January 4, 2025
Emilio Echevarría [Age: 80]

 
Actor.
Echevarría began his career in theater during the 1970s before becoming a prominent figure in Mexican cinema. He appeared in notable films such as Amores Perros (2000), Y Tu Mamá También (2001), and Die Another Day (2002).
 

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December 6, 2024
Nakayma Miho [Age: 54]

 
Actor and singer.
Born on March 1, 1970, Nakayama made her debut in 1985. She gained immense popularity as an actor, singer, and idol, appearing in numerous TV dramas and releasing multiple hit songs. She also starred in many films, including Nami No Kazu Dake Dakishimete (1991), which won her the Popularity Award at the 15th Japan Academy Film Prize, and Tokyo Fair Weather (1997), for which she was nominated for the Best Actress Award at the 21st Japan Academy Film Prize.
In 1995, she starred in Iwai Shunji’s film Love Letter, playing dual roles as the leading role. Her performance earned her numerous acting awards. The film gained popularity across Asia and remains a globally celebrated work to this day.
 

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October 17, 2024
Nishida Toshiyuki [Age: 76]

 
Actor.
Born in 1947 in Koriyama, Fukushima. Nishida joined the Tokyo theater company Seinen-za in 1970. Since then, he has appeared in numerous films and TV series. He was also well known for his work as a singer, having had a hit song “Moshimo Piano ga Hiketa Nara” (If I could play the piano).
At the Japan Academy Film Prize, Nishida was nominated for the Best Actor award for Lost in the Wilderness and Free and Easy 14, and won the Best Actor award for The Silk Road and A Class to Remember.
He also appeared on stage for the opening film Heavenly Sin at the 5th TIFF in 1992, and for A Class to Remember II at the 9th TIFF in 1996. In 2011, he attended the 24th TIFF, where he participated in “TIFF in Sendai,” an outreach project in earthquake-affected Sendai, and attended the stage greeting for A Ghost of a Chance.
One of his last films, Doctor-X the Movie, was screened in the Women’s Empowerment section at the 37th TIFF.
 

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August 20, 2024
Tanaka Atsuko [Age: 61]

 
Voice actor.
Tanaka has voiced numerous anime characters, including Kusanagi Motoko in the “Ghost in the Shell” series and Lisa Lisa in “JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure”, and has dubbed the voices of Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman and Julia Roberts in a number of western films. She also had a long career in foreign TV series, dubbing the voice of Lily Rush, played by Kathryn Morris in “Cold Case: The Labyrinth Case Files”, and Phoebe Buffay, played by Lisa Kudrow in “Friends”. In 2013, she took the stage at the 26th TIFF Special Screening of BAYONETTA Bloody Fate.
 

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August 11, 2024
Yano Kazuyuki
First representative of the Tokyo office of the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival (YIDFF) and representative of Cinematrix Co., LTD.
In 1989, Yano helped launch YIDFF and devoted himself to building the festival’s foundation. He was also a representative of a film distribution company, Cinematrix, and was a member of the jury for the Asian Film Award at the 11th Tokyo International Film Festival in 1998.
 

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May 16, 2024
Nakao Akira [Age: 81]

 
Actor.
Born in Chiba prefecture in 1942.
Nakao was discovered in the 5th Nikkatsu New Face talent competition in 1962. He was starred in a number of films such as Only on Mondays (1964), Death at an Old Mansion (1975), Ninja Wars (1982), Minbo: the Gentle Art of Japanese Extortion (1991), Outrage Beyond (2012) and Fly me to the Saitama (2018). He has also appeared in numerous TV series and entertainment shows.
Other film appearances include six Godzilla movies starting with Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II in 1993. He was on stage for two special screenings, Godzilla Against MechaGodzilla at the 15th TIFF in 2002, and Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. at the 16th TIFF in 2003.
 

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May 9, 2024
Roger Corman [Age: 98]

 
Film producer and director.
Born in Detroit in 1926. Corman made a number of low-budget films and was known as the ‘King of B-movies.’
He was President of the Young Cinema Competition Jury at the 7th TIFF in 1994 and President of the Competition Jury at the 25th TIFF in 2012.
In 2012, TIFF held a special midnight event, Corman’s Way, to celebrate his remarkable achievements, including screenings of his film The Red Baron, and Corman took the stage after completing his duties as jury president.
 

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April 30, 2024
Paul Auster [Age: 77]

 
The author of 34 books including the acclaimed New York Trilogy.
At the 6th Tokyo International Film Festival in 1993, he served as a member of the jury for the Young Cinema Competition with jury president Wim Wenders and his fellow jurors Claudie Ossard, Suzuki Seijun, and Leslie Cheung.
In 1995, his novel Auggie Wren’s Christmas Story was adapted into the film Smoke, directed by Wayne Wang. He also wrote the screenplay. Auster and Wang co-directed the sequel, Blue in the Face.
 

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March 14, 2024
Terada Minori [Age: 81]

 
Actor. Born November 7, 1942.
Terada starred in numerous films and TV series.
At the 14th Tokyo International Film Festival in 2001, he appeared on stage at the special screening of The Catch by Somai Shinji.
 

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January 20, 2024
Norman Jewison [Age: 97]

 
Film director. Born in Toronto, Canada. Jewison won the Academy Award for Best Picture for his 1967 film In the Heat of the Night. Throughout his career, he has directed a number of films, including Fiddler on the Roof and Moonstruck. He was Jury President for the International Competition at the 14th Tokyo International Film Festival in 2001.
 

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January 2, 2024
Milkman Saito [Age: 60]

 
Film critic. Born in Kyoto in 1963.
Saito was a member of the jury for the Winds of Asia section at the 16th Tokyo International Film Festival in 2003.
 

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