Ryutaro Takagi

Minamata — These 30 Years

A record of the stories of patients suffering from Minamata disease, 30 years after its discovery

Message from Minamata to the World

An update to the story of Minamata disease, going up to 1976

The Shiranui Sea

The sea around Minamata was heavily polluted with mercury during the 1950s and 1960s from the Chisso Corporation's chemical factory. This highly toxic chemical bioaccumulated in shellfish and fish in the Yatsushiro Sea which, when eaten by the local populace, gave rise to Minamata disease. The disease was responsible for the deaths and disabling of thousands of residents, all around the Yatsushiro Sea. The marine ecosystem was also extensively damaged.

Minamata Revolt: A People's Quest for Life

Second film in Tsuchimoto's series on Minamata disease - the victims of Minamata disease negotiate directly with Chisso Corporation (responsible for dumping toxic water into Minamata Bay) for life-long medical care and compensation.

Minamata: The Victims and Their World

The first in a series of independent documentaries that Tsuchimoto made of the mercury poisoning incident in Minamata, Japan.

The Gentle Japanese

A survivor of the tragic mass suicides on Tokashiki Island in 1945 falls in love with a near-mute motorcycle engineer.

Okinawa Islands

A film documenting life in Okinawa under the domination of American military bases