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Tomotaka Tasaka

たさか ともたか

Tasaka Tomotaka

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1978-05-12 （Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan → Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Screenwriter, Essayist
Active Years
2003-
Affiliations
Japan PEN Club, Japan Writers' Association
Influenced By
Haruki Murakami, Hiromi Kawakami, Kobo Abe

Education

Kanazawa University
Faculty of Letters / Department of Japanese Literature
Degree: 学士
Period: 1997-2001
Year of Graduation: 2001
Country: Japan
Published short stories while enrolled and began literary activities

Awards

Bungei Newcomer Prize
2008
Work: Night of Water
Organization: Bungei (Magazine)
Result: 受賞
Akutagawa Prize
2017
Work: Song of Shadows
Organization: Bungeishunju
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Song of Shadows

2017 Novel 320 pages

A novel that quietly portrays memory and loss among city dwellers. Structured with past scenes appearing like shadows, it questions family bonds and personal identity.

MemoryFamilyIdentity
Adaptations
  • [Film] Song of Shadows / Makoto Endo (2019)
Translations
  • English translation: Song of Shadows (Anna Yamada, 2020)

Night of Water

2008 Short Story Collection 120 pages

Debut short story collection. Contains linked stories set by the sea and suburbs, weaving quiet solitude with landscape.

SolitudeNatureMemory
Adaptations
  • [Radio Drama] Night of Water / Kenji Sato (2010)
Translations
  • English translations: Night of Water (selected stories translated, 2011)

Urban Blue

2014 Novel 264 pages

From the perspective of isolated individuals in the urban bustle, the novel depicts fissures in everyday life. Notable for its delicate emotional depiction.

CityIsolationEveryday life
Translations
  • Partial English translations published in literary magazines

Bibliography

  • Night of Water (Short Story Collection, 2008)
  • Urban Blue (Novel, 2014)
  • Song of Shadows (Novel, 2017)
  • Letters from the Night (Essays, 2020)

Adaptations

  • Song of Shadows (Film adaptation, 2019)
  • Night of Water (Radio drama, 2010)

Translations of Works

  • Song of Shadows — English translation: Song of Shadows (Anna Yamada, 2020)
  • Night of Water — English translations (selected stories, 2011)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Restrained, tranquil proseEmphasis on interiority
Recurring Motifs
ShadowsWaterUrban landscapes

Legacy

Tomotaka Tasaka is acclaimed for works centered on urban solitude and memory, influencing younger writers and filmmakers. Film adaptations and translations have broadened his readership domestically and abroad.

Museums

  • Tomotaka Tasaka Memorial Room (provisional) Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan (proposed) Opened in 2022

Academic Societies

  • Japanese Literature Association
  • Contemporary Literature Research Society

Archives

  • Tomotaka Tasaka Archive (Ishikawa Prefectural Library)

In Popular Culture

  • Media coverage following the film adaptation of 'Song of Shadows'

Quotes

  • Words are like a sea that summons the past.
    Source: Interview (Bungei, 2018) (2018)
  • Only in silence can one truly face oneself.
    Source: Song of Shadows (Afterword) (2017)

Trivia

  • Often writes late at night.
  • Born in Kanazawa; local landscapes frequently appear in his works.