Actor

Masaki Kobayashi

Directing

Career Snapshot

Explained

These indicators come from TMDB. They are relative signals, not review ratings.

Acting credits

Early stage

Smaller on-screen catalog so far.

TMDB popularity

2.3

Moderate attention

TMDB internal trend index. Higher usually means more searches and page activity now.

Movies: 33Series: 3Crew credits: 34

TMDB ID: 76978

IMDb ID: nm0462030

Known for: Directing

Born: February 14, 1916

Died: October 4, 1996

Age: 80

Place of birth: Otaru, Hokkaidō, Japan

Gender: Male

Adult content flag: No

Career span: 1931 - 2024

Years active: 94

Average TMDB rating: 7.5

Wikidata: Q445807

Also known as

Масаки Кобаяси • 小林正树 • 고바야시 마사키 • 코바야시 마사키 • 마사키 고바야시 • 마사키 코바야시

Other jobs

Director (21)Assistant Director (4)Screenplay (4)Executive Producer (2)Creator (1)Producer (1)Thanks (1)

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Biography

Masaki Kobayashi (February 14, 1916–October 4, 1996) was a Japanese director. Among his films is Kwaidan (1965), a collection of four ghost stories drawn from the book by Lafcadio Hearn, each of which has a surprise ending. Kobayashi also directed The Human Condition, a trilogy on the effects of World War II on a Japanese pacifist and socialist. The total length of the films is over 9 hours. Other notable films include Harakiri (1962) and Samurai Rebellion (1967). Harakiri won him an award at the 1963 Cannes Film Festival, solidifying his place in the history of cinema. In 1969, he was a member of the jury at the 19th Berlin International Film Festival. He was also a candidate for directing the Japanese sequences for Tora! Tora! Tora!, once Akira Kurosawa left the film. But instead Kinji Fukasaku and Toshio Masuda were chosen. Kobayashi, himself a pacifist, was drafted into the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II, but refused to fight and refused promotion to a rank higher than private.