
Kōichi Saitō
Biography
Kōichi Saitō (斎藤 耕一 Saitō Kōichi, 3 February 1929 – 28 November 2009) was a Japanese film director and photographer. Born in Tokyo, Saitō started studying at Rikkyo University but ended up graduating from the Tokyo College of Photography (currently Tokyo Polytechnic University). He was initially a movie stills photographer at Nikkatsu before launching his own production company, Saito Productions, and directing his first film, Tsubuyaki no Jō, "a low-budget, independent film with a visual flair that earned comparisons with Claude Lelouch and with Richard Lester’s Beatles films, including A Hard Day’s Night". Some of his first films were youth movies featuring Group Sounds music. He came to prominence in the early 1970s with a series of movies about young people escaping to or searching for their identity in the countryside. He won the best director award at the 1972 Mainichi Film Awards. His Tsugaru jongarabushi was selected the best film of 1973 in the Kinema Junpo poll of critics. Saitō continued directing into his seventies and also made some documentaries. He was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun (4th Class, Gold Rays with Rosette) in 2000.
Directing (32 movies)

Little Snack
1968

Frozen River
1976

Jesus is My Boss
2001

Tsugaru Folksong
1973

The Rendezvous
1972

Journey Into Solitude
1972

Whispering Joe
1967

Shadow of Deception
1971

The Homeless
1974
The S.S. Happiness Sets Sail
1980

Onigiri: Arcadia monogatari
2004

Hotel Rose
1996

Bokyo
1993

The Blue Mountains '88
1988

Ningen no sabaku
1990

Takehisa Yumeji monogatari: koi suru
1975

Seasonal Wind
1977

Kigeki: koko kara hajimaru monogatari
1973

Kigeki: Hanayome sensô
1971

Someday, Somewhere
1975

Memai
1971

Tabiji: ofukuro-san yori
1971

The Wonderful Ones
1968

The Tide Does Not Return
1969

Waterfront Blues
1970

Aisuru ashita
1969

Second Chance
1973

Rainbow Over Paris
1970

Aspiration
1977

Invitation from the Beach
1978

Fallen Leaves and Sweet Memories
1969

Rose Buds in the Rainbow
1968
| Title | Year | Job | 
|---|---|---|
| The School Cap | 1963 | Writer | 
| Only on Mondays | 1964 | Writer | 
| Whispering Joe | 1967 | Writer | 
| Falling Blossoms | 1967 | Screenplay | 
| Fallen Leaves and Sweet Memories | 1969 | Screenplay | 
| Aisuru ashita | 1969 | Screenplay | 
| Rainbow Over Paris | 1970 | Screenplay | 
| Tabiji: ofukuro-san yori | 1971 | Screenplay | 
| Kigeki: Hanayome sensô | 1971 | Screenplay | 
| Tsugaru Folksong | 1973 | Writer | 
| Someday, Somewhere | 1975 | Screenplay | 
| Invitation from the Beach | 1978 | Screenplay | 
| The Adventures of Kosuke Kindaichi | 1979 | Writer | 
| Jesus is My Boss | 2001 | Writer | 
| Onigiri: Arcadia monogatari | 2004 | Writer |