Hirokazu Kore-eda facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hirokazu Kore-eda
是枝 裕和
Kore-eda in 2025
Born	(1962-06-06) 6 June 1962 (age 63) Tokyo, Japan
Alma mater	Waseda University
Occupation	Film director, film producer, screenwriter, film editor
Years active	1991–present
Children	1
Japanese name
Hiragana	これえだ ひろかず
Transcriptions Romanization Koreeda Hirokazu

Hirokazu Kore-eda (是枝 裕和, Koreeda Hirokazu, born 6 June 1962) is a famous Japanese film director, producer, screenwriter, and editor. He started his career making TV documentaries. Since then, he has directed many movies, including Nobody Knows (2004), Still Walking (2008), and After the Storm (2016). He won the Jury Prize at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival for Like Father, Like Son. He also won the top award, the Palme d'Or, at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival for his film Shoplifters.

Early Life and Education

Hirokazu Kore-eda was born on June 6, 1962, in Nerima, Tokyo, Japan. He is the youngest of three children. His father was born in Taiwan and was in the Japanese military during World War II. After the war, he was held in Siberia for three years. Kore-eda's grandparents could not marry in Japan because they had the same last name, so they moved to Taiwan, which was then under Japanese rule, to get married. This is why Kore-eda feels a special connection to Taiwan.

From a young age, Kore-eda loved watching movies with his mother. He shared that his mother really enjoyed films, especially those with actresses like Ingrid Bergman and Vivien Leigh. Even though they couldn't often go to the cinema, they watched movies together on TV. This shared love for films inspired him.

When he was in middle school, Kore-eda started playing volleyball after seeing Japan win a gold medal at the 1972 Munich Olympics. He became the team captain in high school, playing as a setter.

He later went to Waseda University and graduated in 1987.

Kore-eda's Film Career

Before becoming a film director, Kore-eda worked on documentaries for television. He directed his first TV documentary, Lessons from a Calf, in 1991. He continued to make several other documentaries.

One of his documentaries, released in 1994, was called “August without him”. It showed his friendship with Hirata Yutaka. Kore-eda filmed Yutaka's life between 1992 and 1994. The film showed Yutaka openly talking about his health condition.

In 1995, Kore-eda directed his first fiction movie, Maborosi. It won an award for Best Cinematography at the Venice Film Festival. In 1999, his film After Life won awards for Best Film and Best Screenplay at the Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema.

In 2005, he won the Blue Ribbon Awards for Best Film and Best Director for Nobody Knows. His 2008 film, Still Walking, also received awards, including Best Director at the 2009 Asian Film Awards.

His 2013 film, Like Father, Like Son, was shown at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. It won the Jury Prize and another special award. In October 2013, the film also won the Rogers People's Choice Award at the 2013 Vancouver International Film Festival.

Kore-eda's 2015 film, Our Little Sister, was also shown at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival. His 2016 film, After the Storm, was praised by critics at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. He won Best Director for this film at the Yokohama Film Festival. Kore-eda also won Best Film and Best Director at the Japan Academy Prizes for The Third Murder (2017).

In 2018, his film Shoplifters won the top award, the Palme d'Or, at the Cannes Film Festival. This movie is about a young girl who joins a family of shoplifters. It was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

In 2018, he received the Donostia Award for his amazing work in filmmaking over the years at the San Sebastián International Film Festival.

In 2019, Kore-eda directed The Truth, starring famous actors like Catherine Deneuve and Juliette Binoche. This was his first film made in Europe and not in Japanese.

In 2021, Kore-eda directed Broker. This film was made in South Korea with a South Korean cast and crew. It was released on June 8, 2022. The film was shown at the Cannes Film Festival in 2022 and won a special award from the Ecumenical Jury.

In January 2022, it was announced that Kore-eda was working on a nine-episode TV series called The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House. This series is based on a manga called Kiyo in Kyoto.

In November 2022, Kore-eda shared that he had finished filming his next Japanese movie, Monster. The film was released in Japan on June 2, 2023. It won the Queer Palm and the Best Screenplay Award at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.

In 2025, Kore-eda's TV series Asura was released on Netflix. It is based on a novel by Kuniko Mukōda.

Style and Influences

Kore-eda's films are known for their thoughtful and calm style. He is often compared to famous Japanese director Yasujirō Ozu. However, Kore-eda has said that he feels more inspired by British director Ken Loach and Japanese director Mikio Naruse.

In an interview in 2009, Kore-eda shared that his film Still Walking was based on his own family experiences.

