THE WEAVERS OF NISHIJIN (1961)

Nishijin is an old quarter of Kyoto, home to craftsmen who specialise in the production of silk for kimonos. Matsumoto constructs a film-poem in the midst of the quarter’s maze of lanes and alleyways. The film won the Silver Lion for the best documentary at the Venice Festival.


THE SONG OF STONE (1963)

While extracting and polishing their blocks of stone, stonecutters used to say “the stone is coming to life". This paradox provided Matsumoto with the best metaphor for what making a film is all about. In his opinion, filmmakers work images in the same way that stonecutters work stones. Premiered in France, the film was enthusiastically received by the critics, particularly George Sadoul.


MOTHERS (1967)

"...So what I made was a lyrical, easy-to-understand film in the style of a cine poem... But in terms of the period, I did treat issues like the Vietnam War and discrimination against blacks, taking the point of view of mothers and children around the world and making a film where the contradictions between East and West, North and South, rose to the fore. Luckily--I don't know if you can say that--the result was that it took the grand prize at the 1967 Venice International Documentary Film Festival... and in fact it did give me the opportunity to make other films like the Funeral Parade of Roses."