
Directing
Isao Yamada
Place of birth
Hokkaidō, Japan
Known for
Directing
Credits
43 titles
Yamada Isao was born in Hokkaido, 1952. He joined an experimental theatrical troupe “Tenjo Sajiki” of Terayama. He took charge of art and costume designs in Terayama’s movies. His first film “Subaru no Yoru” (Night on Pleiades) (1977) won a prize at Off-theater Film Festival (later the name changed to Pia Film Festival). Until now, he has made over 100 movies, mainly 8mm films. With motifs of the borderline between reality and dream, he draws pictorial world of nostalgia. The images with his unique world view have attracted critics worldwide, and some of his works are archived in foreign art museums and universities. He is also a cartoonist and book designer.
Known for
7.3A young geologist is traveling by train to visit his sister in the countryside after having received a mysterious letter from her.
I've Heard the Ammonite Murmur
1992
NRIn the winter of 1922 (Taisho 11), a poet and social activist Nakahama Tetsu returned from a wandering journey to reunite with Furuta Daijiro and other comrades. They organized an anarchist organization “Guillotine Society” dreaming of revolution. For their ideal, they targeted the Prince of Wales who visited Japan, but failed in all their attempts. Matsuura Emile, a soba selling mysterious woman with all foreseeing eyes, comes and goes before them. In September of 1923 (Taisho 12), under martial law, anarchists Osugi Sakae and Ito Noe whom members of Guillotine Society adored were taken by Captain Amakasu of the military police, and killed. When they learned of the murder, members of Guillotine Society swore vengeance, and rose up… Then, transcending time, at a cafe, music rings loud….
Sturm und Drang
2014
4.0A young man is on an inner journey as he searches for meaning in love, eroticism and marriage. He boards a train, and all the clocks are mirrored from then on, as if looking at them from the inside. He travels to a homey village, meets a potential fiancée, then a more sensuous and mysterious stripper.
The Soul Odyssey
2003
8.0No synopsis available yet.
Girl Orphee
2001
NRA documentary that centers on filmmaker Mikio Yamazaki, exploring his artistic vision and his feelings towards 8mm film, the primary medium of his work.
Playing Pretend
2004
7.3Crystal unfolds as a series of evocative, non-linear vignettes where fleeting images and sensations merge into a meditation on memory and time. A solitary figure moves through shifting urban and natural landscapes—fragments of childhood recollections, dreamlike encounters, and dissolving reflections in water or glass. Objects transform unexpectedly - a lantern flickers into a memory, a stranger’s face blurs into light - blurring boundaries between past and present.
Crystal
1988
Film credits
2000s · 2 titles
NRA documentary that centers on filmmaker Mikio Yamazaki, exploring his artistic vision and his feelings towards 8mm film, the primary medium of his work.
Playing Pretend
2004
NRA nonsense piece. It starts with the fact that there are two butters in the fridge at home, one for the top and one for the bottom, and then for some reason it reminds me of the Moh-Roh-Ushi hot springs.
Moh-Roh-Ushi Hot Springs
2000
1990s · 1 titles
Behind the camera
7.3A young geologist is traveling by train to visit his sister in the countryside after having received a mysterious letter from her.
I've Heard the Ammonite Murmur
1992
7.3A young geologist is traveling by train to visit his sister in the countryside after having received a mysterious letter from her.
I've Heard the Ammonite Murmur
1992
NRIn the winter of 1922 (Taisho 11), a poet and social activist Nakahama Tetsu returned from a wandering journey to reunite with Furuta Daijiro and other comrades. They organized an anarchist organization “Guillotine Society” dreaming of revolution. For their ideal, they targeted the Prince of Wales who visited Japan, but failed in all their attempts. Matsuura Emile, a soba selling mysterious woman with all foreseeing eyes, comes and goes before them. In September of 1923 (Taisho 12), under martial law, anarchists Osugi Sakae and Ito Noe whom members of Guillotine Society adored were taken by Captain Amakasu of the military police, and killed. When they learned of the murder, members of Guillotine Society swore vengeance, and rose up… Then, transcending time, at a cafe, music rings loud….
Sturm und Drang
2014
4.0A young man is on an inner journey as he searches for meaning in love, eroticism and marriage. He boards a train, and all the clocks are mirrored from then on, as if looking at them from the inside. He travels to a homey village, meets a potential fiancée, then a more sensuous and mysterious stripper.
