Those Who Make Tomorrow
Those Who Make Tomorrow (明日を創る人々, Asu o tsukuru hitobito) is a 1946 Japanese film directed by Akira Kurosawa, Hideo Sekigawa and Kajirō Yamamoto (who was also co-writer). It was produced to illustrate the purpose of the workers' union at the Toho film studios, as the Allied Forces endorsed the formation of unions as part of the democratisation process during the post-World War II Occupation of Japan. Kurosawa later denounced the film, calling it "a committee-made film" in which he had been involved only one week,[2] and refused to mention it in his autobiography.[3][4] Toho's studio stars Hideko Takamine and Susumu Fujita appear playing themselves.
| Those Who Make Tomorrow | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Akira Kurosawa Hideo Sekigawa Kajirō Yamamoto |
| Written by | Yusaku Yamagata Kajirō Yamamoto |
| Produced by | Keiji Matsuzaki Sōjirō Motoki Ryo Takei Tomoyuki Tanaka |
| Starring | Susumu Fujita Hideko Takamine |
| Cinematography | Takeo Itō Taiichi Kankura Mitsuo Miura |
| Music by | Noboru Itō |
| Distributed by | Toho |
Release date |
|
Running time | 82 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
Plot
The sisters Chieko, a script girl working at a big film studio, and Aiko, a revue dancer, are daughters to anti-unionist father Gintarō. When the workers at a railway company, including the family's subtenant Seizo, go on strike, Chieko and her co-workers demonstrate their solidarity and call for strike as well to achieve financial security for the film studio's staff. Meanwhile, Aiko and her dancing troupe decide to get organised in opposition to the theatre's mean stage manager. When Gintarō is fired together with a large group of employees at his company, he finally gives up his reluctance and joins the unionists, impressed by their earnestness.
Cast
- Susumu Fujita – Fujita
- Hideko Takamine – Takamine
- Kenji Susukida – Gintarō Okamoto, father
- Masayuki Mori – Seizō Hori, chauffeur
- Chieko Takehisa – Kin Okamoto, mother
- Takashi Shimura – Theatre manager
- Yonosuke Toba – Okamoto's colleague
- Masao Shimizu – Section chief
- Hyō Kitazawa – Director
- Chieko Nakakita – Yoshiko
- Mitsue Tashibana – Aiko
Legacy
Those Who Make Tomorrow was screened as part of a retrospective on actress Hideko Takamine by the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo in 2004.[5]
References
- "明日を創る人々". Kinenote (in Japanese). Retrieved 17 June 2023.
- Richie, Donald; Mellen, Joan (1998). The Films of Akira Kurosawa (Third ed.). Berkeley, Los Angeles and London: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-220379.
- Anderson, Joseph L.; Richie, Donald (1959). The Japanese Film – Art & Industry. Rutland, Vermont and Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle Company.
- Hirano, Kyoko (1992). Mr. Smith Goes to Tokyo: Japanese Cinema Under the American Occupation, 1945–1952. Washington and London: Smithsonian Institution Press. ISBN 1-56098-157-1.
- "映画女優 高峰秀子(1) – Hideko Takamine Retrospective [Part 1]". National Film Center (in Japanese). Retrieved 17 June 2023.
External links
- Those Who Make Tomorrow at IMDb
- Those Who Make Tomorrow at AllMovie
- Those Who Make Tomorrow at the Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese)