Akiko Koyama
Japanese actress (born 1935)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Akiko Koyama (小山 明子, Koyama Akiko; born 27 January 1935) is a Japanese stage and film actress who appeared in over 80 films,[1] many directed by her husband Nagisa Ōshima.[2][3][4]
27 January 1935
Akiko Koyama | |
|---|---|
In 1958 | |
| Born | Akiko Usui 27 January 1935 Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, Japan |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1955–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | |
Biography
Koyama was born Akiko Usui in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture as the youngest of six children.[2] She graduated from Kanagawa Prefectural Tsurumi High School in 1953 and entered a dressmaking school to study fashion design.[2] After appearing on the cover of Katei Yomiuri magazine, she received an offer by the Shochiku film studios, where she gave her screen debut in 1955.[2] In 1960, she married film director Nagisa Ōshima and left Shochiku with him, becoming a co-founder of the independent film company Sozosha which produced Ōshima's subsequent films and in which she regularly starred.[2] In the 1980s, she switched from film to television work, while still appearing on stage.[2] Koyama temporarily retired from acting after Ōshima's collapse from a cerebral hemorrhage in 1996 to nurse her husband.[2] She and Ōshima, who died in 2013, had two sons.[3] In recent years, she has been active as a lecturer and essayist on the subject of nursing care.[2]
Selected filmography
- Night and Fog in Japan (1960)
- The Catch (1961)
- Violence at Noon (1966)
- Death by Hanging (1968)
- Boy (1969)
- The Ceremony (1971)
- Wandering Ginza Butterfly (1972)
- Dear Summer Sister (1972)
- Karate Warriors (1976)
- In the Realm of the Senses (1976)
- Empire of Passion (1978)
Awards
- 1969 Mainichi Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for Boy[5]
- Special Award from the Chairman at the 2001 44th Japan Academy Film Prize ceremony[6]
