A Filmed Record of Human Perseverance 『パシフィックフレンド』 10月4日号 時事画報社 <1996年(平8)>
A Filmed Record of Human Perseverance 『パシフィックフレンド』 10月4日号 時事画報社
A man with piercing eyes in a gentle expression － that's the first impression one gets upon meeting Noriaki Tsuchimoto,Japan's foremost director of documentary films. Engaged for 40 years in the making of documentaries，Tsuchimoto has kept those penetrating eyes focused on Japanesesociety. In his eyes one can sense the stick-to-itiveness with which Tsuchimoto relentlessly pursues the truth.
Last year marked the centennial of the birth of motion Pictures. In the beginning,all movies were documentaries. As “an eyewitnes of the 20th century,” documentary films have given us accounts of events and other information from all over the world. Robert Flaherty, Who made Man of ARAN, and Chris Marker, who made Loin du VietNam（Far from Vietnam）, are t wo of the coterie of documentary film directors who have become world-famous in the art. If we were asked to name a Japanese director capable of standing side by side with these masters, the first one to come to mind would be Noriaki Tsuchimoto, 67.
Tsuchimoto first entered the world of documentary film in 1956. In thosedays, the Japanese film industry was in its golden age and Tsuchimoto was in-volved in the production of numerous documentaries. But the spread of television in the 1960s triggered the decline of the film industry, and the demand fbr documentaries shifted to television. Tsuchimoto, however, Stubbornly stuck to the genre of documentary movies as his chosen mode of expression and continued to make films that were quite distinct from those made abroad.
Among the main subjects so far taken up by Tsuchimoto are the pollution caused Minamata Disease, the A bombed city of Hiroshima and war-rent Afghanistan. In all his works, Tsuchimoto directs his attention to the roots of the social issues involved and the people who, undaunted by the attendant hardships, live out their lives among them. He is obviously trying to grapple squarely with human ‘‘life.” Says Tsuchimoto: "Victims of Minamata Disease,People in injured by the atomicbombing of Hiroshima, or Afghan children dragged into war-all of them are living with all their might. I want to keep my eyes fixed on their determined way of life.
Tsuchimoto believes that the most important part of film making is the collecting of data and information before the actual shooting. In some cases, he spent more than 20 years in pursuit of single theme. His office in Tokyo is crammed with newspaper clippings, testimony to the passion with which he tries to get at the truth.
Tsuchimoto has distanced himself from commercial movie and television companies that tend to impose constraints on film production in regard to time and expression. He has chosen the path of independent production that enables him to bring the issues of the times into bold relief from unfettered Standponts. This does not mean, however, that Tsuchimoto gives his viewers only a sequence of images laced with social criticism. His works are not merely a critique or even pure records of human activity. Indeed, they represent an embodiment of Tsuchimoto’s unlque Philosophy about film making.
For example, there is one 10-minute long scene in his Minamata Disease（1974）, in which a doctor explains a map of the areas contaminated with the pollutant that caused the disease.Durlng the scene; only two things appear on the screen; the map and a hand pointing to variousparts of the map neither narration nor subtitles help the audience understand the scene. The scene may seem monotonous, but it typifies Tsuchimoto's unIque approach to visual expression aimed at making the audience directly feel the ambience of the place being shot. He steeps the audience in the flow of time that they could never experience watching television, letting them share the samespace-time continuum he himself experienced. Spending a long time face to face with particular images enables the audience to get at the heart of the issue at hand.
Tsuchimoto has won prilzes at various international film festivals including those in Venice an Berlin. These prizes obviously reflect a full appreciation of his unique approach. Tetsujiro Yamagami, the producer for Tsuchimoto’s films, remarks: “Tsuchimoto treats only socialissues with political implications. But in the process of repeated shootings and editings as a documentary film gradually takes shape, political elements are scraped away and his theme takes on universality. That’s why Tsuchimoto’s works retain their highly artistic quality. Even a work made 20 years ago still remains fresh.
No mention of Tsuchimoto can be complete without reference to his involvement with Minamata Disease over a 30-year Period. To the question ‘‘Which of your works are for you the most memorable？” he cites Patients of Minamata Disease and Their World（1971）and Shiranui Sea（1975）, both dealing with Minamata Disease.
This horrible disease broke out in the Minamata district of Kumamoto Prefecture in 1956. Organic mercury compounds in waste water, discharged into the sea by a local chemical factory, entered the bodies of local people who consumed polluted fish and shelfish, and damaged their nervous systems.
In 1965, When he began shooting his first film dealing with Minamata Disease, Tsuchimoto was seized with righteous indignation. Yet despite his empathy for the inhabitants of Minamata, he had great diffculty in shooting the film because local people wanted to hide the disease. Tsuchimoto was even prevented from filming those afficted. The director recalls the difficulties heficed: ‘‘No matter how hard I tried, I could not get at the truth. What stood in the way was a combination of locals' prejudice against Minamata sufferers and the desire of the patients them-selves to hide their disease. I somehow managed to complete the film, but I was reminded afresh of the enormity and complexity of the issues involved. I was even struck with terror. I thought I would never again be able to shoot a film on Minamata Disease.”
Five years later, With the start of the court trials that would ultimately give relief to victims of Minamata Disease, the way society looked at the problem began to change. The attitude of suferers, Who up to then had adamantly refused to be filmed, softened and Tsuchimoto was giveen another chance to make a film about Minamata Disease. This second effort yielded Patients of Minamata Disease and Their World. He went on to make the full-length film Minamata Disease that documented the medical aspects of the incident and launched a campaign to screen his films independently so that people in Minamata would be able to see them for themselves. The campaign soon spread to all parts of Japan. Many people who saw the films were shocked by the facts about Minamata Disease which they had not seen on television or read in newspapers and also by remarks directly made by sufferers of the disease.
Up to now Tsuchimoto has independently made as many as 10films about Minamata Disease. Yet he is not altogether happy about being dubbed ‘‘Tsuchinioto of Minamata.” Says Tsuchimoto with genuinemodesty: ‘‘The films on Minamata aren’t the only ones I’ve made. It’s just that I’ve kept a close watch on this Problem for the past 30 years as a concerned observer.”
This year marks the 40th anniversary Of the offcial recognition of Minamata Disease. To commemorate the occasion, the MINAMATA Tokyo Exhibition Will be held from September 28 to October 13 in Tokyo, featuring films and Photographs to convey the truth about the disease. Tsuchimoto, one of those spearheading the project, will display his photographs of more than 700people who died from Minamata Disease. The director reminds us of the depth and persistence of the problem of Minamata Disease:“ I think the important thing is to enlighten the general public afresh about Minamata Disease. Aiso, I want the people of Minamata to know how ordinary people feel about the disease. I hope this will help eradicate the deep-rooted preludice against the disease sufferers.” At present, Tsuchimoto is turning his main attention toward the Sea of Okhotsk. The director can hardly hide his enthusiasm: “My involvement with MinamataDisease over the years led me to learn about the pollution of the sea and the lives of fishermen who depend on the sea. Based on this experience, I want to follow closely the lives of the people of Okhotsk who live vigorously in harmony with the sea. ”Tsuchimoto has already started making preparations. He has visited Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost island facing on the Sea of Okhotsk, three times and has spent a whole month touring the Okhotsk coasts ofRussia．(Masuhiro Tsukada）