History of ‘Sincerity’
工 am one of those so called people
who were born in the first decade of the Showa era(from 1926 to 1934)一no joyfl Play
during our childhood.
Those born in or around 1928, in the
midst of extreme depression grew up as the country moved along the road to War
after the strong suppression of the
Communist Party in 1928.
They had not exPerienced democracy,1et
alone Marxism, in the Taisho era and been educated on the basis of the Japan-China War and the Pacific War,
and in particular experienced the effedts of the Second World War throughout their
middle school student year.
If the War had been prolonged two or three more years Without atomic bombing,
they would have Seen Service and Some of them would have died a glorious death.
At that time, ‘a glorious death’ was
‘beauty’ and the purpose of human life.
I received military cadet type educa-tion at a primary schoo1 in Kojimachi of
which the educational principles were
full 0f militarism through reading books
written by Toko Fujita, kendo(Japanese
fencing),worshipping of Meiji Shrine,etc.
I was stricken with a momentary passion
of lwhat Sha11 I do if I am unable to join in the War before it ends(ViCtory WaS assumed at that time)。
My middle SCho01 had been noted for itS liberaliStiC edUCation,bUt this aspeCt had now disappeared.
ImbeCiliC education by a military officer attached to the school Continued from the morning gathering to the aftern0on
extra-CUrriCular aCtivitieS・
A Student national defence CirCle eigned supreme in the Scho01 and clever boyS
were allowed to enter the Nava1 Academy
and Military ACademy after their
graduation.
It dazzled me to see the embroidered
wing mark on their school uniforms。
All values at that time were for participation in the War・
I worked under the labor mobilization from the second grade to the completion of my middle scho01 courSef but 工 suffered no hardship・
During my middle Scho01 timeS,Kenpei
(military police)and Tokko(Specia1Secret Service police)were alwayS with us.
When I withdrew the appliCation for
admiSSion into the Military ACademy,
a military policeman Came to me to
inquire aboUt the circumstances.
My reason was that I intended to delay
submiS-Sion of the application one
more year beCauSe my gradeS were not
SatiSfactory.
QueStions from the military P011ce to me
were entirely baSed on doubt on my
‘Sincerity’.
A poSter Seeking memberS of xx reading
CirClel put in front of the railway
Station in my Suburb WaS removed
oVernight, though our purpose was to hand around one book to members due to
a lack of books .
Many books including ‘ second poverty
story ‘ as well as Jewish literature were taken away from my house.
By such experiences,we of the same
generation, Who had growth with no doubts about the War and were prepared to die
for the everlaSting gl0ry of our country‘ were urged to adopt the concealed and untouched ’certain world views‘and
’other values’ to which Persons one
generation Prior touS knew.
It seems funny now but in those times
even calls of nature and Sexual conduct for the Emperor were thought to be
inconsistent with his Divinity.
Cities were emPty due to continued
bombardment and evacuation and there was no youth exCept Soldiers.
During daily bombing, we trembled for our lack of thought and had no human hiStory to rely on.
Our thin thread connected to democraCy and Marxism whiCh had been aCquired by our People from the Meij era was cut.
Ican recall growing up during SuCh
CircumstanCeS.
I experienced the defeat in hunger and
with a feeling of vain effort from
having lost.
I had grown up in the city,and the clothes of my mother and Sister
remained intact and were taken to farmerS to exchange for potatoes.
I also Spent many busy dayS looking for a
job.
Genera1 MacArtbur brought democracy to Japan,but it waS not aS I Preferred.
I came into contaCt With the U.S.Air
force as an assistant to an
interpreter at the Tachikawa U.S.Air
Force as an assistant to an interpreter at the Tachikewa U.S. Air Force Base in which an
EngliSh teacher of mine,who always talked intelligently
about the former Japanese empire to US,
WOrked.
My job WaS an interpreter for CarpenterS and Construction laborerS.
U.S・ patrol soldier whipped workerS, 0ne
by one twice a day,who were lined uP to dig a diScharge channe1.
This is the baSiC method for treating natives.
I Saw a picture When I visited the
Soldiers barracks for repair work, of
a Japanese gir1,naked after rape,with no faCial expression.
This was juSt after the War - when the
word ‘panpan’(prostitute)did not exist.
ThiS Occupation,when a teacher lost his responS1-bilities 0f a Teacher,a man lost hiS manhood and a yough lost his
youthfulneSS waS existed at the Base.
The U.S.democracy found in Tokyo did not reach the base.
My Post“ War life started from such a
violent colonial time which Oppressed
everybody.
At that time,I was eighteen years 01d.
seeking a ‘party’of visual hallucination:
Since I joined the film induStry eighteen years ago,my movie activity has been
confined to only about one film per year
unti1 I directed ‘Minamata’
My films were not avant-gardef
but rather anti-avant’garde.
工 feel that 工 have Picke d UP the ba11 not taken up by others.
I am Low in vigor and slow in catching the direction of Predicting the trends
of the times.
When the end of the War Was inevitably
accepted all Views of value collapsed and members of the communist Party Who
had been in prison for eighteen Years or returned from foreign countries
reorganized the Japan communist Party・
For us Who had had no contact With them before the War,they were not ‘dazzling’
or the same generation of revolutionists who were worthy of ‘awe and respect’.
However,adults Started to talk about
MarxiSm and war responsibilities and
tended to enhance conversion towardS
the Japan Communist Party.
The organizers came into contact even
with US・
FruStration With the Fgbruary 1St Strike induced me to join the Japan Communist
Party.
