Biography

Shuntarō Tanikawa(1931-2024)

Writer
Director
Actor

Everyone in Japan knows his work, yet few even know his name. Chris Mosdell, British expatriate, pop lyricist, poet and visual artist, during his 30-year residence in Tokyo, has written chart-topping hits with some of Japan's most influential musicians and composers, penned lyrics to anime film scores (Ghost in the Shell, Gundam, Cowboy Bebop), and run with the multimedia underground of that city's avant-garde. Ink Music: In The Land Of The Hundred-Tongued Lyricist is a 90-minute documentary film detailing those artistic relationships in the expansive career of this celebrated wordsmith. Shot in HD on-location in Tokyo, Japan, the city that inspires his work, the film highlights through exclusive interviews Mosdell's rise from obscure, expatriate, bohemian poet to renowned lyricist for Japan's biggest band ever, Yellow Magic Orchestra. These interviews are visually reinforced by archival footage and showcases of songs, installations and live performances. Featuring Ryuichi Sakamoto, Yoko Kanno, Maaya Sakamoto, and many others.

Play trailer3:47

Ink Music: In the Land of the Hundred-Tongued Lyricist (2009)

Shuntarō Tanikawa was born on 15 December 1931 in Tokyo, Japan. He was a writer and director, known for The Wanderers (1973), Hi no tori (1978) and To Love Again (1971). He was married to Yoko Sano, Tomoko Okubo and Eriko Kishida. He died on 13 November 2024 in Tokyo, Japan.

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Known for

The Wanderers

6.4

Writer(as Shuntarô Tanikawa)

1973

Hi no tori

5.9

Writer(as Shuntarô Tanikawa)

1978

To Love Again

6.5

Writer(as Shuntarô Tanikawa)

1971

La donna è una cosa meravigliosa

6.1

Director(segment "Ai amore", as Shuntarô Tanikawa)

1964

Credits

IMDbPro

Writer

The First Feeling in My Life
Short
- writer (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 2017
The Universe Within III - The Human Genome
TV Series
- Writer (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1999
Shûji Terayama & Shuntarô Tanikawa Video Letter
7.0
Video
- creator (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1983
Hi no tori
5.9
- screenplay (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1978
Visions of Eight
6.8
- writer (segment "The Fastest", as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1973
The Wanderers
6.4
- writer (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1973
To Love Again
6.5
- screenplay (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1971
Japan and the Japanese
Short
- Writer (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1970
Kyoto
7.2
Short
- screenplay (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1969
Seishun
7.2
- screenplay (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1968
What do you think?
Short
- poem (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1967
Tokyo Olympiad
7.8
- Writer (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1965
Love
5.2
Short
- poem
- 1964
Ningen dôbutsuen
4.5
Short
- Writer (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1962
Two Pikes
5.8
Short
- Writer (as Shuntarô Tanikawa)
- 1960