The is given annually by the Directors Guild of Japan to a new director of a film released that year who is considered the most "suitable" for the award. The winner is selected by a committee formed of DGJ members. All formats—feature film, documentary, television, video, etc.—are eligible for consideration. In some years when there was no apparent winner, the Guild only issued a "citation" () or did not give out the award. Multiple awards have been given in other years. With a long history, many of Japan's major postwar directors have received the award, including Nagisa Ōshima, Susumu Hani, Yoshimitsu Morita, Masayuki Suo, Takeshi Kitano, and Shunji Iwai.
Recipients Recipients of the Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award
Year Winner Film Notes 1960 Cruel Story of Youth 1961 Bad Boys 1962 Foundry Town 1963 No award 1964 No award 1965 Nihon Rettō 1966 Yakuza (893) Gurentai 1967 Hikō Shōnen: Hinode no Sakebi 1968 No award 1969 Oretachi no Kōya Citation only 1970 Summer in Narita 1971 Yasashii Nipponjin 1972 Female Convict 701: Scorpion Citation only 1973 Confidential: The Hell of Tortured Prostitutes Citation only 1974 No award 1975 No award 1976 Futatsu no Hāmonika Citation only 1977 Hoshizora no Marionetto 1978 No award 1979 Keiko 1980 Muddy River Citation only 1981 Gaki Teikoku Citation only 1982 No award 1983 The Family Game 1984 No award 1985 Early Spring Story 1986 The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On 1987 Robinson's Garden 1988 Yun's Town 1989 Dotsuitarunen Two winners 1989 Untamagiru Two winners 1990 Boiling Point Two winners; citation only 1990 Shimaguni Konjō Two winners; citation only 1991 Sumo Do, Sumo Don't 1992 The Games Teachers Play Multiple winners 1992 Pineapple Tours Multiple winners 1992 Pineapple Tours Multiple winners 1992 Pineapple Tours Multiple winners 1993 Fireworks, Should We See It from the Side or the Bottom? Two winners 1993 My Wife Is Filipina Two winners 1994 This Window Is Yours 1995 Berlin 1996 Two People Talking 1997 Twentieth Century Nostalgia 1998 Pornostar 1999 Moonlight WhispersDon't Look Back 2000 Boy's Choir 2001 Scoutman aka Pain 2002 Through the Night 2003 Chirusoku no Natsu 2004 Dogs & Cats 2005 The Soup, One Morning 2006 Kazoku no Hiketsu 2007 German + Rain 2008 One Million Yen Girl 2009 8000 Miles 2010 Kenta to Jun to Kayo-chan no Kuni 2011 Death of a Japanese Salesman 2012 Doko ni mo ikenai 2013 Hakoiri musuko no koi 2014 About the Pink Sky 2015 Pieta in the Toilet 2016 Ken and Kazu 2017 The Blooming2018Shinichiro UedaOne Cut of the Dead2019Toshiyuki TeruyaSenkotsu2020HIKARI37 Seconds2021Shinzo KatayamaSagasu2022Juichiro YamasakiYamabuki2023Masaaki KudoToi tokoro2024Neo SoraHappyend
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