Katsuhito Ishii
Born: 1966-12-31 in Niigata, Japan
Known For: Directing
Biography
Katsuhito Ishii is a Japanese film director. After graduating from Musashino Art University, Katsuhito Ishii got a job at Tohokushinsha Film and began directing commercials in 1992, receiving numerous awards in this field. His first short film The Promise of August, shot in 1995, went on to receive the Japanese Film Grand Prix in the Fantastic Video Section of the 1995 Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival. He made his feature debut with Shark Skin Man and Peach Hip Girl, based on the visual novel by cult manga artist Minetaro Mochizuki and starring regular collaborator Tadanobu Asano. Ishii quickly followed his success with another box office hit, Party 7 (2000), which featured Masatoshi Nagase, Yoshio Harada and Tadanobu Asano among others. Between the years 2001 and 2002, he created a series of short films including the 3D animated dialogue piece Hal & Bons and the 2D animated space opera Trava Fist Planet. Among other commercials and select TV projects including the short Black Room which starred Takuya Kimura, and Music Power Go Go!, He collaborated with Production I.G for the animation sequence of Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill: Volume 1. In 2004, his fourth feature film The Taste of Tea won Best Feature Film at the Hawaii International Film Festival. In 2006, he co-directed the feature film Funky Forest with fellow Japanese film makers and old school friends Shunichiro Miki and ANIKI. He founded his own production company, Nice Rainbow, in October 2006.
Filmography
2025
- Tales of the Bizarre: 35th Anniversary Special ... (Director)
- LUPIN THE IIIRD: Zenigata and the Two Lupins ... (Creative Director)
- Lupin the IIIRD: The Movie - The Immortal Bloodline ... (Creative Consultant)
2022
- Norioka Workshop ... (Director)
2015
- Gamera ... (Director)
2014
- Hello! Junichi ... (Director)
2013
- GAMBO ... (Creative Director)
- Short Peace ... (Screenplay)
- Tales of the Bizarre: 2013 Autumn Special ... (Director)
- SHORT PEACE ... (Original Series Design)
2011
- Smuggler ... (Director)
2009
- Redline ... (Background Designer)
2008
- My Darling of the Mountains ... (Director)
- Sorasoi ... (Director)
2007
- Hokuro Kyodai Full Throttle!!!! ... (Director)
2005
- Funky Forest: The First Contact ... (Director)
2004
- The Taste of Tea ... (Director)
- Cutie Honey
2003
- Kill Bill: Vol. 1 ... (Animation Director)
2002
- Frog River ... (Story)
- Trava: Fist Planet ... (Writer)
- Hal & Bons as Hal (voice)
2001
- Tales of the Bizarre: SMAP Special ... (Director)
- Smap Short Films ... (Director)
2000
- Party 7 ... (Director)
1999
- Shark Skin Man and Peach Hip Girl ... (Director)
1995
- Promise of August ... (Director)
1990
- Yonimo Kimyou na Monogatari Tokubetsuhen ... (Director)