Noted Scriptwriter Shinobu Hashimoto Dies at 100

July 22, 2018

Tokyo- Shinobu Hashimoto, a scriptwriter known for his works with Akira Kurosawa and other prominent directors, died of pneumonia at his home in Tokyo Thursday morning. He was 100.

After studying under director and scriptwriter Mansaku Itami, Hashimoto, a native of Hyogo Prefecture, western Japan, made a debut in 1950 as scriptwriter for "Rashomon," a Kurosawa movie that won the Golden Lion prize at the Venice International Film Festival in 1951.

He also worked on other Kurosawa movies, including "Ikiru" and "Shichinin no Samurai" (Seven Samurai).

Hashimoto wrote scripts for well-known movies by other directors as well. Among them were "Mahiru no Ankoku" by Tadashi Imai, "Kiri no Hata" by Yoji Yamada, "Nihon no Ichiban Nagai Hi" (Japan's Longest Day) by Kihachi Okamoto, "Nippon Chinbotsu" and "Hakkodasan" by Shiro Moritani and "Suna no Utsuwa" by Yoshitaro Nomura.

He also wrote scripts for "Watashi wa Kai ni Naritai," a 1958 television drama about a former Japanese soldier who was executed as a war criminal. Hashimoto made the acclaimed drama into a movie, which he directed himself. Jiji Press