Yamamura Animation, Inc. (2024)

Extremely Short (2024)

...Extremely short indeed, since this animated vignette lasts just 5 minutes, including the credits. Yet it's the whole of existence that bubbles up in this jolt that's both primitive and surreal. Japan's Kōji Yamamura has created an astonishing film whose tension is as insane as it is existential.
»Festival de Cannes 2024: nos 10 courts métrages préférés | Le Polyester | Gregory Coutaut | 024.05.25 | France

Polar Bear Bears Boredom (2021)

...I wish there were more proposals like this suitable for children. Above all, because it is very interesting from an artistic point of view. Also, because aesthetically and narratively it bears little resemblance to the predominant animation created for children. Sadly, it is not usual for filmmakers as personal as Koji Yamamura to dedicate a work to this area of the medium.
»2021: Polar Bear Bears Boredom (Hokkyoku-Guma Suggoku Hima) | Animación para adultos | Ray Laguna | 2022 | Spain

Dozens of Norths (2021)

Kōji Yamamura‘s DOZENS OF NORTHS is a masterpiece that is several decades from when it should have come out. This glorious animated film should have come out in the 1970’s and 80’s when it’s dream like imagery would have made it a midnight movie favorite. Yea back then it was Rocky Horror, Eraserhead, Pink Flamingos and others like Fantastic Planet. Now imagine Eraserhead spawning with Fantastic Planet and you have a vague idea of what this is. ...
»Unseen Films | Dozens of Norths (2021) | Steve Kopian | 2023.03.26 |

... "Alice in Winterland" is a fascinating worldview that can only be achieved with images. ...
...Above all, I hope that these films will be screened at cinema complexes throughout Japan as true "entertainment" that enlightens the viewer's consciousness. ...
»Kinema-jyunpo" Early March 2023 No.1916 | Caricature Diary 185 All genres are closely intertwined technically | Tatsuya Masutou | 2023.02.20 | Japan

... Yamamura seems to paint a gigantic cosmic freezeframe of suffering, where the more impotent the animation is, the more emergent will be result.
...In his filmic journey Yamamura offers up to us a Boschian anatomy of dreams, where the obsessive elements are able to create an iconic language that, in a little over one hour, we will be able to read.
»FILMEXPLORER | Text: Giuseppe Di Salvatore | 10 September, 2022 | Switzerland

Another special mention went to Japanese star Koji Yamamura's first feature film (short, though, only an hour of time), Dozens of Norths (Ikuta no kita). And it, it must be said, made an utterly mesmerizing impression. The first thing that fascinated me was Yamamura's fantastic, subtle graphics, not unlike his most recent films, which were both surreal and absurd, or rather the movement of the film itself was absurd. …
Big Cartoon Festival Blog | »Zagreb Festival 2022 Part 1 Winners | Dina Goder | July 2022 | Russia

...Dozens of Norths is an especially recommendable proposal for those who conceive animation as an essentially plastic art, for those who are more interested in aesthetics than in history in the conventional sense of the term. Precisely for this reason it will appeal, above all, to viewers interested in experimental proposals that blur the border between cinema and other arts such as painting or music. In fact, perhaps it will be more appreciated if, in the style of the so-called musical compositions, it is analyzed as an audiovisual suite.
»2021: Dozens of Norths (Ikuta no kita) | Animation for Adults | Ray Laguna | 2022 | Spain

"Avec ses paysages pétrifiés ou endormis peuplés de figures tantôt reconnaissables, tantôt chimériques, ses mouvements minimalistes, ses lents travellings sur de vastes compositions crayonnées, avec, pour seules paroles, des cartons à la façon du cinéma muet, le premier long métrage de Yamamura Kôji déroute et fascine. "...
»"BLINK BLANK # 5"|FILMS & SÉRIES Pléthore de nords Yamamura Kôji "Dans les limbes de l’imaginaire" | Jacques Kermabon |2022.04|France

Jury Comment: »Special Jury Award for the Feature Films | 8th New Chitose Airport International Animation Festival | 8 November 2021

