Born in Kumamoto Prefecture and graduating from Tokyo University, Ushihara joined the Shochiku studio in 1920 on the invitation of Kaoru Osanai.

[1] Starting out by helping on the script to Minoru Murata's Gorky-influenced Souls on the Road, he made his directorial debut in 1921 and later directed adaptations of such works as Victor Hugo's Les Misérables under the title Aa mujō.

[3] Between 1928 and 1932 he co-edited the journal Eiga kagaku kenkyū (Scientific Studies of Cinema) with Murata.

[2] He left Shōchiku in the early 1930s and worked at studios such as Nikkatsu, Shinkō Kinema and Daiei.

Quitting directing following the Second World War, he starting to teach filmmaking at institutions such as Nihon University.