is a Japanese animation director. Until the early 2000s, he was a staff member of the

anime is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...

studio

Sunrise Sunrise (or sunup) is the moment when the upper rim of the Sun appears on the horizon in the morning. The term can also refer to the entire process of the solar disk crossing the horizon and its accompanying atmospheric effects. Terminology ...

, where he collaborated with

Shoji Kawamori A is a door, window or room divider used in traditional Japanese architecture, consisting of translucent (or transparent) sheets on a lattice frame. Where light transmission is not needed, the similar but opaque ''fusuma'' is used (oshiire/ ...

to direct his most famous work, ''

The Vision of Escaflowne is a 26- episode Japanese anime television series created by Shōji Kawamori and Sunrise Studios and directed by Kazuki Akane. It premiered in Japan on April 2, 1996 on TV Tokyo, and the final episode aired on September 24, 1996. Sony' ...

''. Since that time, he worked extensively with Satelight (and occasionally again with Kawamori, who is the studio's executive director) before going freelance once more to direct the ''

Birdy the Mighty is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masami Yuki. His initial attempt with the story ran in Shogakukan's ''Shōnen Sunday Zōkan'' from 1985 to 1988, but it was eventually abandoned. Over a decade later, Yuki began a rebo ...

'' TV series, among other projects.

List of works

*'' Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ'' series (1986–1987) - Production Runner (numerous episodes) *'' Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack'' movie (1988) - Production Runner *''

Jushin Liger , better known as and later , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist, currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He is the longest-tenured member of the NJPW roster, having wrestled for the company since h ...

'' series (1989–1990) - Episode Director *''

Dragon Quest previously published as ''Dragon Warrior'' in North America until 2005, is a franchise of Japanese role-playing video games created by Armor Project ( Yuji Horii), Bird Studio (Akira Toriyama) and Sugiyama Kobo ( Koichi Sugiyama) to its pu ...

'' series (1989–1991) - Storyboard Artist (episode 17) *''

Future GPX Cyber Formula is a Japanese futuristic motorsports anime television series produced by Asatsu-DK, VAP and Sunrise. The series originally aired between March 15 and December 20, 1991 on Nippon TV and was later followed by four OVA series respectively t ...

'' series (1991) - Storyboard Artist, Unit Director *''

Mobile Suit Gundam F91 is a 1991 anime film. It was ''Gundam'' creator Yoshiyuki Tomino's attempt to launch a new ''Gundam'' saga, set 30 years after ''Char's Counterattack''. He re-teamed with character designer Yoshikazu Yasuhiko and mecha designer Kunio Okawara for ...

'' movie (1991) - Assistant Director *'' Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory'' OVA series (1991–1992) - Unit Director *'' Dirty Pair Flash: Mission III'' OVA series (1995–1996) - Storyboard Artist (episode 2) *''

'' series (1996) - Director, Storyboard Artist (numerous episodes), Unit Director (episode 24) *'' Cowboy Bebop'' series (1998–1999) - Storyboard Artist (episode 3) *'' Turn A Gundam'' series (1999–2000) - Storyboard Artist *'' Escaflowne: A Girl in Gaea'' movie (2000) - Director, Script (with Ryota Yamaguchi) *'' Geneshaft'' series (2001) - Director, Storyboard Artist, Planner *''

Heat Guy J is a Japanese anime television series created and directed by '' Escaflowne'' director Kazuki Akane and animated by Satelight. ''Heat Guy J'' was licensed and distributed in the U.S. in 2003 by Pioneer (which subsequently became Geneon Ent ...

'' series (2002–2003) - Original Creator, Director, Screenplay, Storyboard Artist, Planner *''

Samurai Champloo is a 2004 Japanese historical adventure anime television series. The debut television production of studio Manglobe, the 26-episode series aired from May 2004 to March 2005. It was first partially broadcast on Fuji TV, then had a complete ...

'' series (2004–2005) - Storyboard Artist *'' Genesis of Aquarion'' series (2005) - Storyboard Artist (episode 2) *''

Noein , also known simply as ''Noein'', is a Japanese science fiction anime television series directed by Kazuki Akane and produced by Satelight. The series has 24 episodes which make up a complete storyline. The English version was produced and du ...

'' series (2005) - Original Creator, Director, Series Composition, Script (episodes 1, 2, 16), Episode Director (episode 24), Storyboard Artist (opening credits, 1, 2, 16, 24) *''

Ergo Proxy ''Ergo Proxy'' is a Japanese cyberpunk anime television series, produced by Manglobe, directed by Shūkō Murase and written by Dai Satō. The series ran for 23 episodes from February to August 2006 on the Wowow satellite network. It is ...

'' series (2006) - Storyboard Artist (episode 20) *'' Birdy the Mighty Decode'' series (2008), Director *'' Code Geass: Akito the Exiled'' (2012–2016) - Director, Script *'' Stars Align'' (2019), Director

References

External links

* * 1962 births People from Osaka Anime directors Japanese animators Japanese animated film directors Living people Sunrise (company) people Chiba Institute of Technology alumni {{Japan-artist-stub