Personal Life

Kore-eda got married in 2002. He has one daughter, who was born in 2007.

Filmography

Film

Producer Roles

Documentaries

Television Work

Awards and Recognitions

Hirokazu Kore-eda at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival

• 1995: Vancouver International Film Festival – Dragons and Tigers Award (Maborosi)
• 1998: San Sebastian Film Festival – FIPRESCI Prize (After Life)
• 1998: Three Continents Festival – Golden Montgolfiere (After Life)
• 1999: Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema – Best Film and Best Screenplay (After Life)
• 2004: Flanders International Film Festival Ghent – Grand Prix (Nobody Knows)
• 2005: Blue Ribbon Awards – Best Film and Best Director (Nobody Knows)
• 2008: Mar del Plata International Film Festival – Best Film (Still Walking)
• 2009: Asian Film Awards – Best Director (Still Walking)
• 2009: Blue Ribbon Awards – Best Director (Still Walking)
• 2011: San Sebastian Film Festival – Best Screenplay (I Wish)
• 2012: Asia-Pacific Film Festival – Best Director (I Wish)
• 2013: Cannes Film Festival – Jury Prize (Like Father, Like Son)
• 2013: Asia-Pacific Film Festival – Best Film and Best Director (Like Father, Like Son)
• 2013: São Paulo International Film Festival – Audience Award Best Foreign Film (Like Father, Like Son)
• 2013: Vancouver International Film Festival – Audience Award International Films (Like Father, Like Son)
• 2013: Yokohama Film Festival – Best Screenplay (Like Father, Like Son)
• 2015: San Sebastian Film Festival – Audience Award Best Film (Our Little Sister)
• 2015: Yokohama Film Festival – Best Director (Our Little Sister)
• 2016: Japan Academy Prize – Best Film and Best Director (Our Little Sister)
• 2016: Films from the South – Best Film (After the Storm)
• 2018: Japan Academy Prize – Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Editing (The Third Murder)
• 2018: Cannes Film Festival – Palme d'Or (Shoplifters)
• 2018: Los Angeles Film Critics Association – Best Foreign Film (Shoplifters)
• 2018: San Sebastián International Film Festival – Donostia Award
• 2018: Asia Pacific Screen Awards – Best Film (Shoplifters)
• 2018: Denver Film Festival – Best Film (Shoplifters)
• 2018: Filmfest München – Best International Film (Shoplifters)
• 2018: Films from the South – Audience Award (Shoplifters)
• 2018: Vancouver International Film Festival – Most Popular International Feature (Shoplifters)
• 2019: Asian Film Awards – Best Film (Shoplifters)
• 2019: Japan Academy Prize – Best Film, Best Director, and Best Screenplay (Shoplifters)
• 2019: César Award – Best Foreign Film (Shoplifters)
• 2019: Guldbagge Awards – Best Foreign Film (Shoplifters)
• 2023: Asian Film Awards – Best Director (Broker)
• 2024: Asian Film Awards – Best Director (Monster)

Frequent Collaborators

Work Actor	1995	1998	2001	2004	2006	2008	2009	2011	2013	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2022	2023
	Maborosi	After Life	Distance	Nobody Knows	Hana	Still Walking	Air Doll	I Wish	Like Father, Like Son	Our Little Sister	After the Storm	The Third Murder	Shoplifters	The Truth	Broker	Monster
Takashi Naitō
Sayaka Yoshino
Tadanobu Asano
Akira Emoto
Susumu Terajima
Arata Iura
Yusuke Iseya
Natsuo Ishidō
Kenichi Endō
Yui Natsukawa
Ryo Kase
Sei Hiraizumi
Hiei Kimura
Yūichi Kimura
You
Shirō Katō
Yoshio Harada
Shohei Tanaka
Jun Kunimura
Tetsushi Tanaka
Kirin Kiki
Hiroshi Abe
Ryōga Hayashi
Kazuya Takahashi
Joe Odagiri
Bae Doona
Kazuaki Shimizu
Yuri Nakamura
Oshiro Maeda
Masami Nagasawa
Isao Hashizume
Lily Franky
Ichirō Ogura
Jun Fubuki
Yōko Maki
Masaharu Fukuyama
Tomomitsu Adachi
Suzu Hirose
Aju Makita
Izumi Matsuoka
Sosuke Ikematsu
Daisuke Kuroda
Hajime Inoue
Sakura Ando

See also

In Spanish: Hirokazu Koreeda para niños