A Japanese film producer and founder of Office Shirous, Sasaki Shiro has passed away on April 18, 2022, at the age of 83.
 
He led the Art Theaters Guild (ATG), a film production company, as the president from 1979 producing the films by the directors such as Omori Kazuki, Morita Yoshimitsu and Negishi Kichitaro. In 1993, Sasaki set up the company, Office Shirous, and worked on various directors’ films including Nakae Yuji and Okita Shuichi. He also founded the Japan Institute of the Moving Image in 2011 and served as the Chairman until 2018 giving great opportunities to many young directors.
 
He contributed to the launch of the Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) in 1985 by visiting film festivals overseas and established the Young Cinema section, a competition for young filmmakers.
 
Sasaki served as the member of the International Competition jury at the 17th TIFF in 2004, and also participated in the talk session with the director Kore-eda Hirokazu as the guest speaker at the 22nd TIFF in 2009.
 

 
We would like to express our sincere condolences and would like to convey our deepest sympathy.
 
Tokyo International Film Festival