The is given annually by the Directors Guild of Japan to a new director of a film released that year who is considered the most "suitable" for the award.[1] [2] The winner is selected by a committee formed of DGJ members. All formats—feature film, documentary, television, video, etc.—are eligible for consideration. In some years when there was no apparent winner, the Guild only issued a "citation" or did not give out the award. Multiple awards have been given in other years. With a long history, many of Japan's major postwar directors have received the award, including Nagisa Ōshima, Susumu Hani, Yoshimitsu Morita, Masayuki Suo, Takeshi Kitano, and Shunji Iwai.[3]
Recipients of the Directors Guild of Japan New Directors Award[4]
| Year | Winner | Film | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Cruel Story of Youth | |||
| 1961 | Bad Boys | |||
| 1962 | Foundry Town | |||
| 1963 | No award | |||
| 1964 | No award | |||
| 1965 | Nihon Rettō | |||
| 1966 | Yakuza (893) Gurentai | |||
| 1967 | ||||
| 1968 | No award | |||
| 1969 | Oretachi no Kōya | Citation only | ||
| 1970 | Summer in Narita | |||
| 1971 | Yasashii Nipponjin | |||
| 1972 | Citation only | |||
| 1973 | Citation only | |||
| 1974 | No award | |||
| 1975 | No award | |||
| 1976 | Futatsu no Hāmonika | Citation only | ||
| 1977 | Hoshizora no Marionetto | |||
| 1978 | No award | |||
| 1979 | Keiko | |||
| 1980 | Muddy River | Citation only | ||
| 1981 | Gaki Teikoku | Citation only | ||
| 1982 | No award | |||
| 1983 | The Family Game | |||
| 1984 | No award | |||
| 1985 | Early Spring Story | |||
| 1986 | The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On | |||
| 1987 | Robinson's Garden | |||
| 1988 | Yun's Town | |||
| 1989 | Dotsuitarunen | Two winners | ||
| 1989 | Untamagiru | Two winners | ||
| 1990 | Boiling Point | Two winners; citation only | ||
| 1990 | Shimaguni Konjō | Two winners; citation only | ||
| 1991 | Sumo Do, Sumo Don't | |||
| 1992 | The Games Teachers Play | Multiple winners | ||
| 1992 | Pineapple Tours | Multiple winners | ||
| 1992 | Pineapple Tours | Multiple winners | ||
| 1992 | Pineapple Tours | Multiple winners | ||
| 1993 | Fireworks, Should We See It from the Side or the Bottom? | Two winners | ||
| 1993 | My Wife Is Filipina | Two winners | ||
| 1994 | This Window Is Yours | |||
| 1995 | Berlin | |||
| 1996 | Two People Talking | |||
| 1997 | Twentieth Century Nostalgia | |||
| 1998 | Pornostar | |||
| 1999 | Moonlight Whispers Don't Look Back | |||
| 2000 | Boy's Choir | |||
| 2001 | Scoutman aka Pain | |||
| 2002 | Through the Night | |||
| 2003 | Chirusoku no Natsu | |||
| 2004 | Dogs & Cats | |||
| 2005 | The Soup, One Morning | |||
| 2006 | Kazoku no Hiketsu | |||
| 2007 | German + Rain | |||
| 2008 | One Million Yen Girl | |||
| 2009 | 8000 Miles | [5] | ||
| 2010 | Kenta to Jun to Kayo-chan no Kuni | [6] | ||
| 2011 | Death of a Japanese Salesman | [7] | ||
| 2012 | Doko ni mo ikenai | [8] | ||
| 2013 | Hakoiri musuko no koi | [9] | ||
| 2014 | About the Pink Sky | [10] | ||
| 2015 | Pieta in the Toilet | |||
| 2016 | Ken and Kazu | |||
| 2017 | The Blooming | [11] | ||
| 2018 | Shinichiro Ueda | One Cut of the Dead | ||
| 2019 | Toshiyuki Teruya | Senkotsu | ||
| 2020 | HIKARI | 37 Seconds | ||
| 2021 | Shinzo Katayama | Sagasu |