Kōki Mitani


Kōki Mitani is a Japanese playwright, screenwriter, actor and film director. He was named after Taihō Kōki, the youngest sumo wrestler to become yokozuna. He studied dramatics at Nihon University. He has been described by The Japan Times as "far and away the nation's best-known dramatist".
In an attempt to add his own character to his movies, his directorial approach follows a "one scene = one shot" system, whereby he pans the camera around as opposed to cutting. He claims this comes from his experience in theatre, where there are no cuts. Mitani does not use a computer.

Early life

Mitani liked watching TV dramas and puppetries of NHK in his childhood. He was especially interested in works of puppetry such as Shin Hakkenden and Sangokushi, jidaigeki dramas such as ' and ', and taiga dramas such as Kaze to Kumo to Niji to.
Throughout his life, he has expressed interest in works starring famous detectives, such as the Sherlock Holmes series. He has collected numerous novel volumes, pastiches, and DVDs related to Sherlock Holmes, and in 2014 adapted the story into a puppetry set in a boarding school. In his high school days, he planned to produce a film featuring a detective, loosely based on And Then There Were None, and went on location to Enoshima, Kanagawa with his friends, although this film was never finished.
Mitani has also stated that he enjoys foreign cinema, and is a fan of the films 12 Angry Men, The Wages of Fear, Columbo, and the director Billy Wilder. He has mentioned how he believes modern-day Hollywood comedy films are not as funny as those from the Golden Age.
Mitani was previously married to Japanese actress Satomi Kobayashi.

Career

Mitani's work has primarily comprised witty comedies which are often parodies. In production, he usually writes scripts visualizing actors and actresses as close to the characters. Mitani is the author of a weekly column in the Asahi Shimbun daily newspaper in which he often discusses his favorite films, his writing process, and the actors and actresses with whom he has worked.
In 2018, Mitani appeared in a "Silent Library" segment of Gaki no Tsukai.
In 2023, Mitani was the recipient of the 15th annual Juzo Itami Award.

Works

Films

''Note: Many of Mitani's films began as successful plays.''

Feature films

  • The Gentle Twelve ''12-nin no Yasashii Nihonjin
  • Welcome Back, Mr. McDonald
  • Minna no Ie All About Our House
  • University of Laughs Warai no Daigaku
  • The Uchōten Hotel Suite Dreams
  • The Magic Hour
  • A Ghost of a Chance Suteki na Kanashibari, also known as Once in a Blue Moon
  • The Kiyosu Conference
  • Galaxy Turnpike
  • Hit Me Anyone One More Time
  • All About Suomi''

    Television films

  • aka Airport 2013
  • ''Oi, Dazai''

    TV dramas

  • Furikaereba Yatsu ga Iru
  • Furuhata Ninzaburō
  • Shinsengumi!
  • Sōri to Yobanaide
  • Wagaya no Rekishi
  • Sanada Maru
  • Fūnji-tachi
  • Kuroido Goroshi
  • The 13 Lords of the Shogun
  • AKA ''Moshimo Kono Yo ga Butai nara, Gakuya wa Doko ni Aru no Darou''

    Theatre

  • The Gentle Twelve ''12-nin no Yasashii Nihonjin
  • The Show Must Go On
  • University of Laughs Warai no Daigaku
  • Vamp Show
  • Talk Like Singing
  • Odessa''

    Puppetries

  • The Three Musketeers
  • ''Sherlock Holmes''

    Recurring cast members


ActorFuruhata Ninzaburō Welcome Back, Mr. McDonald Aikotoba wa Yūki Minna no Ie Shinsengumi! 　The Uchōten Hotel The Magic Hour Wagaya no Rekishi A Ghost of a Chance The Kiyosu Conference Galaxy Turnpike Sanada Maru Hit Me Anyone One More Time
Toshiyuki Nishida
Fumiyo Kohinata
Kōji Yakusho
Keiko Toda
Kōichi Satō 　
Masahiko Nishimura
Yoshimasa Kondo
Kiichi Nakai
Kenji Anan
Toshiaki Karasawa
Susumu Terajima
Zen Kajihara
Kyōka Suzuki
Eri Fukatsu
Yo Oizumi
Masato Sakai
Koji Yamamoto
Shingo Katori
Yūko Takeuchi
Satoshi Tsumabuki
Haruka Ayase

Honors