MEETING A NIKKATSU DIRECTOR! Breaking Bread with the Man Who Directed Strada 5's Pilot Episode!

Director Yukihiro Sawada. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Tonight, I was privileged to meet Nikkatsu director Yukihiro Sawada, who specialized in directing some of the studio's more erotic output during the 1970s. I must admit that I'm rather unfamiliar with his work in that area, but one of his credits that is of interest to me is the 13-episode TV series Strada 5 (1974), of which he directed only the pilot episode.

It's not every day that one has the chance to meet the director of an obscure Super Sentai-esque TV series (although it predates Super Sentai by a year), so I was sure to seize the opportunity. I'm glad I did!