Takeshi Yagi

Takeshi Yagi is a Japanese film director, special effects director, and producer, and one of Japan’s leading figures in tokusatsu filmmaking. Across film and television, he has pursued distinctive approaches to storytelling and visual expression, directing both dramatic scenes and special effects.

His major works include Superior 8 Ultra Brothers, which held the Ultraman theatrical box-office record for 14 years, as well as Ultraman Max and Ultraseven X. He is also a co-author of the fantasy novel Night Train, and continues to develop original film projects, including a feature-length project based on his short film AKARI.

Alongside his filmmaking and writing, Yagi also works to share the art, history, techniques, and cultural legacy of Japanese tokusatsu with filmmakers and audiences around the world through education, research, and cultural exchange.

ABOUT TOKUSATSU

Originally a term for special effects techniques, tokusatsu evolved into a distinct genre and has become an integral part of Japanese culture. For Yagi, it is an art form that transcends technique, encompassing philosophy, artistic vision, and a deeper spiritual dimension.

AKARI

Short Film · Director / Producer / Co-writer / Special Effects Director

An original short film directed by Takeshi Yagi, who also served as its producer, co-writer, and special effects director.

Created through an international collaboration between Japanese and American filmmakers, AKARI combines the physical techniques of Japanese tokusatsu with a contemporary international production approach.

Following its earlier presentation at Tokyo Comic Con in 2022, AKARI had its international premiere at the Fantasia International Film Festival in 2023.

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TOKUSATSU FILMMAKING MASTERCLASS

Streaming Masterclass · 2026

An international filmmaking course in which Yagi shares the techniques, creative philosophy, and practical methods of Japanese tokusatsu developed through decades of professional production.

Created with American producers and crew, the masterclass explores not only how tokusatsu is made, but also its history, cultural meaning, visual philosophy, and distinctive approach to storytelling.

The production of AKARI serves as a practical demonstration of how these ideas can be applied in an actual film production.

Now distributed internationally through Galxy.

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TOTAL WAR: SHOGUN 2 – COMPLETE EDITION

Announce Trailer · 2026 · Director

A cinematic announcement trailer directed by Takeshi Yagi for Total War: SHOGUN 2 – Complete Edition.

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Feature Film · 2008 · Director / Special Effects Director

Built around a parallel-world concept, the film reimagines familiar Ultraman characters living entirely different lives before heroes from multiple generations are brought together across realities.

Grossing more than US$8 million, it remained the highest-grossing Ultraman theatrical film for 14 years.

WATCH FILM → Apple TV

ULTRAMAN MAX

Television Series · 2005–2006 · Director / Producer / Series Composition / Special Effects Director

Conceived as a new kind of Ultraman series that embraced stronger individual authorship and a wider range of cinematic expression.

As producer, Yagi invited distinctive filmmakers including Takashi Miike, while selected episodes were later screened at Fantasia under the title Arthouse Ultraman.

WATCH SERIES → Tubi

TOSHI DENSETSU SEPIA: “ICEMAN”

WOWOW Television Drama · 2009 · Director

Adapted from a story by Naoki Prize-winning author Shusuke Shukawa, Iceman pursued a lyrical, nostalgic form of horror rather than the conventions of contemporary J-horror, placing atmosphere, memory, and emotion at its center.

KAMEN NO NINJA AKAKAGE

Television Series · 2026 · Special Effects Director (Final Four Episodes)

For the final four episodes, Yagi deliberately returned to the energy and practical techniques of Showa-era tokusatsu, exploring how its physical effects and visual style could work again as contemporary entertainment.

ULTRASEVEN X

Television Series · 2007 · Main Director / Series Composition / Special Effects Director

Set in a dystopian parallel world, the series made a radical break from traditional Ultraman imagery.

Abandoning conventional miniature work, it explored a new tokusatsu visual language through real locations, compositing, and CGI.

WATCH SERIES → Tubi

FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

Montréal · 2005 / 2023 / 2026

Yagi’s relationship with Fantasia spans more than two decades, from Arthouse Ultraman in 2005 and AKARI in 2023 to the 60th anniversary of Ultraman in 2026.

In his anniversary presentation, he explored how the original 1966 broadcast transformed the collective imagination of Japanese children, how Ultraman and tokusatsu went on to influence Japanese culture, and how tokusatsu gives physical form to dreams, fears, and the impossible.

UCLA

Los Angeles · 2026

As an invited guest lecturer, Yagi presented the history, cultural significance, creative philosophy, and practical filmmaking techniques of Japanese tokusatsu, examining it not only as a method of creating special effects, but as a distinctive form of visual storytelling developed in Japan.