Nejimura89| Note | »Film review of the fastest film ever made, "TDozens og Norths!2 Maybe this is what an "unprecedented" feature film is all about. ......!| 2021.11.23 | Japan

"The long-awaited first feature from a legend of Japanese animation, this trip through the darkest places on earth more than meets expectation. ...
It feels purposefully like a dream, showing an author falling asleep and two smaller men walking away with his quill like arctic explorers. These are the Rosencrantz and Guildenstern of the piece, guiding us through a hellish landscape that feels inspired by both Dante and Kafka in its depiction of sadness and depravity. ...
The result is one of the boldest animated features I’ve seen in a while, a journey through an animation world worthy of inclusion alongside the likes of Pixar, Hertzfeld and Miyazaki. "
Redmond Bacon | DMovies | »Dozens of Norths (Ikuta no Kita) | 22 December 2021

" ...the incredible harmony between the animation and the music will make it impossible to imagine any other symbiosis. “Dozens of Norths” is done in the spirit of silent movies, and when Breukner’s tunes are gone, it’s the impeccable sound design by Koji Kasamatsu that takes over with the sound of chilly winds, rusty machines and breaking waves adding to the feeling of deep void and solitude.
...The film doesn’t have a clear plot, just like a dream. What it does have is a magical atmosphere, with every detail executed by Yamamura’s skillful hand. It’s a gem that won’t click with everyone because it requires passion for arthouse animation and concentration."
Marina D. Richter| Asian Movie Pules|»Film Review: Dozens of Norths (2021) by Koji Yamamura| 22 December 2021

Doi Nobuaki| Media Arts Current Contents|»Feature Length Animation as an Experimental Site, Dully Glowing in the Corona Disaster| 2021.10.25 | Japan

Focusing the details accurately with a rhythm that matches perfectly but shifting into a bird's-eye view makes the viewers lose what happened just a moment ago. Many feature-length animations are based on detailed episodes centered around a solid story and these details make a whole story dense. What happened in this film is the opposite: the details seem to be connected somewhere, but it is possible that they don't have any connections. It makes me feel fun, and I would not be the only one. The high-impact visual that changes in a blink of an eye with some uncanny and humorous melody keeps attracting our eyes. The challenge of deviating from the story, which should be an important element of feature films, makes this film innovative.
»Animation Division Excellence Award| 25th Japan Media Arts Festival | March 2022

Satie's "Parade" (2016)

Autre film venu du Japon, le court métrage de Koji Yamamura, « Parade » de Satie, illustration en dessin animé de la pièce musicale composée en 1916 par Erik Satie. Yamamura aussi s’intéresse à la France dans ce nouveau court, parsemant l’ensemble de citations en français de Satie, faisant intervenir artistes de la belle époque, de Cocteau à Picasso, et organisant son film en chapitres, comme l’était la musique. Mais surtout, il n’oublie pas que Satie, en plus de faire partie d’un renouveau du paysage musical du début du siècle, fut proche de l’esprit des avant-gardes comme les surréalistes. Sa musique, à la limite de l’atonal parfois, imprévisible et excentrique, est parfaite pour le style du cinéaste. Alignant des personnages ou objets absurdes et quasi pataphysiques, qu’il anime en rythme par rapport aux différents instruments joués dans le morceau, Yamamura s’amuse à réinventer un mouvement fantaisiste et coloré, complexe et épuré dans un univers connu mais méconnaissable.
Festival d'Annecy, jour 1 : périple asiatique | Revue 24 Images (Canada, ParNICOLAS THYS, 2016.06.13) »Site

Comment: Koji's new film is a real masterpice - fresh, crazy, full of small and big surprises. Surprising is also big stylistic variety of Koji's artworks but even in small details you can always recognize the hand of great artist Yamamura Koji.
-Priit Pärn (Animation Director, Estonia, 2016.04.22)

Article: Animationsfilm zu Erik Saties Ballettmusik „Parade“ Geschmackvoll gezeichnet (Animated film to Erik Satie's ballet “Parade” Tastefully drawnings)
(Germany, Almut Ochsmann、2016.05.17) »Site

