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Tsutomu Konno

こんの つとむ

Konno Tsutomu

Pen Names: Group Sozo（Alternative name used for group or collaborative works）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1936-04-02 （Niida Village, Kawabe District, Akita Prefecture, Japan (now Akita City)）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Niida, Kawabe District, Akita (now Akita City), Japan → Yubari, Hokkaido, Japan → Tokyo, Japan

Career

Occupations
Director, Producer, Screenwriter, Businessman, Professor
Active Years
1959-
Affiliations
Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), TV Man Union, Musashino Art University (Department of Imaging Arts and Sciences)

Education

Tohoku University
Faculty of Letters / Department of Literature
Degree: 学士
Year of Graduation: 1959
Country: Japan
Reportedly used funds intended for a school trip as examination fees to enable university entry

Awards

Italia Prize (Premio Italia)
1964
Work: Between Saturday and Monday
Organization: Italia Prize Organizing Committee
Result: 大賞
Japan Broadcast Writers Association — Director Award
1968
Work: Seven Detectives
Organization: Japan Broadcast Writers Association
Result: 受賞（演出者賞）
Galaxy Awards (Selection)
1976
Work: I Want to Go Far
Organization: Broadcast Critics Association (Galaxy Awards)
Result: 選奨
Galaxy Awards (Selection)
1973
Work: Century of the Emperor
Organization: Broadcast Critics Association (Galaxy Awards)
Result: 選奨
Television Awards — Excellent Program Award
1975
Work: From Europe With Love (Thursday Special)
Organization: Television Awards
Result: 優秀番組賞
Galaxy Awards (Selection)
1976
Work: Burn! The Tale of Prime Minister Takahashi Korekiyo
Organization: Broadcast Critics Association (Galaxy Awards)
Result: 選奨
Television Awards — Excellent Program Award
1977
Work: The Sea Revives
Organization: Television Awards
Result: 優秀番組賞
Elan d'or Awards
1977
Work: The Sea Revives
Organization: Elan d'or Awards Committee
Result: 特別賞
Television Awards — Excellent Program Award
1982
Work: Documentary Feature — Current of Life
Organization: Television Awards
Result: 優秀番組賞
ATP Awards — Excellence Award
1985
Work: TIME21 — Sounds of Japan: Spring (seasonal soundscape)
Organization: ATP (Association of Television Program Producers)
Result: 優秀賞
Japan Commercial Broadcasters Association Award — Excellent Program
1987
Work: TIME21 — Ah, My Wife: Crying Will Be Tomorrow
Organization: Japan Commercial Broadcasters Association
Result: 優秀番組賞
Broadcasting Culture Foundation Award — Individual Prize
1989
Work: Frozen Eyes
Organization: Broadcasting Culture Foundation
Result: 個人賞
Broadcasting Culture Foundation Award — Drama Division Grand Prize
1989
Work: Shine, One-Eyed 0.06
Category: 脚本
Organization: Broadcasting Culture Foundation
Result: 本賞
Galaxy Awards (Selection)
1991
Work: Pearl Harbor Attack — Did Roosevelt Know?
Organization: Broadcast Critics Association (Galaxy Awards)
Result: 選奨
Galaxy Awards (Selection)
1993
Work: NHK Special — Spirit Songs to the Bottom of the Earth
Organization: Broadcast Critics Association (Galaxy Awards)
Result: 選奨
ATP Awards — Excellence Award
1994
Work: Continued: Dying in Hospital
Organization: ATP (Association of Television Program Producers)
Result: 優秀賞
Broadcasting Culture Foundation Award — Drama Division Excellent Program
1994
Work: Continued: Dying in Hospital
Category: ドラマ
Organization: Broadcasting Culture Foundation
Result: 優秀番組賞
Arts Encouragement Prize — Minister of Education Award
1995
Work: The Kingdom of the Heart — The World of Children's Poet Misuzu Kaneko
Organization: Agency for Cultural Affairs (Arts Encouragement)
Result: 文部大臣賞
Japan Commercial Broadcasters Association Award — Excellent Program
2008
Work: Hidden Stories of the Sino-Japanese War: The True Image of Spy Zheng Pingru
Organization: Japan Commercial Broadcasters Association
Result: 優秀番組賞
Rennyo Prize
2017
Work: The Truth of Kenji Miyazawa: The Poet Who Lived in Shura
Organization: Rennyo Prize Selection Committee
Result: 第15回受賞
Mainichi Art Award — Special Prize
2020
Work: Kenji Miyazawa: Journey to the Galaxy (direction and long contribution to television)
Organization: Mainichi Shimbun (Mainichi Art Award)
Result: 特別賞
Person of Cultural Merit
2020
Organization: Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT)
Result: 顕彰

