[KineJapan] Higashi Yoichi

[Aaron Gerow]

Sad to hear of the passing of the Japanese film director Higashi Yoichi, who died on January 21, 2026, at the age of 91. Higashi is one of the examples of masterful fiction film directors emerging from documentary, having started at Iwanami Productions. After such important documentary works as Okinawa retto (1969), he made award winning fiction films such as Third Base (1978), The River with no Bridge (1992) and Village of Dreams (1996).

Aaron Gerow
Yale