- Born
- Died
- Jun Fukuda would spend his childhood in Manchuria before attending Nihon University College of Art. His interests would lead him to filmmaking and in 1946 he joined Toho as an assistant director. In his tenure as an assistant director, he would work under filmmakers such as Hiroshi Inagaki and Ishirō Honda, leading to his first work in special effects filmmaking with Rodan (1956). His career as a full-fledged director would take off in 1959. His early work leaned more towards mystery but he began to expand into more action and comedic centric works by the mid-1960s. Around this time, Toho gave Fukuda the opportunity to direct a Godzilla film. Beginning with Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966), Fukuda would become Toho's go to director for special effects films after Ishiro Honda. Fukuda's films would develop a unique identity beginning with his his choice to replace series composer Akira Ifukube with Masaru Satō. His films would be full of colorful characters and vibrant action demonstrating his filmmaking craftsmanship. During his career he would direct five Godzilla films, along with espionage films and comedies. He would also write the un-produced screenplays of The Invisible Man and Invisible Man vs. the Human Torch. While Fukuda was known to harbor a disdain for his work, he would seem to develop an understanding of what his work met to people as fans would send him letters and messages during his final years. Fukuda would passed away from lung cancer on December 3, 2000, at the age of 77.
- IMDb mini biography by: InfoMon
- In the West, he's most well known as a prolific director of Godzilla movies. However he expressed a very harsh opinion of these films, describing how it felt like opening up an old wound when Toho provided him a VHS copy of one of his Godzilla films. He was never fond of making them, preferring to instead focus on general youth-oriented action, comedy and drama movies. He lambasted the series for the increased focus on monsters and held the opinion that there should have never been any sequels to the original Godzilla (1954). Despite this, he considered it a pleasant surprise to learn that many people have cherished his Godzilla movies from their childhood.
- Worked on documentary films in the late 1990s.
- Co-wrote a sequel to The Secret of the Telegian (1960): "Transparent Man vs The Flame Man," although the original was not successful. The film was never made.
- Japanese director of monster (particularly 'Godzilla') movies, who started his career at Toho in 1946.
- I don't think that any sequels to the first Godzilla movie should have been made.
- I did something like five Godzilla films. The monsters became the stars, and the human characters were put into the background. The human story was cut down. The original one is director Honda's. The original is the only one that's successful, that's really good. I give all of my Godzilla films a minus score.
- [on the then upcoming TriStar film] I'm looking forward to seeing it. It is easy for me to imagine what Mr. Nakano would do with the movie, but I can't imagine what Americans would do with it. I think that Godzilla films must be produced by Americans.
- I had hated watching or hearing about those movies but later I realized that they are really popular among children. When I was interviewed by the BBC too the staff told me how much they liked them. I just don't get it. Recently I was watching a TV documentary on Godzilla and there was my film in the US video rental shop under the title Son of Godzilla. Kids over there apparently watch Godzilla on TV.
- Godzilla was born of nuclear power, and in that social environment Godzilla (1954) appeared. Originally, Godzilla didn't have emotions-he shouldn't have any emotions at all. No other film can beat the original Godzilla.
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