Noriaki Yuasa was a Japanese director, known for directing many Ultraman Series episodes during the Showa era.
Career[]
In 1957, Yuasa joined the Director’s Department at Daiei Film’s Tokyo Studio, making his directorial debut in 1964. In 1965, he directed Gamera, the Giant Monster. This marked the beginning of his work on the Gamera series, which would go on to become a popular franchise.[1]
Following Daiei’s bankruptcy in 1971, Yuasa transitioned to television. He primarily focused on directing TV dramas and, in 1980, directed Tsuburaya Productions’ series Ultraman 80. Notably, he had been approached in 1971 to direct Mirror Man, but the project did not come to fruition. For Ultraman 80, Yuasa was involved in discussions from the planning stages.
Death[]
On June 14, 2004, Yuasa passed away from a cerebral infarction at the age of 70. His funeral was a private ceremony attended only by close family members.[2]
Works[]
- Ultraman 80 (1980-1981) - Director, 22 episodes
- Episode 1 "Ultraman Teacher"
- Episode 2 "The Teacher's Secret"
- Episode 5 "Streets of Illusion"
- Episode 6 "Boy from the Stars"
- Episode 8 "Revival of a Legend"
- Episode 9 "Airport Emergency"
- Episode 10 "The Visitor from Space"
- Episode 13 "Formation Yamato"
- Episode 14 "Teleportation! The Man From Paris"
- Episode 17 "Flight to the Eerie Monster Island Part 1"
- Episode 18 "Flight to the Eerie Monster Island Part 2"
- Episode 21 "Shine for Eternity! Space GMan 85"
- Episode 22 "When the Planets Make a Line, Something Will Happen"
- Episode 25 "Beautiful Challenger"
- Episode 26 "Shadow Warriors in the Time Tunnel"
- Episode 29 "Wrath of the Emperor"
- Episode 30 "Lost Friend in the Desert"
- Episode 33 "The Boy-Made Monster"
- Episode 34 "I Caught a Strange Fish"
- Episode 39 "I Am the Monster"
- Episode 40 "The Mountain Sumo Boy"
- Episode 43 "The Female Warrior of Ultra"
- Episode 44 "Duel! 80 vs Seven"
- Anime-chan (1984) - Director[3]
Other Works[]
- Gamera the Giant Monster (1965)
- Gamera vs. Barugon (1966)
- Gamera vs. Gyaos (1967)
- Gamera vs. Viras (1968)
- Gamera vs. Guiron (1969)
- Gamera vs. Jiger (1970)
- Gamera vs. Zigra (1971)
- Gamera, Super Monster (1980)
References[]