[wao]

This totally flew past even Moonphase's radar, I think... However, it obviously made it to Catsuka and manganimation.net :P
But if it was posted about here before and a thread was made, please shoot me, and merge the threads.

NHK x 15 creators x 1 minute short = what?

Some of you may remember Genius Party - call this the shorter, on-air, more popular? version of it, perhaps. Maybe I'll mention the most recognizable names involved: Shoji Kawamori, Mamoru Oshii, Osamu Kobayashi, Satoshi Kon, Range Murata. Or perhaps you'll be delighted to know no less than the art director, director and character designer of Tekkon Kinkreet are involved. Or does the mention of Studio 4C get you hot and excited?

I'm busy doing so many things at one time my eyes are spinning, so I might update this later with more information.

Name: Ani*Kuri 15 (アニ＊クリ15) from Animator Creators (kurie-ta-) 15
Broadcast Date: Starts - 7 May 2007
Season 1 - May~August 2007 (tentative)
Season 2/3 - August 2007 onwards (tentative)
Broadcaster: NHK general
Official website: http://www.nhk.or.jp/ani-kuri/ (needs Flash)

So what the hell is this: 15 one-minute shorts created by various folks from the animation industry, airing on NHK. The plan is, I think to air them as 1-minute TV spots and they'd come on air in groups of 5 at a time, hence split into 3 seasons spanning one year. I believe what they mean is that in one season there'll be 5 on air, not necessarily at the same time but at different times. It seems like they're going to coordinate the general airing of these with a web site so if you miss it on TV you can watch it on the website? I sure as hell hope so.

The Staff: ...dude. Summary: Shinji Kimura, Osamu Kobayashi, Yasufumi Soejima, Shoujirou Nishimi, Akemi Hayashi, Mamoru Oshii, Tobira Oda, Yasuyuki Shimizu, Shoji Kawamori, Satoshi Kon, Makoto Shinkai, Atsushi Takeuchi, Michael Arias, Mahiro Maeda, Range Murata, Tatsuya Yabuta.

Season 1

Spoiler:

KIMURA Shinji 木村真二 +++ STUDIO 4C

Art director, originally from Kobayashi Productions (led by Shinichiro Kobayashi), now freelance. Representative work: Tekkon Kinkreet art direction. Born 1962 from Saitama.

Spoiler for More info:

Started out as a background art staff in "Cobra" and "Urusei Yatsura 2: Beautiful Dreamer", and debuted as art director in 1986 for "Project A-ko". After this he went on to be the art director for "Catnapped! The Movie" (aka Banipal Witt) and "Steamboy"; and his most recent and impressive work was as art director for "Tekkon Kinkreet" where he showed what he was truly made of. [Check out the BG art of Kinkreet here. Fucking hell, an artbook?!!!!]

Recently he has ventured beyond being an art director; by illustrating the picture-book "Hipira-kun" by Katsuhiro Otomo, and his recent directorial work "Deathtic 4" as part of Studio 4C's "Genius Party" omnibus.

KOBAYASHI Osamu 小林治 +++ MADHOUSE

Director/creative artist. BE WARNED: The ANN page lists 3 different Kobayashis. There are two anime directors called Kobayashi Osamu with exactly the same kanji; one is a veteran who was involved in Asia-do productions and Creamy Mami etc, but the one we're talking about here is born in 1964, best known as the director of Beck.

Spoiler for more info:

First became known for doing the world design and mech designs for Blue Submarine No. 6, he made a name for himself as the director of Beck and Paradise Kiss. He works in many fields: indie animation, commercial advertisements, anime and games; and he does a variety of jobs within these fields. For example, art and mech design for the Gungrave game, character and art design for the Toyota Aldeo and Norton Anti-Virus ads, set design and ED animation for Gad Guard, 2 EDs for Kaiketsu Zorori and the direction + animation of an independent short "Table&Fishman" by Studio 4C.

SOEJIMA Yasufumi ソエジマヤスフミ +++ GONZO

3D/CG director, born 1974 in Nagasaki. Digital Art director for Gankutsuou, director for the Kaleidostar Good da yo! Go~od! OVA and 3D director for LAST EXILE, and the director for the now-axed Murdock Scramble project.

NISHIMI Shoujirou 西見祥示郎 +++ STUDIO 4C

Notable animator with an unique style born in 1965 in Fukuoka. Character designer for Tekkon Kinkreet.

Spoiler for more info:

His drawings as an amateur were so full of originality that it became noticed among professionals, and joined the legendary Telecom Animation studio in 1985, starting off by working as a key animator and animation supervisor on foreign productions. (Batman?) After moving to Studio 4C he drew key animation for fellow Fukuoka-man Masaaki Yuasa's debut film MINDGAME. Following which he directed the movie-cut parts of the game "Gacha Mecha Stadium Saru Battle" and the animated section of director Tetsuya Nakashima's Shimotsuma Monogatari aka Kamikaze Girls. His most recent work was the character designs and animation supervision of Studio 4C's film Tekkon Kinkreet.

HAYASHI Akemi 林明美 +++ GAINAX

Another animator, who, as a female, is not giving out her birthyear but draws in a rather shoujo style. Animation/character design for PEACE MAKER Kurogane.

