My Take
I'll be honest, Naomi Kawase is the kind of director I have to be in the right mood for, but when I am, nobody else will do. She's a Cannes regular for a reason, and you can feel Nara in everything she shoots, that earthy, rural patience where she'll just let light flicker through leaves for what feels like forever and somehow earn it. Her films sit quietly with life and death and the people who pass through both, never rushing, never showing off. I love that she keeps circling back to her own home and family while going toe-to-toe at the biggest festivals in the world. On a night when I want fireworks, she's a tough watch. On a night when I want to actually feel something slow and human, I'm grateful she exists.
Overview
Naomi Kawase is a Japanese film director, screenwriter, and editor born on May 30, 1969, in Nara City, Nara Prefecture. She gained international recognition when she won the Camera d'Or at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival, and went on to receive the Jury Grand Prix at Cannes in 2007. She has been a recurring presence at major international film festivals and was awarded the French Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalier) in 2015, as well as the Mainichi Film Award for Best Director.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Naomi Kawase
- Name (Japanese)
- 河瀨直美
- Reading
- かわせ なおみ
- Born
- May 30, 1969 (age 57)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Gemini / Rooster (酉)
- Origin
- Nara City, Nara Prefecture, Japan
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Active years
- Unknown
- Occupation
- Film Director / Screenwriter / Film Editor / Film Producer / Cinematographer
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Private
- Debut
- Unknown
Awards & achievements
- 1997 — Camera d'Or (Cannes Film Festival)
- 2007 — Jury Grand Prix (Cannes Film Festival)
- 2009 — Carrosse d'Or (Golden Coach)
- 2015 — Order of Arts and Letters, Chevalier (France)
- Year Unknown — Mainichi Film Award for Best Director
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
- Official sitehttp://www.kawasenaomi.com/
- Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/naomi.kawase/
- Xhttps://x.com/KawaseNAOMI
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%B2%B3%E7%80%A8%E7%9B%B4%E7%BE%8E
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.