Japanese Art Animation Film Collection: 12 Volume Set
In 2004,
Kinokuniya released an amazing 12 volume DVD set of early Japanese animation
from the pre-war period to the late 1970s.
The DVDs feature the works of early animation pioneers including Noburō Ōfuji, Kenzō Masaoka, Mitsuyo Seo,
Ryūichi Yokoyama, and Tadahito Mochinaga. In addition, many rare experimental and
puppet films of the 1960s and 70s are featured on the discs, including the
works of the Animation Group of Three (Yōji
Kuri et al.) and their peers, and the puppet animation masters Tadanari Okamoto and Kihachirō Kawamoto. While some of these works appear on other
compilations, the vast majority of the films on these discs had never been
released before in 2004, and many continue to be difficult to find.
Although
this amazing compilation would be of interest to animation scholars the cost is very prohibitive. Unfortunately,
the discs are not available individually so unless you can afford the approx. ¥350,000
price tag (2,400€ / $3,000) I would advise watching the films at a university archive
(ie. Musabi
and Tamagawa).
Those with deep pockets can order the
DVD set via Kinokuniya
(JP only, no subs).
Update: Prof. Aaron Gerow of Yale University has sent me a World Cat link to institutions in the USA that have this DVD collection in their archives. Kōji Yamamura has also informed me that for those who can afford it, the DVD collection is stocked by his store / gallery Au Praxinoscope.
Using an announcement
of a screening of the DVDs over at Web Anime Style (JP)
back in 2004, I have translated the DVD contents and added dates to the movies:
1)大藤信郎傑作選 / Noburō Ōfuji Works
The Burglars
of Baghdad Castle (1926), Saiyūki: Songoku Monogatari (1926), Mikansen (1927),
Black Cat (1931), Kogane no Hana (1929), The Village Festival (1930), Kokoro no
Chikara (1931), Song of Spring (1931), Numa no Taisho (1933), Kareu san yūshi
(1928), Hyotei and Heibei's Tengu Hunt (1934), Chinkoroheibei and the Treasure
Box (1936), Dream of a Snowy Night (1947), Dangobetorimonocho hirakegomano maki
(1952), Flower and Butterfly (1954)
『馬具田城の盗賊』『西遊記 孫悟空物語』『みかん船』『黒ニャゴ』『こがねの花』『村祭』『心の力』『春の唄』『沼の大将』『蛙三勇士』『天狗退治』『ちんころ平平玉手箱』『蜘蛛の糸』『雪の夜の夢』『団子兵衛捕物帖 開けーゴマの巻』『花と蝶』
2)政岡憲三とそのグループ / Kenzō
Masaoka and his Group
Nonsense
Story (1931), The Story of the Chagama Family (1934), Benkei vs. Ushiwaka
(1939), Spring Fantasy (1946), Tora-chan_ The Abandoned Kitten (1947),
Tora-chan and the Bride (1948), The New Battle of Monkey and Crab (1936), The
Sparrow’s Inn (1936)
『難船ス物語 第壱篇 猿が島』『茶釜音頭』『べんけい対ウシワカ』『桜』『すて猫トラちゃん』『トラちゃんと花嫁』『新猿蟹合戦』『雀のお宿』
3)瀬尾光世作品集 / Mitsuyo Seo Works
Sankichi the
Monkey: The Storm Troopers (1934), Genroku Koimoyou: Sankichi to Osayo (1934), Private
Norakuro (1935), Tiny Chibisuke's Big Adventure (1935), Tekusuke Monogatari
(1938), Ahiru Rikusentai (1941), Ari-chan the Ant (1941)
『お猿の三吉 突撃隊』『元禄恋模様 三吉とおさよ』『のらくろ二等兵』『のらくろ一等兵』『一寸法師 ちびすけ物語』『テク助物語』『あひる陸戦隊』『アリチャン』
4)戦前傑作選 / Pre-War
Masterpieces
Kanimanji
Engi (Hidehiko Okuda/ Hakusan Kimura / Tomu Uchida, 1924); Zenjirō aka Sanae Yamamoto’s The Tortoise and the Hare (1924) and Mountain
Where Old Women are Abandoned (1923); 2 shorts by Hakusan Kimura, Yasuji Murata’s Our Baseball Match (1930),
Manga: Osaru no tairyo (1933), Kiyoji Nishikura’s
A Day in the Life of Chameko (1931), Akira
Iwasaki’s Three Little Bears (1931), Ikuo