I felt that the Party was ready to go
With us at the last Stage of the
revolutionary atmo-Sphere which was apparently rising.
I was a member of the ahti-mainStream
faction organized when the Party was
Split in the midst of the korean War.
Selection of the faction was based on
the private evaluation of the
personality of members as to which one is truly communist,instead of principles and assertions.
This is because I know, through the
horrors of War,apart from humanism,how difficult such conversions are.
For about ten years after the War,I worked assisting the Student movement and JaPan-China friendship movement and lived as a member of the Japan communist Party.
At PreSent, I am no longer a member, but I need a ‘Party’ and seek .
intensely the organization of a ‘‘Party’.
When I recall the fight and the oath for life or death with friends during my
career in the Party, I do not want to
forget the basic substance of a ‘Party’ which lived and worked inside me.
Such a basic substance is always
generated by voluntary and collective
action in a Substructure.
I Saw the formation of a group in
unexpected and unusual discord in a
‘ desperatesituation - thiS is the basic substance of a ’Party‘.
Through such a short-1ived experience in the Party,I cannot throw away the desire
to Witness the moment at the end of my war
experience in which real reform is
achieved after the Post-war collapse of values intensifies.
Why I chose the cinema instead of
becoming a revolutionary?
l thought of this contradiction while
I produced a PR film of an important
sponsor of Iwanami Eiga which I joined,
and my friend Kazuo Kuroki(film director)raised the Same question .
He was in a polltical movement group for mountain
villages(I had the Same experience).
‘Is the cinema worth-while as a lifetime work for a man?’
To consider Such a question seriously
may be a common Point among thoSe born in the first decade of the Showa era.
There are many whose choice of the film industry is quite suitable,regardless
of their desire beforehand - 1iterature,journalism, etc.
This is common to those younger than our generation.
I have the intention of generating
something using the cinema because
a movie itself cannot become a completed self-contained world.
I desire, if possible; to live as a film
producer at a place in which people
form a ‘Party’, as I Saw in the past.
0f coursef people of a ゛Partyl have no connection with the existing factional movie people or artistS belonging to existing Parties.
A file called ‘Minamata’:
I have worked on the film ‘Minamata’ for nine years during which my relationship with the film has been sometimes dense
and sometimeS coarse.
I tried to escape from ‘Minamata’
several times.
My first contact with ‘Minamata’was the NTV production ‘Minamata children are living ’ .
Before that time, I had continued to avoid filming disabled’persons and seriously
disabled patients.
However,工 went to Minamata because this
disease is a poison generated by the new civilization emphasizing only
‘convenience’.
Furthermore, the murders committed are
the characteristics of monopollstic
capita1.
However,that Scale has been completely
destroyed.
When watching a Minamata Paitient
especially newly’born baby,the existing conception of man was completely
destroyed.
lt iS as if all products from companies and factories trans-mitted their
negative factors into that baby.
The illness of such PeoPle reaches all of us.
From a medica1 Point of view, there are
persons whose symptoms are worSe than
this baby.
with accepting that the patients live
under the fu11 support of the company
which did not c10se down the factory
which clearly produced the cause and
effect of the disease, the structure
which pushed the toxic materials onto
this baby has clearly confronted us with
a crisis.
This is plain and simPly poisoning
people 一一 there iS no other expression
to use except this.
If the patients had died,it would have
been best not to make the film and
I would have abandoned the project.
However, the patientS Who had narrow
escapes from a fatal dosage re-gained gradually their existence as human beings through the use of their mental faculties and can Share the minimum
feelings of joy and anger.
This expresses the emotions of human
beings and affirms that the patients are not merely a form of’ 1ife.
When I saw first Such ‘vegetable people’ and newly-born babies,I could not film,
sense or talk.
I confronted the Problem whether my choice of the documentary fi1m was
suitable for me.
This cannot be experienced by only
seeing still pictures or films.
The Minamata disease cannot be expressed
by words and is understandable only
visually.
Even though Iwanted to film the Minamata disease, l was unable to move my hands, as if they were bound tightly and I came to
dislike filming.
I was driven to despair myself Probably
I feared to look directly at the patients.
I shifted to other work as if to escape
from Minamata.
The results were not good,then I fell
into mental desolation and indulged
myself in women and whisky.
unhappiness came Suddenly.
My second daughter died of leukemia.
A large quantity of blood was donated
during the short period of her disease.
We held a fine funera1.
All 0f this was pos-sible with the
support of my friends.
I was able to honor my daughter with the great kindness of friendsz acquaintances
and many other unknown persons.
I was ashamed of myself for the long
distance I had Placed myself from the
‘Party’of visual hallucination of People.
For five years until l produced the film ‘Minamata - Patients and Their world ’ ,
I went along such a road as described.
things in Minamata which I experienced again became a file for film for me.
EVery day iS real for me so I cannot
answer for the question ‘Why did you choose the cinema?’
sometimes, somebody tells me,
‘you put yourself on the Same high level aS the Patients.
I cannot object to such comments of
those people.
I Still cannot picture the joyfulness
and deep Sealed agony of the patientS because I am still immature.
The patients were fishermen,yet at the same time, individuals who could express themSelves(in Song,dance,lecture,etc.).
Isn’t Some rea1 Chance in values
required in cinematic concepts and
expressions from Tokyo and other places,when theSe people are ignoredf and in
extreme cases,poisoned?
I the twenty nine years since the Warj my desire is only to revisit Minamata
where my aims will be retested.