Kazuo Sagawa

Kazuo Sagawa Born October 29, 1939 Kanagawa, Japan Occupation Special effects director First work Monkey Sun (1959) Notable work Ultra Series (until 2002), Mighty Jack (TV 1968)

Kazuo Sagawa (佐川 和夫,   Sagawa Kazuo) is a Japanese special effects director best recognized for his work with Tsuburaya Productions (TsuPro) and Toei. A student of Eiji Tsuburaya since 1959, Sagawa was an immediate employee of TsuPro upon its foundation in 1963. He worked first as a cameraman, making his debut as a special effects director on episode 4 of the company's Mighty Jack. Sagawa notably directed effects for eight shows in the Ultra Series over a span of three decades, as well as numerous other TsuPro series. Between 1979 and 1996, he worked on five productions for Toei, including two Super Sentai shows and the Kamen Rider film Eight Riders vs. King Galaxy. He has also directed the effects for several foreign–Japanese co-productions.

Selected filmography

Special effects assistant camera

Note: All work under this heading was uncredited.

• Monkey Sun (1959)
• The Three Treasures (1959)
• Mothra (1961)
• The Last War (1961)
• King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)
• Ultra Q (TV 1966) [unknown number of episodes]

Special effects cinematographer

• Ultraman (TV 1966–1967) [episodes 1, 4, 6–39]
  • Ultraman (1979) [stock footage]
  • Ultraman: Great Monster Battle (1979) [stock footage]
  • Ultraman Zoffy (1984) [stock footage; uncredited]
  • Hanuman Meets Eleven Ultramen (1984) [stock footage; uncredited]
  • Space Warriors 2000 (1985) [stock footage; uncredited]
• Ultraseven (TV 1967–1968) [episodes 4, 6–7, 10–11, 17–20, 23]
• Mighty Jack (TV 1968) [episodes 1–2, 9]
• Return of Ultraman (TV 1971–1972) [episodes 1–7, 9]
• Ultraman Story (1984) [stock footage from Ultraman and Ultraseven; uncredited]

Cinematographer

• Monster Booska (TV 1966–1967) [episodes 23, 26–27, 29, 31, 33–34, 37, 42, 45]
• Chibira (TV 1970–1971) [unknown number of episodes]
• Return of Ultraman (TV 1971–1972) [episodes 1–4, 8, 10–12]
• The Unbalance Zone (TV 1973) [episode 8]

Director of special effects

• Mighty Jack (TV 1968) [episodes 4–5, 7, 10, 12]
• Fight! Mighty Jack (TV 1968) [episodes 2–3, 7, 12–13, 16–18, 21–22, 25–26]
• Operation: Mystery (TV 1968–1969) [episodes 20, 22, 26]
• Return of Ultraman (TV 1971–1972) [episodes 13–14, 18–19, 28–29, 34–36, 41–42, 45–46]
• Mirror Man (TV 1971–1972) [episodes 32–33]
• Ultraman Ace (TV 1972–1973) [episodes 1–4, 7–8, 11–14, 19–20, 28–29, 32–33, 45–46]
• Fireman (TV 1973) [episodes 1–6, 8–9, 17–18, 22–24, 27–30]
• The Unbalance Zone (TV 1973) [episodes 12–13]
• Jumborg Ace (TV 1973) [episode 50; with Yoshiyuki Yoshimura]
• Ultraman Taro (TV 1973–1974) [episodes 1, 24–25]
• Jumborg Ace and Giant (1974) [uncredited; with Sompote Sands]
  • Mars Men (1976) [stock footage; uncredited]
• Army of the Apes (TV 1974–1975) [all 26 episodes]
• Hanuman and the Seven Ultramen (1974) [with Sompote Sands]
• The Last Dinosaur (1977)
• The Bermuda Depths (1978) [as Mark Sagawa]
• Space Wolf (TV 1978) [all 24 episodes]
• Monkey (TV 1978–1980) [episodes 11–12, 29–30, 33–34, 36, 51–52]
• Ultraman: Great Monster Battle (1979) [stock footage from Ultraman Ace and Ultraman Taro; uncredited]
• Crocodile (1980) [uncredited; with Sompote Sands]
• Ultraman 80 (TV 1980–1981) [episodes 17–18, 21–22, 25–26, 29–30, 33–34, 37–38, 41–42, 46–47, 50]
• Ultraman Zoffy (1984) [stock footage from Ultraman Ace and Ultraman Taro; uncredited]
• Ultraman Story (1984) [stock footage from Ultraman Ace and Ultraman 80]
• Hanuman Meets Eleven Ultramen (1984) [stock footage from Ultraman Ace, Ultraman Taro, and Hanuman and the Seven Ultramen; uncredited]
• Space Warriors 2000 (1985) [stock footage from Ultraman Ace, Ultraman Taro, and Hanuman and the Seven Ultramen; uncredited]
• The Cat (1991) [with Shinji Higuchi]
• Gridman (TV 1993–1994) [all 39 episodes]
  • Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad (TV 1994–1995) [stock footage; all 53 episodes]
• Ultraman Tiga (TV 1996–1997) [episodes 47–48]
• Ultraman Dyna (TV 1997–1998) [episodes 3–4, 9–10, 17–18, 23–24, 27–28, 33–34, 38–40]
• Ultraman Gaia (TV 1998–1999) [episodes 1–2, 7–8, 13–14, 21–22, 27–28, 35–36, 43–44, 50–51]
• Ultraman Cosmos (TV 2001–2002) [episodes 1–3, 10, 15–16, 21–22, 26, 29–30, 39–42, 51–54, 63–65]
• Ultraman Cosmos: The First Contact (2001)

Director

• Ultraman・Ultra Seven: Giant Monster Extreme Battle (1969)
• "Hayabusa" (1971)
• Cyber Cop (1989)

Planner

Note: All work under this heading was uncredited.

• Jumborg Ace (TV 1973)
• Ultraman Leo (TV 1974–1975)
• Aztecaser (TV 1976–1977)
• The Ultraman (TV 1979–1980)

Miscellaneous

• The Ultraman (TV 1979–1980) – Advisor [uncredited]
• Tokyo Blackout (1987) – Special effects supervisor [with Takeshi Miyanishi]
• The Origin of Ultraman (2026) – Interviewee

Gallery

• 
  Sagawa (left) with Hajime Tsuburaya on the set of Ultraman

Trivia

• Though Sagawa never entered the Godzilla series, he was slated to direct the special effects for the unmade 1970s Toho–Tsuburaya co-production Godzilla vs. Red Moon.

External links

• Kazuo Sagawa on the Ultraman Wiki

References

This is a list of references for Kazuo Sagawa. These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: ^[1]

Bibliography

• Miike, Toshio (March 2013). "The Organizations That Supported 'Tokusatsu TV Series'". Survey on Japanese Special Effects (PDF). Mori Building Company. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2026.
• Sagawa, Kazuo (10 July 2024). Tokusatsu Legend Oral Histories: Special Effects Director Kazuo Sagawa (PDF). Interviewed by Higuchi, Shinji; Haraguchi, Tomoo; Miike, Toshio. Tokusatsu Culture Promotion Project Executive Committee.

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