2006/12/06

 

Lotus and Napalm Films form strategic business alliance to produce visual content in film and other formats
 
 

Lotus Inc. (Tokyo, Japan, President Hiroshi Koizumi, Lotus) is pleased to announce a strategic business partnership with Napalm Films (Tokyo, Japan, President Ryuhei Kitamura,) a leading independent film production in Japan, executed in November 2006. Lotus and Napalm Films will together deploy a global business for films and visual content to the US and world markets.

Lotus and Napalm Films will launch joint production projects for films and visual content and produce movies within the next several years and form a movie production fund in cooperation with finance corporations. Through both domestic and foreign partnerships, Lotus and Napalm Films will promote the visual content business aimed at both the Japanese domestic and world markets. Lotus will develop and implement new business plans utilizing the existing content of Napalm Films. Lotus will expand the size of Napalm Films content business to the US and Europe and establish global business schemes in concert with Mr. Kitamura's remarkable name value in the world market and the Lotus' distribution network in North America.
 

Ryuhei Kitamura

Kitamura went to Australia at age 17 and entered the School of Visual Arts to study film-making. His graduation work, a short film titled Exit was highly acclaimed and won the "Best Director of the Year" award. After coming back to Japan, Kitamura established Napalm Films, an independent film production company. With a budget of 300,000 yen, six crew members and a schedule of ten days, Kitamura directed Down to Hell for which he received the Grand Prix at Indie's Movie Festival. He made his debut as a theater movie director with the film noir, Heat After Dark, starring and produced by Atsuro Watabe. Kitamura then directed his first long form, Versus, which received worldwide acclaim. Later, Kitamura directed the sci-fi movie, Alive, based on the manga comic book by Tsutomu Takahashi. He then directed a short film, The Messenger - Requiem for the Lost Souls, as a part of the omnibus film by seven directors, Jam Films. He also teamed up with Yukihiko Tsutsumi, a well-known Japanese director, and collaborated on the samurai action movie, Aragami. His next movie was again based on the manga comic book of Yu Koyama, Azumi, followed by Skyhigh, adapting it from the popular TV drama. His new film Godzilla Final Wars will be released in December, 2007. Receiving worldwide attention, he is currently preparing for his debut in Hollywood with The Midnight Meat Train.

Clive Barker's short story, The Midnight Meat Train, which originally appeared in his Book of Blood anthology, will begin production in March, 2007. Moving to Hollywood, USA, Mr. Kitamura will soon direct an action epic in collaboration with Comic Book Movies.

 

LoveDeath

Kitamura's latest film - The screenplay for LoveDeath was written by Kitamura and Isao Kiriyama, based on the short manga 69 by Tsutomu Takahashi. The movie stars Shinji Takeda, NorA, Kei ﾔtomo, Susumu Terajima, Hiroyuki Ikeuchi, Naomasa Musaka, Toshiyuki Kitami, Izam, Masakatsu Funaki, Kaori Kawamura, Hideo Sakaki, Tar・Kanazawa, Sh・Ehara, Hitoshi Ozawa, Yinling of Joytoy, Leo Morimoto, Yumi Yoshimura, Nao ﾔmori, Shigeru Izumiya, Riki Takeuchi, and Eiichir・Funakoshi.

 

Napalm Films Inc.
President: Ryuhei Kitamura
Address: 1-10-7-c Htanodai, Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan
Phone:   +81-3-5751-8380        FAX: +81-3-5751-8381

 
 

■Press Contact:
Lotus, Inc.
Takayuki Takeda
Phone: +81-3-5475-2561 　　　
e-mail: takeda@lotus-tyo.com

 

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