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Kitao Sakurai

Kitao Sakurai

Director, writer and actor, also cinematographer · Born January 1, 1983 (43) · Kinugasa, Kyoto, Japan

Primetime Emmy nominee

Kitao Sakurai (born 1983) is a Japanese-American actor, writer, producer, and film and television director. He is known for directing the 2021 Netflix film Bad Trip. Description above from the Wikipedia article Kitao Sakurai, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 1, 1983 (43)
From
Kinugasa, Kyoto, Japan
Works as
Director, writer and actor, also cinematographer
Titles
11 on MovieCove · 22 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Up 59% in 30 days

What are Kitao Sakurai's films like?

Across their 5 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Bonds.

Themes

share of theme weight
Survival
28%
Bonds
26%
Morality
23%
Self
11%
Society
7%
Power
5%
Friendship3 titles, browse their movies with this themeBetrayal2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 4 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Wry: How sincerely it treats its story and characters, from ironic to earnest. Browse their wry movies.
Tone · Sincerity
ironicearnest

A split, not a type: Ironic 1 · Wry 1 · Earnest 2

Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 2 · Serious 0 · Dark 2

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

A split, not a type: Grounded 2 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 1

Intense: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their intense movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 0 · Charged 1 · Intense 3

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 0 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 1

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 2 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 2

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

A split, not a type: Slow burn 1 · Even-paced 1 · Relentless 2

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 4 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 0

Affecting: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their affecting movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

A split, not a type: Easy watch 2 · Affecting 0 · Heavy 2

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

A split, not a type: Resolved 3 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
3
Manic
2
Thrilling
2
Melancholic
2
Dread
2
Other
4

How their films linger

Unsettling3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy1
  • Bittersweet1
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous2

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Kitao Sakurai's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 9 of their 11 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Kitao Sakurai's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

22 credits, 11 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.

  • Street Fighter(2026)

    Director · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Butterfly(2025)

    Show 2 episodes · Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all shows

  • Twisted Metal(2023)

    Show 10 episodes · Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all shows

  • Beef(2023)

    Show 8 episodes · Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all shows

  • Culture Beat (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)

    Show 1 episode · Director · Creator

  • The Premise (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Show 1 episode · Director

  • Bad Trip(2021)

    Director · Screenplay · Story · as Self

    Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films

  • Dave(2020)

    Show 5 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all shows

  • KRFT PUNK'S Political Party! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Creative Consultant

  • The Passage (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)

    Director · Writer

  • Unemployable (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Director · Executive Producer

  • The Eric Andre New Year's Eve Spooktacular (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    Director · Writer

  • We Are the Hartmans (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    as Music Video Director

  • The Eric Andre Show(2012)

    Show 60 episodes · Director · Creative Consultant · Executive Producer · Writer · as Self

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all shows

  • Treatment (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)

    as Tennis Instructor

  • Aardvark(2010)

    Director · Writer · as Darius Szopa

    Midcredits score: 37th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • You Wont Miss Me(2009)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films

  • Circledrawers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)

    Grip

  • Coda (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Director · Executive Producer · Screenplay

  • Dogma(1999)

    as Stygian Triplet

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films

  • The Best Bad Thing (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)

    as Zenny Hata

  • Best of the Best 3: No Turning Back(1995)

    as Justin Banning

    Midcredits score: 17th percentile of all films

Career shape

A full career of 22 titles from 1995 to 2026.

Biggest box office

You Wont Miss Me (2009)

$2.2K worldwide

Highest rated

Bad Trip (2021)

Midcredits 61st

Most popular right now

Street Fighter (2026)

Film career

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting6 of 22: 5 only acting, 1 with another roleDirecting14 of 22: 2 only directing, 12 with another role · typical Midcredits score63rdWriting7 of 22: 0 only writing, 7 with another roleProducing6 of 22: 0 only producing, 6 with another roleCinematography1 of 22: 1 only cinematography, 0 with another roleOther crew4 of 22: 2 only other crew, 2 with another role

22 titles, 12 with more than one role — directing and writing overlap on 7 of them.

By decade

1990s3 · acting2000s3 · crew2010s8 · 3 acting · 6 crew2020s8 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

Awards

2 major nominations and no wins, 2024–2026.

  1. 2026
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series
  2. 2024
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Short Form Comedy, Drama or Variety Series

Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.

How do Kitao Sakurai's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 47th percentile, the median of all 6; across a limited sample of 4 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 49th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

49thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 4

Approval · how many liked their films

45thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 4

Reach · how many have seen their films

62ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 4

Midcredits score across 11 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up4
  • 50th to 74th3
  • 25th to 49th2
  • Below 25th2

Shape of the crowd

5 of their 11 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved2
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser5
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed2

Most divisive · actor, director, writer

Aardvark (2010)

83rd percentile spread · 36% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor, director, writer, producer

The Eric Andre Show (2012)

Midcredits 94th · 88% liked

Reviewers score the pacing 39/100 in their films, across 3 reviewed titles; fans 52, detractors 23. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Kitao Sakurai's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 3 MovieCove titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Sex & Nudity3 titlesmedian 48 · moderateMedian of all films: 32

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does Kitao Sakurai work with?

People who share at least 2 of Kitao Sakurai's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Andrew Barchilon shares the most, 3.

Actors

Composers

Producers