Noburo Ofuji at Cannes 1953 / Venice 1956

[Cathy]

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
$B%^%s%m!<%[!<%F%9!&%-%c%5%j%s(B
PhD in Film and Visual Culture
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