Ōishi’s Ugokie kori no tatehiki (1933), Yoshitarō Kataoka’s Danemon's Monster Hunt at Shojoji (1935), Wagoro Arai’s Madame Butterfly’s
Fantasy (1940)
奥田秀彦・木村角山・内田吐夢『蟹満寺縁起』、山本早苗『兎と亀』『日本一 桃太郎』、木村白山『塩原多助』『御国の為に』、村田安司『おいらの野球』『お猿の大漁』、西倉喜代治『茶目子の一日』、岩崎昶(村山籌子・知義)『三匹の小熊さん』、大石郁雄『動絵狐狸達引』、片岡芳太郎『塙団右衛門 證城寺の狸囃子』、荒井和五郎『お蝶夫人の幻想』
5)戦中期篇 Wartime Films
Mototaro’s
Sea Eagles (Mitsuyo Seo, 1942), The Battle of the Malay Sea (Noburō Ōfuji,
1943), Fukuchan’s Submarine (Ryūichi Yokoyama, 1944)
瀬尾光世『桃太郎の海鷲』、大藤信郎『マレー沖海戦』、横山隆一『フクチャンの潜水艦』
6)戦後・現代前傑作選 Post-War
Works
A Magic Pen
(Masao Kumakawa, 1946), Muku no ki no hanashi (Shōji Maruyama, 1947), Once Upon
a Beer (Tadasu Iizawa, 1956), Plus 50,000 Years (Shin’ichi Suzuki, 1961),
Tasukeai no rekishi (Gisaburō Sugii, 1976), Tenguri, Boy of the Plains (Yasuo
Ōtsuka, 1977), The Wild Rose
(Katsuo Takahashi, 1976)
熊川正雄 『魔法のペン』、丸山章治 『ムクの木の話』、飯沢匡 『ビールむかしむかし』、鈴木伸一『プラス50000年』、杉井ギサブロー『たすけあいの歴史』、大塚康生『草原の子テングリ』、高橋克雄『野ばら』
7)持永只仁作品集 The Works of Tadahito Mochinaga
The Melon
Princess and the Amanojaku (1956), Five Little Monkeys (1956), Fushigina Taiko
(1957), Kobutori (1957), Bunbuku Chagama (1958), Ousama ni natta Kitsune (1959)
『瓜子姫とあまのじゃく』『五匹の子猿たち』『ふしぎな太鼓』『こぶとり』『ぶんぶくちゃがま』『王さまになったきつね』
8)横山隆一作品集 / The Works of Ryūichi Yokoyama
Fukusuke
(1957), Hyōtan Suzume (1959), 50,000 Insects (12 episodes)
『ふくすけ』『ひょうたんすずめ』『五万匹傑作選(全12話収録)』
9)東映アニメとその流れ / Developments at Toei Anime
Kappa
Kawatarō (Taiji Yabushita, 1954), Kuroi Kikori to Shiroi Kikori (Taiji
Yabushita, 1956), Kitty’s Graffiti (Taiji Yabushita, 1957), Kitty’s Studio (Yasuji
Mori, 1959), Yumemi Dōji (Kōji Fukiya, 1954),
The Mouse Marries (Daisaku Shirakawa / Sadao Tsukioka, 1961),
Ikiteirutte Subarashii! (Kimio Yabuki, 1972)
薮下泰司 『かっぱ川太郎』『黒いきこりと白いきこり』 『こねこのらくがき』、森やすじ 『こねこのスタジオ』、蕗谷虹児『夢見童子』、白川大作・月岡貞夫『ねずみのよめいり』、矢吹公郎『生きているってすばらしい!』
10)学研の仕事 / Educational Works
Poron Guitar
(Takehiro Ono, 1959), Kazuhiko Watanabe’s films: The Town Mouse and the Country
Mouse (1959), Kaguya Hime (1961), The Jataka Tale of the Golden Deer (1962), The
Tale of the Crane (1965), The Little Match Girl (1967)
小野豪『ポロンギター』、渡辺和彦 『いなかねずみとまちねずみ』『かぐや姫』『ジャータカ物語 きんいろのしか』『つるのおんがえし』『マッチ売りの少女』
11)アニメーション三人の会と実験アニメ / Animation Group of Three and
Experimental Anime
Animation Group of Three: Yōji Kuri’s
Fashion (1960), Kiseki (1963), Man and Woman and Dog (1963), Samurai (1965),
Flower (1967); Ryohei Yanagihara’s
Commotion at Ikedaya (1961), Two Samurai (1963), and M.S. Chanda (1964); and Hiroshi Manabe’s Time (1963), Submarine
Cassiopeia (1964), Chase (1966)
Experimental
Anime: Nobuhiro Aihara’s Stone
(1975) and Karma (1977); Tatsuo
Shimamura’s Illusion City (1967) and Transparent Man (1969), Shin’ichi Suzuki’s The Gourd Bottle
(1976) and Dot (1971); Sadao Tsukioka’s
The Creation (1970), The Colour of Sal Tree Blossoms (1971); Seiichi Hayashi’s Shadow (1967) and Oni
Love Song (1971); Taku Furukawa’s
Phenakistoscope (1975) and Coffee Break (1977)
久里洋二『FASHION』『軌跡』『Man and Woman and Dog』『SAMURAI 侍』『FLOWER』、柳原良平『池田屋騒動』『両人侍誉皮切』『M.S.CHANDA』、真鍋博『時間』『潜水艦カシオペア』『追跡』、相原信洋『STONE』『カルマ』、島村達雄『幻影都市』『透明人間』、鈴木伸一『ひょうたん』『点』、月岡貞夫『新・天地創造』『裟羅双樹の花の色』、林静一『かげ』『鬼恋歌』、古川タク『驚き盤』『コーヒーブレーク』
12)パペットアニメーショウ / Puppet Anime-Show
Tadanari Okamoto’s Chikotan (1971), Five Small
Stories (1974), The Strong Bridge
(1976), Kihachirō Kawamoto’s The Breaking of Branches is Forbidden
(1968), Tabi (1973), House of Flame (1979)
岡本忠成『チコタン ぼくのおよめさん』『小さな五つのお話』『ちからばし』、川本喜八郎『花折り』『旅』『火宅』