As a student, teacher, writer and translator, John Nathan has lived more than ten years in Japan. He has written screenplays for leading Japanese directors, and has acted on the Tokyo stage. His translations of the works of Yukio Mishima and Kenzaburo Oe, and his biography of Mishima, are major contributions to American studies of contemporary Japanese fiction. The Blind Swordsman is one of three hour-long documentaries written and directed by Nathan on contemporary Japan.