diamant's advert, which is reproduced in Kinugasa's autobiography, including the billing of the film by " Noburo OHFOUJI ".
Also in Sep30 Close Up, Pearl Attashava reports Ofudzi’s “Chio Janii” as shown in Moscow.I spent many an odd moment trying to reverse-engineer the Chinese whispers through Russian and Japanese of "Chio Janii' - which film was it? - before it dawned on me that it was just ‘Chiyogami’, Ōfuji’s medium of paper cut-out, as misheard through the Russian .  So it's still an open question as to whether this film came from the west or east, but my money if from the west, and it was Chinsetsu Yoshida goten, again. Curiously, I did NOT notice Ōfuji's film in the billings for Jūjirō in its multiple German screenings, but I'd be interested in any further sightings.
Now, as for Cannes, Festival International du Film: Jurys et Palmarès - de 1946 à 1996, published by the Festival is a straight assemblage of the photocopied announcement-sheets. In 1953, no 'Japon' appears and the animation award went to 'Sports et Transports', Canada. In 1954 the Grand Prix went to Kinugasa (that man again) but there is no other reference to 'Japon'; there's no mention of animation but a ' prix  du film de marionettes'  to the Czech film 'O Sklenicku vic'. Ōfuji's "Kujira" is listed for 1953 in the companion book ' .. Film présentés'.
The Biennale's publication Tutti I film di Venezia 1932-1984, also confirms what you said about the exhibition of Yureisen.
It's certainly not unknown in the world of film industry publicity for exhibitions to transmogrify into prizes and Palmes to become Palmes d'Or.
Hope that helps, Roger


From: Cathy <nishikataeiga at gmail.com>
To: kinejapan <kinejapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu> 
Sent: Wednesday, 4 April 2012, 10:15
Subject: Noburo Ofuji at Cannes 1953 / Venice 1956


Hello Kinejappaners!
It is widely reported that Noburo Ofuji won awards when his film Kujira (The Whale) played at Cannes in 1953 (often incorrectly cited as 1952) and when Yuureisen (The Phantom Ship) played at Venice in 1956 (often incorrectly cited as 1957).  It has also been reported that Jean Cocteau (jury president at Cannes in 1953) and Pablo Picasso praised Kujira - but I don't know if this was only reported by word of mouth (did Ofuji himself attend the festivals?), or if it appeared in print.   

Because of the inconsistencies in the way in which this has been reported, I have been trying to find primary sources to confirm that these films won prizes at these two prestigious festivals.  The official websites for Cannes and the Biennale list Ofuji's films as having been shown at the festivals, but do not mention any prizes being awarded to Ofuji.  I have been going through 1950s periodicals in English and French and have so far only found one mention of Kujira being at Cannes as part of an animation programme but it 1) does not mention it as having won an award and 2) only gives the film a lukewarm critique. (Andre Martin in Cahiers du Cinema in July 1953).

Do any Kinejapanners know of what evidence exists of Ofuji having won an award at either event?  I know there was an exhibition at the NFC a couple of years ago where such evidence might have been on display?  It was certainly prestigious enough for Noburo Ofuji's films to even show at these festivals in the 1950s, as it was the first time that animation from Japan had been seen in Europe.  This is mentioned by Andre Martin in Cahiers du Cinema and also in an article by Bernard Orna in Films and Filming in April 1957 when The Phantom Ship played at the first international animation festival London, who felt that while Ofuji's cutouts did not have "the same subtlety as Lotte Reiniger's" he felt that Ofuji's use of colour was superior. 

If anyone knows where I can find evidence of the veracity of claims that Ofuji won prize at Cannes and Venice, I would be most grateful.  

Warm Regards, Cathy
  

-- 
Catherine Munroe Hotes
マンローホーテス・キャサリン 
PhD in Film and Visual Culture
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