Kōhei Oguri

Born in Gunma, Oguri first became a freelance assistant director after graduating from Waseda University. He made his directorial debut in 1981 with Muddy River, which earned him both a Japan Academy Prize for Director of the Year and a citation in the Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award. Muddy River was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and won the Silver Prize at the 12th Moscow International Film Festival. In 1985 he was a member of the jury at the 14th Moscow International Film Festival. His film The Sting of Death won the Grand Prize of the Jury at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival. He has also authored several books.