Interview : Kinema-Junpo the beginning of September issue（20 August 2015, 1Page)

Anime creator 49 people you want to know "Yamamura Koji Short change surrounding the animation"
»amazon

Muybridge's Strings (2011)

»Time construction within Koji Yamamura’s animation, Muybridge’s Strings
by Tania de León Yong [4th Internationa Conferece in Illustration & Animation, 10-12 June 2016, Barcelos - Portugual]

Nishikata Film Review (English) [Cathy Munroe Hotes 2012.06.14

»Les cordes de Muybridge » de Koji Yamamura Japanese films at the World Filmfestival, Montreal, 2011 (French) [Claude R. Blouin 2011.09.10]

Movie Information Concentration Site [Cine Soul]: WEB Town Information Okayama Preview & New Review< a href="http://www.vis-a-vis.co.jp/screen/review/post_817.php" target="_blank">»Muybridge's Strings [2012.02.28]

»Movie: Movie review: Muybridge's Strings [Kokaji Katsuo YOMIURI ONLINE 2011 .9.09]

»Muybridge's Strings Japan's proud animator, Yamamura Koji's new work is about time, Suzuki Koyori, And Cinema, 2011.09.13]

»The Connection of Time, The Weight of Time -Atsushi Ohara's Animage Don- Obara Atsushi、asahi.com 2011.09.26]

»A fleeting but beautiful video poem about "time" and "love" Review-Thread of Muybridge's Strings [Takeuchi Yuki、UNZIP 2011.09.26]

An adventure named Appreciation [Furukawa Hideo, Nichini Kumamoto Shimbun 2011.10.03, Shikoku Shimbun 2011.10.05, Sanin Chuo Shimbun 2011.10.07, Higashi Oku Nippo 2011.10.15, Jomo Shimbun 2011.10.22, Sanin Shimbun 2011.10.22, Chiba Daily 2011.10.22, Ehime Shimbun 2011.10.24]

»The mythical world of Muybridge's Strings [Yokota Masao »Animations creators & critics 2011.11.12]

»Animals are standing Doi Nobuaki »Animations creators & critics 2011.11.12

»Unchangeable ephemerality of existence [Ilan NGUYÊN »Animations creators & critics 2012.11.11]

Muybridge's Strings is one of the deepest and most interesting works. There is no doubt that Yuri Norstein's achievements in Talk of the Story will be reached. In addition, we value your personal way of exploring the secrets and origins of animation. [Jean-Pierre Pagliano, animation critic]

Great artist Koji Yamamura honors his stunning philosophical meditation. Using a series of photographs of Edward Mybridge's horse, he contrasts with a 21st-century mother watching her daughter grow. One of the most perfect movies we have seen. [2012.10, Igor Kovalev, animation director]

Newpaper: »asahi.com 2011.02.03

»anime! anime! 2011.05.26

»MSN Sankei news 2011.06.06

Yomiuri Shinbun Yukan [2011.06.17]

»Tokyo Shinbun [2011.06.29]

»asahi.com [2011.07.04]

Nippon Keizai Shinbun Yukan[2011.09.03]

Web: »Master Interview Animation Meister Vol.7- Japan Media Arts Plaza

»NFB.ca BlogMichael f*ckushima [2010.11.08]

Coco☆Montreal »Short Animation Director: Yamamura Koji [2011.01.20]

»Cat's Forehead > Journal Yamamura Animation Interveiw [2011.09]

»DOMMUNE TALK LIVE : Yamamura Koji SPECIAL Talk about his new film Muybridge's Strings[2011.09.15]

Dayly Saizo Kurosaka Keita "MIDORI-KO" ×Yamamura Koji "Muybridge's Strings Open Commemorative Talk »Part 1 / »Part 2[2011.09. 16 -17]

Pia"Ito Satori and Movie's fellows"[2011.09. 15]

webDICE "»Short animations can be inspired from any trivial event in everyday life" Director Yamamura Koji i¥Interview[2011.09.17]

