Eiji Okada (1920-1995) was a Japanese actor whose film career, while rooted in national cinema, achieved international fame thanks to iconic roles in auteur films.

His renown grew enormously with Alain Resnais's *Hiroshima Mon Amour* (1959), where he portrayed a Japanese architect in a complex relationship with a French actress. It was further solidified with Hiroshi Teshigahara's masterpiece, *Woman in the Dunes* (1964), in the role of an entomologist trapped in a sand dune.

Okada distinguished himself by his ability to portray complex characters, often tormented, intellectual, or introspective. His acting was characterized by a profound emotional intensity, expressed with subtlety and a veiled melancholy. Despite having appeared in numerous Japanese and international films, these two roles defined his image as an actor capable of exploring the depths of the human soul and existential themes.