Akiko Koyama (小山 明子, Koyama Akiko, born 25 January 1935) is a Japanese stage and film actress who appeared in over 80 films,[1] many directed by her husband Nagisa Ōshima.[2][3][4]

Akiko Koyama
Born
Akiko Usui

(1935-01-25) 25 January 1935 (age 89)
OccupationActress
Years active1955–present
Spouse
(m. 1960; died 2013)
Children2
Awards

Biography

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Koyama was born Akiko Usui in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture as the youngest of six children.[2] She graduated from Kanagawa Prefectural Tsurumi High School in 1953 and entered a dressmaking school to study fashion design.[2] After appearing on the cover of Katei Yomiuri magazine, she received an offer by the Shochiku film studios, where she gave her screen debut in 1955.[2] In 1960, she married film director Nagisa Ōshima and left Shochiku with him, becoming a co-founder of the independent film company Sozosha which produced Ōshima's subsequent films and in which she regularly starred.[2] In the 1980s, she switched from film to television work, while still appearing on stage.[2] Koyama temporarily retired from acting after Ōshima's collapse from a cerebral hemorrhage in 1996 to nurse her husband.[2] She and Ōshima, who died in 2013, had two sons.[3] In recent years, she has been active as a lecturer and essayist on the subject of nursing care.[2]

Selected filmography

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Awards

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References

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  1. ^ "小山 明子". Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese). Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "小山 明子". Kinenote (in Japanese). Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  3. ^ a b "In the realms of true love and devotion, few could fault Akiko Koyama". The Japan Times. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  4. ^ Rosenbaum, Jonathan (15 October 2010). Goodbye Cinema, Hello Cinephilia: Film Culture in Transition. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226726656. Archived from the original on 19 October 2018. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  5. ^ "毎日映画コンクール 第24回(1969年)". Mainichi (in Japanese). Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  6. ^ "第44回日本アカデミー賞". Japan Academy Film Prize (in Japanese). Retrieved 9 August 2023.
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