Shima Iwashita

Shima Iwashita's filmography reads like a syllabus for postwar Japanese cinema. Ozu, Kinoshita, Kobayashi, and above all her husband Masahiro Shinoda, whose films she appeared in repeatedly. Yet the role most of Japan pictures first is the matriarch of the Yakuza Wives series, which she carried from 1986 to 1998. I find that contrast delightful rather than embarrassing. The same actress could play refined restraint for an art-house master, then dominate a genre picture with nothing but a look. Her Blue Ribbon best actress awards came thirteen years apart, in 1965 and 1978, which says more about her staying power than any single performance could.

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Name (English)

Shima Iwashita

Name (Japanese)

岩下志麻

Reading

いわした しま

Born

January 3, 1941 (age 85)

Origin

Tokyo, Japan

Height

165 cm

Occupation

actor / film actor

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Capricorn / Snake

Blood type

A

Agency

グランパパプロダクション

Active years

1958 -

University

Seijo University

Awards & achievements

• 2004 Medal with Purple Ribbon
• 1961 Elan d'or Award for Newcomer of the Year
• 1962 Blue Ribbon Awards for Best Newcomer
• 1989 Kinuyo Tanaka Award
• 1965 Blue Ribbon Awards for Best Actress
• 1978 Blue Ribbon Awards for Best Actress
• Golden Arrow Award
• Mainichi Film Award for Best Actress

Spouse

篠田正浩

Works summary

Appearances

207 (1958–2025)

By year

1958: 2, 1960: 5, 1961: 9, 1962: 10, 1963: 10, 1964: 9, 1965: 5, 1966: 8, 1967: 6, 1968: 4, 1969: 6, 1970: 4, 1971: 6, 1972: 3, 1973: 1, 1974: 5, 1975: 5, 1976: 2, 1977: 2, 1978: 4, 1979: 1, 1980: 2, 1981: 1, 1982: 5, 1983: 4, 1984: 3, 1985: 3, 1986: 4, 1987: 2, 1988: 2, 1989: 3, 1990: 3, 1991: 4, 1992: 2, 1993: 6, 1994: 4, 1995: 3, 1996: 3, 1997: 1, 1998: 2, 1999: 2, 2000: 1, 2001: 2, 2002: 3, 2003: 2, 2004: 1, 2005: 1, 2006: 2, 2007: 1, 2010: 2, 2011: 1, 2012: 1, 2013: 1, 2014: 2, 2016: 1, 2019: 1, 2020: 1, 2022: 2, 2025: 1

Debut work

バス通り裏

Filmography / notable works

• Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shima%20Iwashita
• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B2%A9%E4%B8%8B%E5%BF%97%E9%BA%BB
• Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3067392

Tags

• Tokyo
• actor
• film actor

Last updated

September 18, 2026

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. Works and profile fields sourced from Wikipedia reflect content as of 2026-08-26. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.