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Between Saturday and Monday

1964 TV drama

A 1964 TV drama broadcast on TBS, directed by Konno. Its experimental expression and social concerns were recognized with the Italia Prize Grand Award.

postwar societyfamilyhuman drama

Seven Detectives

1965 Detective TV drama

A detective TV drama series on TBS (1965–1968). Konno directed many episodes and was honored with directing awards.

crimejusticehuman relationships

I Want to Go Far

1970 Travel TV program

A travel TV program that carefully depicts local life and landscapes. Broadcast in the 1970s, its fresh perspective earned recognition such as the Galaxy Awards selection.

travellocal culturescenery

Pearl Harbor Attack — Did Roosevelt Know?

1991 Documentary / Non-fiction

An investigative documentary and book examining Roosevelt and the Pearl Harbor attack. Released as both a broadcast and a publication, it provoked public debate.

historywarpolitical investigation

The Truth of Kenji Miyazawa: The Poet Who Lived in Shura

2017 Biography / Literary study

A reassessment of Kenji Miyazawa's life and works; a biographical study published in 2017 that won the Rennyo Prize.

Kenji Miyazawapoetmodern literature

Bibliography

  • You Are Only the Present - What Television Can Do (co-authored)
  • Tsutomu Konno's Televisionism Manifesto
  • Tears of History - Women in the Shadow of Flames
  • Pearl Harbor Attack — Did Roosevelt Know?
  • The Story of Jack and Betty — America Was Always There (co-authored)
  • Seeing Through Television's Lies
  • Misuzu Kaneko Again
  • Television Youth
  • Ogai's Lover — The Truth 120 Years Later
  • Dialogue with Yanagi Miri — Do Not Utter Words Lighter Than Silence (interviews)
  • The Truth of Kenji Miyazawa: The Poet Who Lived in Shura
  • TV Man Juzo Itami's Adventures — Is Television More Interesting Than Film?

Adaptations

  • Kenji Miyazawa: Journey to the Galaxy (NHK documentary, directed)
  • 1998 Nagano Olympic Opening and Closing Ceremonies (visual direction)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
documentary-oriented realismpoetic visual expressionsocially conscious narrative style
Recurring Motifs
journeyhistorical investigationeveryday detail

Legacy

A director and producer active since the early days of Japanese television. Involved in founding TV Man Union, he contributed to experimental and elevated television expression. Known for producing the Nagano Olympic ceremonies and for many award-winning documentaries and dramas; he has also taught and mentored younger creators. He was selected as a Person of Cultural Merit in 2020, reflecting his significant impact on broadcasting.

Academic Societies

  • Japan Broadcast Writers Association

In Popular Culture

  • Widely known for producing the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1998 Nagano Olympics
  • Often mentioned as a representative figure of early Japanese television visual expression

Quotes

  • Ah — I suddenly realized that life allows you quite a lot of freedom to act and be forgiven.
    Source: Tsutomu Konno, 'Televisionism Manifesto' (1976)

Trivia

  • Considered one of the first Japanese directors to win the Italia Prize for a TV drama.
  • Left TBS in 1970 and participated in founding TV Man Union.
  • Directed the visual production for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1998 Nagano Olympics.
  • Selected as a Person of Cultural Merit in 2020.