About this season
Meet the real stars of Japanese animation. From crayons to CGI, discover the techniques and inspirations of some of Japan's most amazing animators.
Episodes (9)
1. Tradition Meets Cutting-edge Computer Graphics
Aired 7 April 2018 • 15 min
Shuhei Morita is a renowned digital animator who brings a distinctively Asian aesthetic to his magic realist works. He got his break thanks to one of Japan's most revered animators, and today plans projects and directs TV anime at his own CGI production company.
2. Creating Graceful Motion with CGI
Aired 5 May 2018 • 15 min
Kouhei Nakama is a computer animator who is in high demand around the world. From ultra-realistic abstract objects to beautiful depictions of the human body, Nakama focuses on imagery that catches the eye, as well as on a sense of liveliness -- every detail is given its own set of movements.
3. Comical Shenanigans on the Web
Aired 2 June 2018 • 15 min
Keisuke Matsumoto has a passionate online fan base thanks to his 2 ongoing web animated series. His works are known for their cute characters and comic dialogue, which is inspired by a Japanese two-person comedy routine known as manzai.
4. A Master of Metamorphosis
Aired 7 July 2018 • 15 min
Masaki Okuda is an animator who uses metamorphosis to create a satisfying harmony of music and movement -- and to demonstrate his boundless creativity. Although his preference is for hand-drawn art, he is skilled at producing digital imagery that retains the aesthetic qualities of his hand-drawn work.
5. Bright, Cute Entertainment for Everyone
Aired 4 August 2018 • 15 min
Jun Aoki creates anime intended to entertain viewers with bright characters. His stories are simple, and they feature setups designed for laughs. Since launching his own anime studio 12 years ago, Aoki has produced original animated works, as well as ads for corporations and local governments.
6. Crafting Entire Worlds Out of Paper
Aired 1 September 2018 • 15 min
Hoji Tsuchiya specializes in cutout animation. This technique gives him the freedom to create some truly inventive visual worlds, defined by a harmonious synchronization of music and movement.
7. A Creator of Imaginative Stop-Motion Worlds
Aired 6 October 2018 • 15 min
Tomoki Misato is a young up-and-coming animator who has already won numerous awards at festivals around the world. He creates stop-motion animations featuring colorfully designed puppets and stories with plenty of twists and turns.
8. Breathing Life into 3D Characters
Aired 3 November 2018 • 15 min
Hiroshi Miyamoto is an up-and-coming director at a major animation company who has helmed 2 feature-length films based on the Pretty Cure anime series. He uses cutting-edge technology to bring his 3D characters to life.
9. Frenetic Pop Art Landscapes
Aired 1 December 2018 • 15 min
NuQ is a popular artist who works primarily in fashion advertising and music videos. She uses colorful hand-drawn animations that move at a rapid pace to present the world as she sees it through her unique perspective.