Yamada Yoji to receive Lifetime Achievement Award at Tokyo Film Festival

Japanese cinema legend Yamada Yoji will be honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 38th Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF), celebrating a storied career spanning over six decades and 91 films.

The festival will also screen Yamada's latest film, "Tokyo Taxi", starring Baisho Chieko and Kimura Takuya. Adapted from the 2023 French hit "Driving Madeleine", the film will serve as TIFF's official centrepiece before its nationwide release on November 21. Yamada will appear at a special talk session alongside "Kokuho" director Lee Sang-il at the TIFF Lounge.

As part of this year's honours, acclaimed Japanese actress Yoshinaga Sayuri will also receive a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Since his debut with "Nikai no tanin" in 1961, Yamada has chronicled the subtleties of Japanese life through films that balance humour, melancholy, and social insight. His beloved "Tora-san" series ("Tora-san, Our Lovable Tramp"), which ran from 1969 across 50 installments, remains a cornerstone of Japanese cinema and holds a Guinness World Record for the longest-running film series with the same lead actor.

Transitioning into period dramas in the 2000s, Yamada found renewed acclaim with "The Twilight Samurai" (2002), which swept 15 Japan Academy Film Prizes and earned an Oscar nomination. "The Hidden Blade" (2004) competed at Berlin, while "The Little House" (2014) won the Silver Bear at the Berlinale. His more recent works include "Tora-san, Wish You Were Here" (2019), "It's a Flickering Life" (2021), and "Mom, Is That You?!" (2023).

"Yamada Yoji has long portrayed Japan's evolving society with empathy and precision, transforming everyday realities into timeless cinema," said TIFF chair Ando Hiroyasu. He also highlighted Yamada's enduring contributions to the festival and his leadership as chair of the Kurosawa Akira Award Jury.

A cultural icon, Yamada has received some of Japan's highest honours, including the Order of Culture (2012), recognition as a Person of Cultural Merit (2004), and designation as an Honorary Citizen of Tokyo (2014).

The 38th Tokyo International Film Festival will take place from October 27 to November 5 in the Hibiya-Yurakucho-Marunouchi-Ginza district.