Shinji Higuchi

Shinji Higuchi (Japanese: 樋口 真嗣, Hepburn: Higuchi Shinji, born September 22, 1965) is a Japanese filmmaker. Known for his tokusatsu blockbusters, Higuchi is considered one of Japan's leading filmmakers of the 21st century.^[1][2][3]

Shinji Higuchi
樋口 真嗣
Higuchi in 2016
Born	(1965-09-22) September 22, 1965 (age 59) Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan
Nationality	Japanese
Occupations	Film director special effects director screenwriter storyboard artist
Years active	1984–present
Notable work	Gamera: Guardian of the Universe Neon Genesis Evangelion Sinking of Japan Attack on Titan Shin Godzilla Shin Ultraman

Higuchi became known for his work on Gamera: Guardian of the Universe, for which he won the Special Technology Award at the 19th Japan Academy Film Prize. In 2005, he made his feature directorial debut on Lorelei: The Witch of the Pacific Ocean. His second feature film, Sinking of Japan (2006), was second place at the Bunshun Kiichigo Awards. His 2015 live-action two-part film adaptation of Hajime Isayama's manga series, Attack on Titan, won the Excellence in Theatrical Live Action Film award at the 2016 VFX-JAPAN Awards.^[4] In 2017, Higuchi and Hideaki Anno won the Director of the Year award at the 40th Japan Academy Film Prize, for their work on the 2016 kaiju film, Shin Godzilla. His 2022 film, Shin Ultraman, was a major success in Japan,^[5] and has received generally positive reviews from critics internationally.^[6]

Biography

Early life

Higuchi was born on September 22, 1965,^[7] in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. When Higuchi was in junior high school, his aunt took him on a tour of Toho Studios, where she worked on commercials. Upon watching Toho's special effects crew at work, Higuchi became inspired and frequently visited the filming sets.^[8]

In 2019, Higuchi told French interviewers about his education: "At the end of high school, when I had to pass the entrance examinations to universities, I failed everything. But since I was in a very popular high school, the school leaders refused to let me leave empty-handed! [laughs] So they said to me: 'you have to pass an exam, any!' I ended up passing my entrance examination for the Japanese Post Office, as a civil servant. I was sorted, locked up in a warehouse."^[9]

Early career

Higuchi entered the Japanese film industry in 1984, working as an assistant modeler on The Return of Godzilla.^[7] Two years later, he directed the special effects for Daicon's tokusatsu fan film Yamata no Orochi no Gyakushū.^[10]

As a key Daicon/Gainax member, he played an important part in the creation of one of the most popular anime series, Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995). He was a writer and art director/storyboarder for the series. He was also the namesake for the show's protagonist, Shinji Ikari.^[11] He later voice-acted a musician modeled after himself in two episodes of Karekano.^[12]

Higuchi made his directorial debut in 1992 with the disaster film The Day the Sun Fissured: The Great Tokyo Earthquake which he produced for Tokyo Fire Department.^[13]

Personal affairs

Higuchi supports Japan's whaling and consumptions of whale meats in general, and have appeared in the 2023 pro-whaling documentary film by Keiko Yagi, the director of the 2015 film Behind The Cove.^[14] The 2023 documentary featured the pro-whaling claim to highlight the necessity of whaling to control the marine ecosystem to prevent declines of fish stocks by whales, which largely affected public opinion regards the issues in Japan. The Fisheries Agency of Japan withdrew the claim in 2009 at the annual meeting of International Whaling Commission, but didn't correct it domestically afterwards.^[14][15] Yagi and Higuchi remarked that "Godzilla is closely connected to whales and environmental issues in naming of the character and other aspects",^[a] and expressed their supports for whaling and skeptical views towards veganism.^[14][26]

