An original Japanese “speed size” promotional sheet for Yasujirō Ozu’s Early Summer (麦秋 / Bakushū), issued by Shōchiku for the film’s first release campaign in 1951.
This is an ultra rare exhibitor-style publicity / press piece from Shōchiku Eiga Press (松竹映画プレス) No. 188, produced for cinema promotion and filled with period graphics, cast portraits, credits, production text, advertising copy, and editorial-style studio material. Pieces of this kind were made for practical promotional use and were not intended to survive in large numbers, making them especially desirable to collectors of early Japanese cinema ephemera and Yasujirō Ozu material.
About the Film (Early Summer)
Released in 1951, Early Summer is one of Ozu’s most celebrated postwar works and a central film in his mature period. The drama follows Noriko Mamiya and her extended family as questions of marriage, duty, independence, and generational expectation quietly reshape the household.
Less overtly dramatic than many family melodramas of the period, the film is deeply characteristic of Ozu’s art: restrained, humane, and exacting in its observation of domestic life. Through low camera positions, carefully balanced interiors, elliptical storytelling, and moments of everyday ritual, Ozu transforms an ordinary family situation into a profound meditation on change, separation, and acceptance.
Made between Late Spring and Tokyo Story, Early Summer is often regarded as one of the key works in Ozu’s great postwar sequence, and remains a highly important title for collectors of serious Japanese cinema material.
This double-sided piece features Early Summer prominently:
Front / Colour Side: A striking period design with a large green-toned photographic composition of two female figures, the Shōchiku emblem, bold calligraphic title 麦秋, Ozu director credit, and the printed line 松竹映画 PRESS NO. 188 along the lower margin. The right section includes campaign text, promotional copy, illustrated cast groupings, and related Shōchiku advertising, giving the sheet strong visual and historical presence despite its modest format.
Reverse / Monochrome Side: A dedicated press-feature layout with extensive Japanese text, full staff and cast credits, a production still, character illustrations, promotional headlines, and article-style publicity material presenting the film as a major new Ozu production. The reverse also refers to Ozu’s earlier success Late Spring, positioning Early Summer within the director’s acclaimed postwar body of work.
Note: As was typical for this kind of exhibitor press / promotional sheet, the design combines advertising copy, cast and staff details, still photography, illustration, and editorial-style studio promotion on the same paper. These elements are part of the original and authentic publication format.
Film: Early Summer (麦秋 / Bakushū / Bakushu)
Director: Yasujirō Ozu
Country of Origin: Japan
Studio / Publisher: Shōchiku / Shōchiku Eiga Press (松竹映画プレス)
Issue Number: No. 188
Year: 1951 — original release year / first campaign-era piece
Format: Original Japanese speed poster / press sheet, double-sided
Size: c. 25 × 52 cm / approx. 9.8 × 20.5 in
Authenticity: Original vintage printing — not a reproduction
This is a genuine vintage paper item from the early 1950s.
Condition
Excellent. Please review the photos — they show the exact poster for sale.
It is over 74 years old!
