Special thanks to Avery Guerra.
Ishiro Honda: Memoirs of a Film Director has been acquired by SRS Cinema.
The documentary, which made its North American Premiere at the G-FEST Film Festival this summer, has secured Blu-ray, DVD, digital, and theatrical distribution from the genre label, known for kaiju releases such as Hoshi 35, Howl From Beyond the Fog, and their upcoming release of Brush of the God. Details about when to expect a physical/theatrical release are being kept under wraps at this time, but we can confirm that SRS owner Ron Bonk is thrilled about the acquisition, and he cannot wait for fans to see it.
The documentary will also continue its film festival circuit run for the time being, with the film having upcoming screenings in Japan at the Instituto Cervantes de Tokio and the Atami Kaiju Film Festival. With recent screenings in Manchester and Chicago also adding to the roster of places to see the film this year, much curiosity was held amongst the community in regard to if/and when the new documentary would see a wide release outside of film festivals, and it appears that will change fairly soon.
Ishiro Honda: Memoirs of a FIlm Director features interviews with special guests and celebrities including Ryuji Honda (Ishiro Honda’s son), Hisao Kurosawa (Akira Kurosawa’s son), Shinji Higuchi (Shin Godzilla), Joe Dante (Gremlins), Linda Miller (King Kong Escapes), and Ishiro Honda biographers Steve Ryfle & Ed Godziszewski, and was filmed in Spain, Japan, and the United States.
During the documentary’s production, Mr. Bellés remarked upon Ishiro Honda. “As a former combatant in the Second World War, Honda is recognized as a pacifist and humanist filmmaker,” he said. “I have always regarded him as the Japanese equivalent of “George Pal” – a director who approached his craft with seriousness, particularly within the science fiction and giant monster genres, which were often relegated to mere adolescent entertainment in Hollywood.”
Check out the trailer below. For more on the documentary behind one of the fathers of Godzilla, check out our interview with the film’s director, Jonathan Bellés. Stay tuned for further updates on the film and its wide release on Kaiju United. To keep up with the documentary and learn more about the production, we encourage you to visit Daifilms’ official website.
