Akira Kurosawa

Akira Kurosawa (born on 23 March 160 and died in 1998) was an amazing and influential Japanese painter and filmmaker, who directed more than 30 films in his long career of more than five decades. Akira Kurosawa is always considered among the most important figures in Japanese cinematic history.

The famous filmmaker entered the industry in 1937, after a brief period of working as a moderately-successful painter. He worked on various films as both a scriptwriter and a director assistant, before making his historical debut during the Second World War with "Sanshiro Sugata", a successful action movie.

When the war ended, he released Drunken Angel (in 1949), in which he cast the non- famous actor back then Toshiro Mifune in a leading role. The movie was a critical and financial triumph, cementing his reputation as among the greatest Japanese filmmakers. After their victory, the two continued to work together on more than 15 movies.

Then another milestone came: Rashomon, a movie that premiered in Toukyou, was declared the winner at 1951's Venice Festival. Thanks to the film's critical success, the doors for Western markets were opened to Japan for the very first time, leading to global fame for later generation's Japanese filmmakers.

Years: 1910 - 1998

Notable works: Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Ran