The Japanese film industry lost much of its viewership to television through the 1960s and, in order to avoid bankruptcy, Nikkatsu shut down regular productions in August 1971, and in November began producing low cost Roman Pornos, romantic softcore pornography films. Kimura left Nikkatsu a couple years later in 1973 to work freelance. He has continued to work steadily outside of the studio system and has since worked with a wide selection of directors including auteur Mitsuo Yanagimachi and multiple collaborations with Kazuo Kuroki and Kaizo Hayashi. Stylistically, he continues to vary between the surrealistic, as in his subsequent collaborations with Suzuki, and the realistic, including his films with Kei Kumai. Kimura directed two short films in 2004, and the release of Mugen Sasurai (2004) afforded him the oldest directorial debut at age 86. Following a third and four short film, he directed his first feature-length film at age 90, Dreaming Awake (2008), for which he was recognized by Guinness World Records for "the oldest debut as a feature film director". The film was based on his own novel, which touches on autobiographical elements, and more closely resembles his surrealistic collaborations with Suzuki—who appears in the film as an actor—than his more realistic art direction.
