Akiko Ohku

Akiko Ōku (大九明子, Ōku Akiko, born October 8, 1968), also romanised as Akiko Ohku, is a Japanese film director. Ōku was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa. In high school, she joined a rakugo group. While studying Politics and Economics at Meiji University, she was part of a student theatre troupe. After graduating, Ōku briefly had an office job at a subsidiary of the Ministry of Labour. She then entered a comedy acting school for one year and performed as stand-up comedian, and afterwards, at age 27, she entered Eigabi School, a film school where director Kiyoshi Kurosawa taught, among others. While still at film school, Ōku won a screenwriting contest with a script that would become her theatrical feature film debut as director, 意外と死なない (Igaito shinanai, literally "don't die unexpectedly"). Description above from the Wikipedia article Akiko Ōku, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Works

Barren Illusion

In a near future where allergies have become an epidemic, music producer Haru half-heartedly dates post office clerk and mail thief Michi. He searches for violent ways to reactivate his life, she dreams of escaping abroad; both volunteer to test a new drug which may provide a cure.

Release Date1999-12-11

Charactersd Akiko

Vote Count14

Igai to shinanai

Tsukiko is an elementary school teacher bitter about her students, parents, colleagues, and her best friend who enjoys a shotgun marriage. Tsukiko has only one path left to take.

Release Date1999-09-18

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Charactersd

Not To Talk About All Of Her Old Age

Aoyama Shinji’s Film History—and simultaneously a chronicle of modern Japanese history—layers together images of present-day landscapes, newsreels, and photographs of Emperor Shōwa as well as of Kōtoku Shūsui and Sugako Kanno, who were executed in the High Treason Incident, with readings of texts by Nakano Shigeharu (Five-Shao of Sake, Shinagawa Station in the Rain) and Natsume Sōseki (Recollections).

Release Date2001-01-01

Charactersd Herself

Time Limit Investigator

Shūichirō Kiriyama works at the Limitation Task Force, the place where the cases which have reached the statute of limitations are destroyed. Getting bored of his job, he decides to find a hobby, because it seems important to him to have a hobby. So he decides to puzzle out the unsolved cases on his free time, helped by his coworker Mikazuki, who seems to have a crush on him.

Release Date2006-01-13

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Episode Count2

Vote Count10

Shijuukara

Watanuki Shinobu is a manga artist for the past 20 years. Despite being married and having a son, Shinobu lives her life unsatisfactorily. When Shinobu was about to give up her dreams and work, her past works became popular on ebooks and she decides to create a new work and recruit an assistant. A 22 year old young man named Tachibana Chiaki applied to be an assistant and Shinobu gradually finds her life moving forward again after a long time.

Release Date2022-01-07

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Episode Count12

Vote Count1

One Hour Left Until the First Affair

A love omnibus drama which shows how lovers are connected through mind and body.

Release Date2021-07-23

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Episode Count2

Teruko & Lui

"Help me." A housewife, Teruko, receives a phone call from her best friend, the chanson singer Lui. "Help me."... Those words were also Teruko's own voice. Having reached her limit with her abusive husband who continues to treat her like a servant, Teruko is kicked out of the apartment she has lived in for many years, and with the at-a-glance Lui in the passenger seat, they begin their escape from Tokyo! In fact, both of them are hiding a "secret" in their hearts. ~~ Adapted from the novel "Teruko & Lui" (照子と瑠衣) by Inoue Areno (井上荒野)

Release Date2025-06-22

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Episode Count8

Vote Count1

Throw It Away, Adachi

The chief editor of a woman’s magazine talks to Yumi Adachi about a new idea for the magazine. Their plan revolves around a person who disposes of stuff and lives more comfortably. According to their plan, Yumi Adachi decides to throw away various items one by one. On that night, Yumi Adachi falls asleep as usual, but she has an unusual dream.

Release Date2020-04-17

DepartmentWriting

JobScreenplay

Episode Count12

Vote Count2

I Didn't Love You Because I Was a Family, But I Loved You as a Family

Follow the daily lives of the Kishimoto family.

Release Date2023-05-14

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Episode Count10

Vote Count4

Tremble All You Want

Yoshika has had a crush on Ichimiya, whom she calls "the One" since she was in middle school. Now, a 24-year-old salarywoman, her all-consuming fixation has prevented her from even considering another candidate for boyfriend until an office colleague asks her out.

Release Date2017-12-23

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count41

Hold Me Back

Mitsuko Kuroda is 31 years old and single. She enjoys her life as a single woman. A big reason why she enjoys her single life is that she has counsellor "A" in her mind, which is her other self. Whenever she does not know what to do, "A" gives her the right answers. She believes her happy and peaceful single life with "A" will continue, but she falls in love with Tada-kun. He is a salesperson and younger than her.

Release Date2020-12-18

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count47

Heartbreak on a Plate

Sometime, the only thing that helps people get over a breakup is the taste of their favorite dish... Set in real restaurants in Tokyo, the taste of the food gently embraces the women’s souls and kindly heals their broken hearts. The main character, Miki (Alice Hirose), is a manga artist. She publishes her work, Heartbreak on a Plate, in a free magazine. Each episode presents the stories of the broken hearts who come to the restaurant, and through the food, we are introduced to their “heartbreak on a plate” experiences. Sometimes comical, sometimes human, the series portrays people who are trying to move forward even after heartbreak. Throughout a total of 10 episodes, the relationship between Miki and a man from the flower shop (Kai Inowaki) gradually evolves into something more.

