Filmmaker Tsukamoto Shinya discussed his Independent career and continuing focus on war at a masterclass during the 39th Tokyo International Film Festival. The conversation covered his best-known film, “Tetsuo: The Iron Man,” and his latest feature, the English-language “Mr. Nelson, Did You Kill People?”

TIFF programming director Ichiyama Shozo described “Tetsuo,” released in 1989, as a shock partly because of the quality the Japanese independent scene produced at the time. Tsukamoto recalled making it on 16mm without computer-generated effects. For one scene, he said, the crew attached discarded objects to actor Taguchi Tomorowo’s face, while the character’s movement through the streets was achieved through rough stop motion. The production took about a year, with Tsukamoto working alone on some elements near the end.

The film’s festival attention led to an offer to make “Hiruko the Goblin” with a larger budget. Tsukamoto said he had received studio offers over the years but preferred to avoid becoming a director for hire. Working with his own material, he explained, helped him preserve the initial creative impulse behind a project.

That independent approach also shaped “Fires on the Plain,” his 2014 adaptation of Ooka Shohei’s novel. Tsukamoto said he had wanted to make the film for decades and eventually attempted to distribute it himself, initially imagining a limited release. It opened in 40 cinemas before expanding to 80, he said.

Tsukamoto’s latest film, “Mr. Nelson, Did You Kill People?,” follows Allen Nelson, a New Yorker who joins the Marines at 18 and is haunted by his actions in Vietnam. The film, which competed at Venice in September, stars Rodney Hicks, Geoffrey Rush and Lily Franky. Tsukamoto said he encountered the story while working on “Fires on the Plain.” Delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Hollywood actors’ strike meant the project took around seven years to complete, and “Shadow of Fire,” initially planned to follow it, was released first.

Asked why he continues to make films about war, Tsukamoto said he had not expected to stay with the subject after “Fires on the Plain.” He attributed his continued focus to the state of the world, adding that he did not think he could pull away from it.

In a discussion of advice for young filmmakers, Tsukamoto noted that digital production can free up money once spent on processing 8mm and 16mm film. He pointed to YouTube as a place to learn and make work without a large budget. He also said he takes on multiple filmmaking roles because he enjoys the process: composing and blocking scenes, he explained, feels close to drawing and painting, an interest that began with his art studies.

Sources: Variety.