Animations creation & critics »Muybridge's Strings[ by Yamamura Koji 2011.09.20

Movie information intensive site [Cine soul]: WEB Town Okayama »Muybridge's Strings Director Yamamura Koji Interview [2012.02.28]

»Dialogue between two animation artists A dialogue about "Animation"~Skip city channel[2012.06]

Kodomo Eiga Plus >Column > Movie Work Book 2（»Part 1：2012.06.06 / »Part 2：2012.06.13）

Magazine: »Milk N°14 [2011.04.04]

»Bref 98 [2011.07 France]

Pict UP#72 [2011.09]

»Cinema Junpo　Semtember 2011№1593 [201.09.05]

»Geijutsu Shincho October 2011 [2011.09.24]

»Monthly MOE November 2011[2011.10.03]

TV: “Sunday Museum” Bruegel of Dreams: 10 Masterpieces, NHK[2010.02]

Koukou Kouza, Art, NHK Educational [2011.05]

»Takeshi Art☆Beat NNK BS [2011.07]

»Chikyu TV "El Mundo" NHK BS1[2011.08.23]

imagine-nation NHK international [2011.09.21]

A Child's Metaphysics (2007)

...Here we witness a prodigy of animation in which it is appropriate to speak of virtuosity. We do not know what is more admirable, if it is his evident talent for illustration or the level of animation, that which only a few reach and after many years of practice.
In fact, La metafísica de los niños is an exploration of the child's mind that stands out precisely because of the way he uses animation to illustrate it, since he proposes constant and imaginative metamorphoses that can only be carried out with an extraordinary mastery of the medium.
»2007: La metafísica de los niños (Kodomo no keijijougaku) | Animación para adultos | Ray Laguna | 2023 | Spain

Franz Kafka's A Country Doctor (2007)

»VIDAURRE-ARENAS, Carmen Vitaliana. Transtextuality in an Animated Film by Koji Yamamura.
Rev. filol. linguíst. Univ. Costa Rica [online]. 2022, vol.48, n.2, e50551. ISSN 2215-2628.

Like seeing psychology with a convex lens ...
Koji Yamamura, who has been producing fruitful plays of “Mt. Head”, “The Old Crocodile"” and absurd drama, challenged Kabuka Honmaru. It uses a convex lens called animation to show the psychology of a person that no one in the world has ever tried. (Kihachiro Kawamoto Animation Artist 2007)

In our minds reading good fantasy stories, things are getting bigger and smaller, frightening and humorous. Koji Yamamura's work tells us that while animation can really do a lot, we only saw a part of it. Humor and fear, beauty and grotesque, profoundness and lightness are intensely mixed for 20 minutes! (Motoyuki Shibata, Professor, Translator, University of Tokyo 2007)

Joy, enjoyment, and laughter do not always occupy life. The pain, duty, harsh reality and sadness are waiting. If you can't help it, how can you decide on a path that doesn't break and walk? Kafka probably knew on the cobblestones of Prague. When facing life, the frozen hands are connected. Hand to connect. The body temperature born there is transmitted from the video of Director Yamamura. (Hajime Kajiwara, Editor-in-Chief of CUKR, Czech Information Magazine 2007)

»Yurameki, Furueru Sekai by Doi obuaki »Animations creators & critics 2007

"Komik des passiven Körpers: Yamamura Kôji Animationsfilm Kafka - Ein Landarzt (2007)" [Kawashima Kentaro, Körperinszenierungen im japanischen Film 2016]

»Metamorphosis as Origin–Yamamura Koji’s Short Animation Franz Kafka’s A Country Doctor [Kawashima　Kentaro 2019]

The Old Crocodile (2005)

Everything about loneliness in life is documented here. With this one book, you can destroy all your philosophy books. (Fuyuji Aida "invitation" September issue)

The acting and camerawork are up to Yamamura's usual fluid standard, and, at 13 minutes, it's much too short. (by Taylor Jessen, Animation World Network, April 2005, USA) »All review