Release Date2022-01-14

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Episode Count10

She Taught Me Serendipity

The romance between a lonely college student and who seems to be the girl of his dreams is burdened by the sudden arrival of cruel fate.

Release Date2025-04-25

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count6

Monster

A woman has an ugly face. She has been called 'monster' since childhood. A case occurs in her town that leads to her being ejected and a relocation to Tokyo. She obtains plastic surgery and begins working as a prostitute. She makes some dough and extends the plastic surgery to her entire body. She changes her name and begins a new life. The perfect body leads her to think about men and her hometown.

Release Date2013-04-27

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count3

Wedding High

What's the biggest event for a couple? A wedding! The goofy but earnest Akito Ishikawa and the always cheerful Haruka Nitta are about to tie the knot. Thanks to the help of their wedding planner Nakagoshi, they've finally made it to the day of the wedding.

Release Date2022-03-12

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count9

I Had a Dream of That Girl

Comedian Yamasato Ryota (Nakano Taiga) enters a cafe in order to prepare a story. Trivial incidents unfold there with the staff, TV people, the manager, and a handsome office worker. Little things bother them, and Yamasato's annoyance reaches its limit. He pulls up his glasses, opens his notebook and begins to write a story featuring a real-life actress in his notebook. For Yamasato, escaping reality is a "dream time" where he can forget the bad things. This is the start of Ryota Yamazato's fantasy story with the latest actresses and idols as the heroines!

Release Date2020-10-03

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Episode Count2

Vote Count2

Fantastic Girls

In 1980, Ayuko is a new transfer student in Okayama from Tokyo. She doesn't have any friends and relies on her boyfriend Hideo who is a college student. Ayuko likes to draw a romance manga of herself and her boyfriend. Ayuko's classmate, Takemi, becomes a huge fan of Ayuko's manga and they become close friends. Due to an incident though, they drift apart. 30 years later, Ayuko is now a manga artist and comes back to Okayama to give a lecture at her former high school. There, Ayuko meets Takemi who is now a teacher.

Release Date2015-02-21

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count5

Tokyo Serendipity

Yui, a college student, moves in to her first own apartment, where she begins her new independent life in a big city. Soon after, the upstairs neighbor Takashi sparks her interest.

Release Date2007-08-18

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count11

Marriage Hunting Beauty

Takako (Mei Kurokawa) is a beautiful woman in her 30's and she works as a designer. Takako has only had relationships with married men. She decides to change herself with the help of her manga artist friend Keiko (Asami Usuda). Takako signs up at a matchmaking site. Soon. Takako meets two men and she takes an interest in the two men. Meanwhile, Takako has an argument with her friend Keiko. (Asianwiki)

Release Date2019-03-23

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count3

Houkago Lost

Little Trip: Chairperson Ayako and Yuki, who sometimes skips school, become close. They run away. Rakugaki Uwagaki: Satomi used to be a member of art club, but she stopped drawing. Due to a cultural festival, she decides to draw again. Baion: Kuroi likes recording the sounds of daily life. One day, she meets Rika. Rika begins to enjoy recording the sounds of daily life with Kuroi.

Release Date2014-08-02

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count4

Tales of Terror: 100 Stories

TV anthology movie

Release Date2010-05-05

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count1

My Sweet Grappa Remedies

Yasuko Matsuyuki heads the cast of this drama about a 40-something woman who is happy with her single life but nevertheless starts dating a man who is 24 years her junior.

Release Date2020-12-04

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count8

Tokyo Nameless Girl's Story

University student Nozomi tries to get a job. Back in her hometown, she was lazy, but now Nozomi is used to the quicker pace of Tokyo. Nozomi is also experiencing problems with her boyfriend Kameyama, who seems to be travelling at a different speed in life and work. Meanwhile, Saeko works very hard in the advertising field and she is faithful to her boyfriend Tomoya. Yet, on their first year anniversary, Saeko hear's woman's voice on Tomoya's cellphone. Based on the anthology manga of the same name.

Release Date2012-06-16

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count2

ゴースト・オブ・レディオ～バチボコ怖い心霊バスツアー～

Release Date2024-11-17

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Nagisa no koibito tachi

Release Date2016-01-01

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Tadaima, Jacqueline

When Satoru (Shota Sometani) was 5-years-old, he became an orphan due to a bus accident. A ventriloquist doll was at the scene of the accident. Satoru suffered deep psychological trauma from the fatal accident. 13 years later, Satoru hears from Emi (Shuri), who grew up with Satoru at the orphanage, that a King of Comedy Festival will be held, but Sumiko (Michiyo Nakahara), the manager of the orphanage, is ill. Emi asks Satoru to perform as a ventriloquist at the festival. Satoru doesn't like the idea, but the ventriloquist doll from the fatal accident, is happy to perform with Satoru again.

Release Date2013-03-07

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Vote Count1

あきらめません！

DepartmentDirecting

JobDirector

Cosplay Detective

Release Date2009-07-25

DepartmentWriting

JobScreenplay

Deka Matsuri

12-part omnibus made under the rules: "the main character is a detective" "at least one gag per minute" "the length must not exceed 10 minutes"

Release Date2003-01-11