Shunji Iwai
Awards & Honours
19
Awards Won
3
Honours
6
Rankings
6
Covers
2
Records
Iwai's body of work has earned him a distinguished place in Japanese cinema. Love Letter remains one of the most awarded Japanese films of the 1990s, sweeping the Japanese Academy Prizes and Kinema Junpo Awards. All About Lily Chou-Chou broke new ground in its depiction of online youth culture, winning awards at Berlin and Sitges. His receipt of the Order of the Rising Sun in 2022 marked a rare official recognition for a filmmaker of his generation. With multiple lifetime achievement honors and a consistent international festival presence, Iwai's influence on Asian cinema is substantial.
Awards
Honours & Distinctions
Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette
Awarded for cultural contributions.
Honorary Doctorate
Honorary doctorate for contributions to film.
Key to the City of Sendai
Awarded for cultural achievements.
Rankings & Lists
100 Greatest Japanese Films
100 Greatest Japanese Films
100 Best Japanese Films of All Time
Greatest Films of All Time
Top 200 Japanese Films of All Time
Asia's Top 50 Filmmakers
Magazine Covers
Time Asia
April 2001
Japan's New Wave: Shunji Iwai
Cahiers du Cinéma
May 2002
Lily Chou-Chou: The Future of Cinema
Brutus (Japan)
October 2004
Iwai Shunji: The Poet of Youth
Vogue Japan
March 2016
Shunji Iwai: The Auteur of Emotion
GQ Japan
August 2018
Iwai's Return: Last Letter
Vanity Fair Italia
September 2020
The Gentle Vision of Shunji Iwai
Records & Feats
First Japanese director to win Japanese Academy Prize for Best Film, Best Director, and Best Screenplay for a debut feature
Iwai achieved this with Love Letter in 1996.
One of the few Japanese directors to have a film nominated for the Palme d'Or with a debut feature
Swallowtail Butterfly was nominated in 1996.