KYOTO FILMMAKERS LAB

Kyoto · Hands-on JIDAIGEKI

Since 2013, Yagi has supported Kyoto Filmmakers Lab annually, continuing through 2026, and has served as a lecturer on several occasions.

Organized by a committee including The Museum of Kyoto, Toei Kyoto Studio, and Shochiku Studio, the program brings emerging filmmakers from around the world into Kyoto’s professional studios to create short jidaigeki films while learning traditional production techniques from Japanese film professionals.

CHINA — INTERNATIONAL TOKUSATSU PRODUCTION

Chinese Television Production · Special Effects Director

Yagi served as Special Effects Director for the first 13 episodes of a Chinese television tokusatsu production.

NIGHT TRAIN

Fantasy Novel · Shogakukan · 2025

Co-written by Takeshi Yagi and Yuji Kobayashi, Night Train is a fantasy novel about a mysterious galactic railway that appears to people carrying deeply held wishes, offering each passenger a once-in-a-lifetime journey.

Through stories of children facing loss, loneliness, and regret, the novel explores hope, memory, and the possibility of finding a new way forward.

SORA NO MUKŌ

Short Fiction · 2011

22nd Century Fantasy Science Tokusatsu Series: Extra Edition — Sora no Mukō was written as a short work of science fiction for ULTRAMAN BEGINS 2011: A New Battle Begins, a project connected with the Ultraman Foundation.

It represents an earlier example of Yagi’s fiction writing, preceding his later work as a novelist.

PRODUCTION CHRONICLES

Drawing on firsthand experience as a director, special effects director, and producer, Yagi has written and edited a series of books examining tokusatsu and filmmaking from the creator’s side.

Through interviews with directors, actors, designers, cinematographers, producers, and other production professionals, the books document how films and television works were conceived and made, preserving the firsthand testimony and creative processes behind Japanese screen culture.

ULTRAMAN MAX: 15 YEARS LATER — AN ORAL HISTORY
2021

ULTRAMAN TIGA: 25 YEARS LATER — AN ORAL HISTORY
2021

ULTRAMAN DYNA: 25 YEARS LATER — AN ORAL HISTORY
2021

THE GOLDEN AGE OF TOKUSATSU: THOSE WHO FOLLOWED EIJI TSUBURAYA
2022

ULTRASEVEN X: 15 YEARS LATER — AN ORAL HISTORY
2023

THE ADVENTURES OF AKIO JISSOJI: CREATION AND AESTHETICS
2023

PRESS

SELECTED PRESS & INTERVIEWS

Selected international and Japanese coverage of Yagi’s filmmaking, tokusatsu work, writing, and cultural activities.

ASIAN MOVIE PULSE

Takeshi Yagi Revisits the Day Ultraman Changed Japanese Childhood at Fantasia · 2026

Coverage of Yagi’s special presentation at the Fantasia International Film Festival marking the 60th anniversary of Ultraman.

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CINAPSE

Fantasia 2026 · Ultraman 60th Anniversary

Coverage of Fantasia’s celebration of the 60th anniversary of Ultraman.

Following the screening of The Origin of Ultraman, Yagi gave a special presentation, The Day Ultraman Became Part of Japan, reflecting on how Ultraman entered the shared imagination of generations of Japanese children and became part of the country’s culture.

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NERDIST

“SUPERIOR 8 ULTRA BROTHERS Conveys the Fun and Heart of ULTRAMAN” · 2022

An American review of Yagi’s Superior 8 Ultra Brothers, praising its parallel-world premise, emotional and dramatic dimension, practical effects, and intergenerational Ultraman history.

The review presents the film both as a celebration of the franchise and as an accessible entry point for new audiences.

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HERO CLUB

Interview · 2022

A long-form interview exploring Yagi’s career, his approach to Ultraman Max and Ultraseven X, the decision to bring distinctive filmmakers such as Takashi Miike into the Ultraman series, and his belief that returning to the origins of tokusatsu means continuing to experiment rather than simply recreating the past.

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THE TOKUSATSU NETWORK

AKARI / Tokusatsu Filmmaking Masterclass · 2022

Coverage of the origins of AKARI and the international Tokusatsu Filmmaking Masterclass, examining the project’s goal of teaching Japanese tokusatsu by demonstrating its techniques through the actual production of a film.

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MONO MAGAZINE

Interviews and features examining Yagi’s work documenting Japanese tokusatsu from the perspective of the people who actually created it, including the production histories of Ultraman and the filmmakers who inherited the creative legacy of Eiji Tsuburaya.

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