木下惠介
The beginnings of the "shomin-geki" are assigned to the Shochiku film studio and its director Yasujirō Shimazu. Yasujirō Ozu (1903–1963), a former assistant of Shimazu, and Mikio Naruse (1905–1969) are two prominent directors considered to work primarily in the field of the "shomin-geki". Others include Heinosuke Gosho, Keisuke Kinoshita, and occasionally Kenji Mizoguchi.