Chris Grove, Animation Magazine, July 2005, USA

A work that will always be drawn into the light crocodile appearance. (Pickt Up OCT+NOV 2005 Japan)

Koji Yamamura's latest work, "The Old Crocodile" is filled with such primitive charm of animation, backed by delicate technical skills. (Ichiyuki f*ckagawa "Esquire "Web Must See 2005 Japan)

"One book that touches the heart"（ "The Old Crocodile" Yamamura Koji）»Kodomo no Hon on the Web

"The acting and camerawork are up to Yamamura's usual fluid standard, and, at 13 minutes, it's much too short."
by Taylor Jessen, Animation World Network(April 2005 USA) »Read all reviews(AWN) »QuickTime Clip (AWN)

If you want or need an antidote to the often predictable formulas of Hollywood studios animated fare, look no further than Yamamura Kojis pencil-drawn film The Old Crocodile. by Chris Grove, ANIMATION MAGAZINE (July 2005, USA)

Cortometrajes de Koji Yamamura: Mount Heady The Old Crocodile
Jubei Kibagami 2021.05.07, El Armario Animado »Site

Mt. Head (2002)

The story that unfolds is surreal in nature, but the animation renders it quite riveting. »Nishikata Film Review

Unlike conventional anime where it comes to saving resources with images with very slow camera movements and limited animation, Yamamura animates every frame of his stories, and in addition to visual details, his stories do not present characters with superpowers or ancestral monsters, but they show a sad society with muted colors to indicate the lack of hope we have if we continue traveling along the same path. »ENFILME Cine Todo el Tiempo (Spanish)

The leading figure of his generation, Yamamura best represents the vitality, versatility and artistry of Japanese independent animation, andMt. Headrepresents a pivotal point in an oeuvre that has drawn comparisons with influences as disparate as Paul Klee and Monty Python, while remaining true to its cultural roots. The tale of a stingy old man who plunges into madness after tearing out a cherry tree he discovers growing from his head from a pip he has swallowed, it provided the perfect taster to the director’s witty and often grotesque meditations on time, space and identity.

»BFI

Upon first viewing Yamamura’s short, it initially seems to simply be a film focused on greed, but dig a little deeper and you’ll uncover various interpretations revolving around society and the environment. Combining wonderful technique, with a resonating, yet easily accessible story, it’s easy to see why Atama Yama has become a firm-favourite for many short film fans who have been lucky enough to see it on the festival scene. »FANTASY ABOUT TRANSFORMATION IN ANIMATION DIRECTED BY KOJI YAMAMURA: Rob Munday

Cortometrajes de Koji Yamamura: Mount Head y The Old Crocodile
Jubei Kibagami 2021.05.07, El Armario Animado »Site

(1992)

"Keep it in Motion - Classic Animation Revisited: the Karo and Piyobupt trilogy" （By Chris Robinson, January 5, 2017, AWM.com）»Site
Koji Yamamura’s informal Karo and Pyrobupt trilogy(A House,Imagination,Sandwiches, 1992) celebrates the magnificence of the mundane, the beauty of the moment. There is no past or future in their world. In a fever of scattered senses, Karo and Pyrobupt embrace, breathe, smile and cry the moment. It’s in these small moments that we find the essence of our lives. To live in the moment is to savour each morsel. No matter how seemingly insignificant, the crumbs make the person.
In this world, life is sacred. Every ounce is consumed and enjoyed. Life is pleasure. Pleasure comes from those individual moments. Karo and Pyrobupt are the anti-Vladimir and Estragon. They await no one. They embrace the moment. InA House, they build a house together before winter approaches. InImagination, they use their imagination to forget about a rainy day. Friendship. Collaboration. Communication. Imagination. Satisfaction. That’s it. That’s all. Life shared. Life loved.
In the world of the child, the mundane is as significant as the spiritual. Children see the greatness in little things. They don’t worry about the end or the deed, existing only for the process. The completing not the completion.
Yamamura unearths the forgotten spaces, the cracks, gaps, and out-of-frame moments that embody the essence of adult and child. The unframed memories breathed as the irrevocable instant of a child.