Spoiler for more info:

Entered Yumeta Company in 1992. Debuted as an animator in O~i Ryouma, and went freelance in 1996. Her character designs and type of lines have earned her her fans, and currently she's working with Gainax as an animation director. Previous works include animation supervisor for the Utena movie, character designer for Fruits Basket, storyboard + direction + animation supervisor for Sister Princess RePure Characters Alia (I dunno?), animation designs for PMK. Her most recent work is animation and character animation supervision in episode 3 of Gainax's Top wo Nerae 2.

Season 2 + 3

Spoiler:

OSHII Mamoru 押井守 +++ PRODUCTION I.G.

Do I need to explain this? No? I thought so.

ODA Tobira 小田扉 & SHIMIZU Yasuyuki 清水保行 +++ STUDIO 4C

Oda is a mangaka born in Kanagawa in 1975. Best known for Danchi Tomoo.

Spoiler for more info:

He started out as a doujinshi artist during his university days and debuted as a mangaka in 1999 with the manga Wada-ke serialised in the weekly magazine Morning. His current work is the uncannily charming and unique Danchi Tomoo serialized in the weekly Big Comic Spirits magazine, which was a finalist in the 2006 Osamu Tezuka Cultural Award. Another work of his is Sotto Sukareru (そっと好かれる).

Shimizu is an animator born in 1965 in Shizuoka. Has done some episodes of Mahou Shoujo Tai aka Tweeny Witches.

Spoiler for more info:

He's participated as a key animator in both Naruto movies, and animation director for Spriggan and Ryuutarou Nakamura's Legend of Crystania movie. Currently he's at Studio 4C, where he previously did 2 two-minute eps of Kimagure Robot, and more recently 4 episodes of Mahou Shoujo Tai Arusu. He's also done the character design for the game Jean d'Arc.

KAWAMORI Shoji 河森正治 +++ SATELIGHT

You fail if you need me to explain this.

KON Satoshi 今敏 +++ MADHOUSE

Ditto.

SHINKAI Makoto 新海誠 +++ COMIX WAVE FILM

I love how this saves me the trouble of writing.

TAKEUCHI Atsushi 竹内敦志 +++ PRODUCTION I.G.

A mechanical designer born in Fukuoka in 1965. The ANN entry has got at least two people mixed up in there, but I remember for him doing the mech designs for IGPX.

Spoiler for more info:

Did the mech designs for both GITS movies, having done key animation and animation layout for the first one as well, was the 3D director for Yukikaze and IGPX (which he did mech designs for as well). Most recently he did the mech designs for Reideen.

NAKAZAWA Kazuto 中澤一登 +++ STUDIO 4C

An animator born 1969 in Niigata. Samurai Champloo's character designer.

Spoiler for more info:

Started out at Madhouse, is freelance now. He has a particularly sharp line and sense of design. Not just SamCham, but Kacho Oji (...what was the English name, Black Heaven?) and Ashita no Nadja both had character designs by him. He's proved his skill in directing with his creative power as well, such as directing one of the Kill Bill animation parts and key animation for the various Animatrix shorts, doing Linkin' Park's Breakin' the habit music video as well as the 2nd OP of Blood+ (yeh, the one with the butt-shaking). Most recent work of his I have seen is Devil Inside, one of 4C's Fluximation PVs for Utada Hikaru. If you can read Japanese, a rather comprehensive list of his works is here

Michael ARIAS +++ STUDIO 4C

Yeah, it's an American! The director of Tekkon Kinkreet no less, born in California in 1968.

Spoiler for more info:

Took part in the production of James Cameron's Abyss movie at the age of 19. He's been involved in various CG and special effects productions, and developed what's written here as the revolutionary "Toon Shader" software for digital animation. He was the one who coordinated the production of the Animatrix shorts, and bless his soul for that. He debuted as a director with Studio 4C's Tekkon Kinkreet movie.

MAEDA Mahiro 前田真宏+++ GONZO

A director born in Tottori in 1963... oh, can I just say the founder of GONZO, director of Gankutsuou, and then get on with it?
Old man: Get on with it.
MrPr****: Yes, get on with it.
Thread readers: Yes, get on with it!
Oh, but I am enjoying this post.
NoSan*****a: Get on with it!

MURATA Range 村田蓮爾 & YABUTA Tatsuya 籔田達也+++ GONZO

Murata is an illustrator/designer born in 1968 in Osaka. Let's just say "character designer for LAST EXILE", and the artbook "robot", and continue "getting on with it".

Yabuta is a director born in Tokyo in 1972. He's done the direction for 3DCG animated cutscenes from games like FF7: Dirge of Cerberus, and FF8.

It appears that some sites have said this was initiated by Mamoru Oshii, but I've read a few blogs talking about this (including Mahiro Maeda's INUBOE) and it's all about "starting with Oshii" but not "started by Oshii". If he didn't really start it then it's just a case of everyone worshipping Oshii again...

And for those of you who want less info and more pics, the only two pics available for now are found over here, which is where 90% of the information above was translated from .
The top picture is a scene from the short by Soejima Yasufumi, and the second from the imageboard by Kimura Shinji.