Yosuke Nakagawa Japanese Film Director and Screenwriter

Yosuke Nakagawa is a Japanese film director and screenwriter born in 1961. Raised in Tokyo, he is the grandson of the renowned painter Kazumasa Nakagawa. Following his university graduation, he initially worked for a publishing company as a magazine editor before transitioning into video and film projects.

Directorial Career

Nakagawa made his feature-length directorial and screenwriting debut in 1997 with Blue Fish, set in Okinawa. The film was selected as an official entry for the 1998 Berlin International Film Festival, garnering international attention for its cinematography and lighting design.

In 2000, he directed and wrote Departure. The screenplay earned the Sundance/NHK International Filmmakers Award. The finished film received recognition at the Berlin International Film Festival, won awards at the Akita Jumonji Film Festival, and saw theatrical distribution across several European territories prior to its Japanese release.

His subsequent works include Starlit High Noon (2003), featuring a cast that included Wang Lee-Hom, Kyoka Suzuki, and Yu Kashii, which screened at multiple international film festivals. He also directed and wrote Cobalt Blue (2009).