The Soul Odyssey
2003
4.0A young man is on an inner journey as he searches for meaning in love, eroticism and marriage. He boards a train, and all the clocks are mirrored from then on, as if looking at them from the inside. He travels to a homey village, meets a potential fiancée, then a more sensuous and mysterious stripper.
The Soul Odyssey
2003
8.0No synopsis available yet.
Girl Orphee
2001
7.3Crystal unfolds as a series of evocative, non-linear vignettes where fleeting images and sensations merge into a meditation on memory and time. A solitary figure moves through shifting urban and natural landscapes—fragments of childhood recollections, dreamlike encounters, and dissolving reflections in water or glass. Objects transform unexpectedly - a lantern flickers into a memory, a stranger’s face blurs into light - blurring boundaries between past and present.
Crystal
1988
7.3Crystal unfolds as a series of evocative, non-linear vignettes where fleeting images and sensations merge into a meditation on memory and time. A solitary figure moves through shifting urban and natural landscapes—fragments of childhood recollections, dreamlike encounters, and dissolving reflections in water or glass. Objects transform unexpectedly - a lantern flickers into a memory, a stranger’s face blurs into light - blurring boundaries between past and present.
Crystal
1988
6.0A short version of the 3-hour-long film for the exhibition featuring a film installation and photographic works based on Yamada ongoing 81-reel Super-8mm work of the same title. Yamada has been working on this film project consistently since 2015.
LES ILLUMINATIONS (Short Version)
2023
7.0Experimental work by Isao Yamada (Color, 8mm).
Prism
1999
NRNo synopsis available yet.
Reminiscence
2019
NRNo synopsis available yet.
A lion and violet
1986
NRNo synopsis available yet.
Tokyo Nostalgia
2009
6.0Film of Simon Fisher Turner's new album, Instability of The Signal, directed by Japanese filmmaker Isao Yamada.
Instability of the Signal
2024
6.0No synopsis available yet.
Merry Christmas
1986
8.0An 8mm film by Isao Yamada.
Swamp
1999
8.0An 8mm film by Isao Yamada.
Swamp
1999
6.0No synopsis available yet.
A Star and a Propeller
2000
6.5Why do people wave their hands when they say goodbye? We embarked on a dream journey from Borges' The Circular Ruins. Filmed in 16mm by the Japanese Isao Yamada, filmmaker, graphic artist and manga author.
Lynx Reel
1987
NRNo synopsis available yet.
The Sketch of Snow
1988
7.0No synopsis available yet.
Tears of Socks
1994
NRNo synopsis available yet.
Delicate eyelashes
2007
NRNo synopsis available yet.
Marie from the Sea
2014
6.0No synopsis available yet.
A silhouette
1986
NRDreams, signs, fragments, margins, letters, one could also add love and memory to the list. My enchanted kingdom is filled with real aimlessness. The more the better. All that is left behind after it has disappeared is quiet. In the end I feel there hasn't been enough time to play. I want to say good-bye to this irrepressible feeling right around now though. After the color, the shape and the words have disappeared what will be left? Perhaps that is the tragedy of the twentieth century.
Long Good-bye
1997
5.0No synopsis available yet.
Filmletter★oufuku IV
1999
NRNo synopsis available yet.
A Marine Barber
1980
NRExperimental work by Isao Yamada (Color, 16mm).
Comet
2003
Experimental work by Isao Yamada (Color, 8mm).
Night Channel
2004
6.0No synopsis available yet.
The Crown of Dreams
1994
Experimental work by Isao Yamada (B&W, 8mm).
Black Girl
2004
Experimental work by Isao Yamada (Color, 8mm).
Desire Lost
1994
5.5No synopsis available yet.
Winter Flower
2003
NRNo synopsis available yet.
Tokyo Dusk
1992
3.5Experimental work by Isao Yamada (Color, 8mm).
Flamme
1989
5.0Eerie images of landscapes after the Fukushima nuclear disaster shot on black and white 8mm.
Reflection
2014
5.0A cinematic stroll through Germany.
Endless Flâneuring
2018
8.0No synopsis available yet.
Fragmentation of Night
1996
Experimental work by Isao Yamada (Color, 8mm).
Cobalt Glass
2004
Experimental work by Isao Yamada (Color, 8mm).
Recollect
1991
