Born in 1935 in Aomori,  Shūji Terayama was a poet, playwright, novelist, filmmaker and photographer.  He was among the most broadly influential and innovative figures active in the post-WWII Japanese avant-garde.  In 1969, he formed an experimental theatrical troupe Tenjō Sajiki, which won critical acclaim and toured internationally. On the cinematic front, Terayama was a revolutionary pioneer.  He frequently placed autobiographical influences within his surreal and fragmented films, while his films and dramas were often interconnected, forming an eerie and imaginary world filled with dreams of erotic fantasy and escape. Terayama published almost 200 literary works and over 20 short and full-length films. He passed away in May 1983 at the age of 47.

The Cage

This film was made in a very early stage of Japanese experimental film development. Characters illustrated are all discarded from reality.  Composed of a series of experimental symbols, such as a woman dancing fetishistically, a man keeps on knocking the steel door of Dante’s hell gate, clock and goat flow from one scene to another, filmed materials are made into collage, exploring the question of whether a man is a prisoner of time.

Director / TERAYAMA Shuji
Japan / 1964 / 11’48 / 16mm

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Butterfly

The concept of this film is inspired by a haiku written by Shūji Terayama: “At the eye patch, a dead butterfly thus crosses mountains and rivers”, combining with his idea of creating a “film of disturbance” to overcome the passivity of the average audience.  The film invites the spectator to different interpretations, where their roles change from passive viewers to active agents, confusing the “subject” and the “object” of voyeurism.

Director / TERAYAMA Shuji
Japan / 1974 / 12’40 / 16mm

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A Tale of Smallpox

The relation between the close-up of a boy’s bandaged face and a snail that traverses across the screen is illustrated almost as a dermatitis.  Terayama attempts to compare the film image to the skin, to shave, cut, crack and wash the image to represent the itchiness and discomfort associated with the skin diseases.

Director / TERAYAMA Shuji
Japan / 1975 / 32’18 / 16mm

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The Eraser

Saturated with dreamy images of lapping Pacific waves, The Eraser is a poetic portrayal of a vague relationship between a woman and a naval officer. Visions of the characters, however, are erased by the filmmaker’s hand.  Terayama claimed that this is an attempt at “the film with stain” and also to realize images which can be erased with a rubber. He was attracted by the very fact that even the greatest philosophy can be erased by a piece of rubber.

Director / TERAYAMA Shuji
Japan / 1975 / 32’18 / 16mm

Cannes Film Festival: (Directors’ Fortnight) (1968)
Melbourne Film Festival (1969)