Filmography

Year	Title	Director	SFX director	Storyboard artist	Miscellaneous	Notes	Ref(s)
1984	The Return of Godzilla	No	No	No	Yes	Assistant modeler	[7]
1985	Yamata no Orochi no Gyakushū	No	Yes	No	No		[10]
1987	Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honnêamise	No	No	No	Yes	Assistant director	[27]
1988	Tokyo: The Last Megalopolis	No	No	Yes	No		[28]
	Gunbuster	No	No	Yes	No		[29]
1991	The Cat	No	Yes	No	No	With Kazuo Sagawa; uncredited
	Mikadroid	No	Yes	No	No		[30]
1992	The Day the Sun Fissured: The Great Tokyo Earthquake	Yes	No	No	No		[10]
1994	Giant Robo: The Day the Earth Stood Still	No	No	Yes	No
1995	Gamera: Guardian of the Universe	No	Yes	No	No		[10]
	Neon Genesis Evangelion	No	No	Yes	Yes	Screenwriter	[31]
1996	Space Ship Remnant 6	No	Yes	No	No		[32]
	Gamera 2: Attack of Legion	No	Yes	No	No		[33]
1997	The End of Evangelion	No	Yes	No	No		[34]
1998	Love & Pop	No	Yes	No	No		[35]
1999	Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris	No	Yes	No	No		[36]
	Betterman	No	No	Yes	No
2000	Sakuya: Slayer of Demons	No	Yes	No	No		[37]
2001	Pistol Opera	No	Yes	No	No		[38]
	The Princess Blade	No	Yes	No	No		[39]
2003	Pokémon: Jirachi—Wish Maker	No	No	Yes	No		[40]
	Dino Crisis 3	No	No	Yes	No
	Dragon Head	No	No	No	Yes	Visual effects designer	[41]
2005	Lorelei: The Witch of the Pacific Ocean	Yes	Yes	No	No		[10]
2006	Sinking of Japan	Yes	No	No	No		[10]
	Onimusha	No	No	Yes	No
2007	Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone	No	No	Yes	No		[42]
2008	Hidden Fortress: The Last Princess	No	No	Yes	No		[7]
2009	Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance	No	No	Yes	No		[43]
2010	Monster Magnitude: 9	Yes	No	No	Yes	Screenwriter
2012	Giant God Warrior Appears in Tokyo	Yes	No	No	No		[44]
	The Floating Castle	Yes	No	No	No		[45]
	Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo	No	No	Yes	No		[46]
2013	Kill la Kill	No	No	Yes	No
2014	Garm Wars: The Last Druid	No	No	Yes	No		[47]
2015	Attack on Titan	Yes	No	No	No		[48]
	Attack on Titan: End of the World	Yes	No	No	No		[49]
2016	Shin Godzilla	Yes	Yes	Yes	No		[50]
2018	Dragon Pilot: Hisone and Masotan	Yes	No	No	No		[51]
2020	The 12 Day Tale of the Monster that Died in 8	No	No	No	Yes	Original story	[52]
2021	Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time	No	No	Yes	No		[53]
2022	Ribbon	No	Yes	No	No		[54]
	Shin Ultraman	Yes	No	No	No		[55]
	Kamen Rider Black Sun	No	No	No	Yes	Visual concept designer	[56]
2023	Baian the Assassin, M.D.	No	No	No	Yes	Trailer creator	[57]
	Baian the Assassin, M.D. 2	No	No	No	Yes	Trailer creator	[58]
	Kyrie	No	No	No	Yes	Actor	[59]
2024	Brush of the God	No	No	No	Yes	Actor	[60]
TBA	The Bullet Train	Yes					[61]

Accolades

Award ceremony	Year	Work(s)	Category	Result	Note(s)	Ref.
Japan Academy Film Prize	1996	Gamera: Guardian of the Universe	Special Technology	Won		[62]
	2013	The Floating Castle	Director of the Year	Nominated	With Isshin Inudo	[63]
	2017	Shin Godzilla	Director of the Year	Won	With Hideaki Anno	[64]
Line News Awards	2022		Cultural Person	Won		[65]
46th Japan Academy Film Prize	2023	Shin Ultraman	Director of the Year	Nominated		[66]

Notes

1. Production of the 1954 film involved several whale-related aspects; Godzilla's name was based on the nickname of the man who loved whale meats,^[16] and early ideas of the monster were a giant octopus to attack a whaling vessel in Indian Ocean, or a gigantic whale monster attacks Tokyo.^[17][18] Godzilla favors to prey on whales,^[19][20][21] and Godzilla and Godzilla Junior were depicted either to prey on or slaughter whales in Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster^[22][23] and Godzilla vs. Destoroyah^[24] respectively. Additionally, MV Brigitte Bardot owned by Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was at one point named MV Godzilla with a paint of Godzilla on it, and the vessel was used for anti-whaling activities against Japan by the NPO.^[25]

References

1. "庵野秀明企画・脚本『シン・ウルトラマン』が日本公開中。半世紀愛されるシリーズの新作" [Shin Ultraman planned and written by Hideaki Anno is now open in Japan. New work from a series beloved for half a century]. JFF+ (in Japanese). Japan Foundation. June 30, 2022. Archived from the original on November 30, 2022. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
2. "【独占】樋口真嗣監督に聞く、庵野秀明氏とシン・ウルトラマンで目指す「断絶の解消」" [(Exclusive) Interview with Director Shinji Higuchi: 'Elimination of discontinuity' for Shin Ultraman with Hideaki Anno]. Business + IT (in Japanese). p. 1. Archived from the original on November 30, 2022. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
3. "【樋口真嗣監督インタビュー】特撮映画の牽引者は、『シン・ウルトラマン』でなにを描くのか？" [(Interview with director Shinji Higuchi) What will the tokusatsu film leader draw in Shin Ultraman?]. Pen Online (in Japanese). May 13, 2022. Archived from the original on November 30, 2022. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
4. Inc, Natasha. "CGとVFXの祭典、VFX-JAPANアワードで「バクマン。」が実写映画部門の頂点に". 映画ナタリー (in Japanese). Retrieved August 4, 2022. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
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9. Dupuy, Julien; Mauro, Fabien (July 3, 2019). "Le ravageur de mondes, entretien avec Shinji Higuchi" [The Ravager of Worlds, interview with Shinji Higuchi]. Otomo (in French). No. 4. Paris: Ynnis Editions. ISBN 978-23-76970-64-4.
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12. "untitled". gainax.co.jp. Archived from the original on February 11, 2005. Retrieved March 4, 2015.
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18. Toho, May 1, 1985, "Interview on Takeo Murata", Toho SF Tokusatsu Film Series Vol.3 - Godzilla/Godzilla Raids Again/Varan the Unbelievable (ゴジラ/ゴジラの逆襲/大怪獣バラン: 東宝SF特撮映画シリ-ズ 3), pp. 216–223
19. "An Introduction to Godzilla". MyKaiju.com. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
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External links

• Shinji Higuchi at IMDb
• 樋口真嗣 (Shinji Higuchi) at the Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese)
• Shinji Higuchi on Twitter