is a Japanese

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

, director and

manga artist A manga artist, also known as a mangaka (), is a Cartoonist, comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist before entering the indus ...

. She is one of the most prolific writers currently working in the

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

industry. She won the 16th Animation Kobe Award. Among her credits, Okada is best known for her writing and producing work on acclaimed

series and films, including '' Toradora!'', '' Anohana'', '' Gosick'', '' The Pet Girl of Sakurasou'', '' Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms'', and her original

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

series and its anime adaptation '' O Maidens in Your Savage Season''.

Early life

Okada was born in Chichibu, Saitama. She has stated that she was often bullied at school and was thus truant to deal with

social anxiety Social anxiety is the anxiety and fear specifically linked to being in social settings (i.e., interacting with others). Some categories of disorders associated with social anxiety include anxiety disorders, mood disorders, autism spectrum dis ...

. She would consequently spend most of her time alone at home writing stories. She believes that it gradually helped with her anxiety and resocializing. She has also stated that no one in her life "had high hopes for her" and that, as a senior, she was repeatedly told that she “would not survive in the real world.” She went on to enroll at the Tokyo Amusement Media School to study

entertainment industry Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and Interest (emotion), interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but it is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have deve ...

and

game design Game design is the process of creating and shaping the mechanics, systems, rules, and gameplay of a game. Game design processes apply to board games, card games, dice games, casino games, role-playing games, sports, Wargame (video games), war ga ...

Career

Through her studies, Okada developed a passion for screenwriting, but found it difficult to take it seriously as a profession due to her social anxiety. Her earliest jobs included creating scenarios for

direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, television series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strat ...

pornography Pornography (colloquially called porn or porno) is Sexual suggestiveness, sexually suggestive material, such as a picture, video, text, or audio, intended for sexual arousal. Made for consumption by adults, pornographic depictions have evolv ...

and transcribing interviews for a magazine. It was through this latter job that she met Tetsurō Amino, who asked her to contribute some of her ideas for the plot of DT Eightron. She went on to write the script for five episodes, and the connection with Amino helped in kickstarting her career. Okada pitched an idea for her first original anime, based on her experience. The screenplay was unpublished, but several elements of it would be used in some of her works. After several years, her reputation within the industry had grown considerably, with the screenplay for numerous successful series. Okada wrote the script for her directorial debut anime film '' Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms''. It was well received by critics and was awarded the prize for best animated film at the 21st Shanghai International Film Festival.

Works

Manga

*'' O Maidens in Your Savage Season'' (2016–2019; writer) * ''Shisutarejisuta'' (2024–) - Collaboration with Makoto Ojiro.

Television

*'' DT Eightron'' (1998; screenplay, eps. 9, 15, 17, 20, 22) *'' Angel Tales'' (2001; screenplay, eps. 1-13) *'' Crush Gear Nitro'' (2003; screenplay, eps. 9, 17, 19, 30-31, 40-41, 48) *'' Hamtaro'' (2003; screenplay, eps. 146, 152, 157, 165, 172, 177, 185, 191, 197, 202, 204, 208, 217, 223, 228, 233, 238-239, 243, 248, 255) *'' Popolocrois'' (2003; screenplay, eps. 5, 9, 17, 20, 24) *'' Diamond Daydreams'' (2004; screenplay, eps. 3-4, 7) *'' Kyo kara Maoh!'' (2004; screenplay, eps. 5, 11-12, 17, 22, 28, 32, 39, 44, 47, 49, 52, 58, 61, 65, 70) *''

Rozen Maiden is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Peach-Pit. It was serialized in '' Monthly Comic Birz'' between the September 2002 and July 2007 issues. The individual chapters were collected and released into eight ''tankōbon ...

'' (2004; screenplay, eps. 4, 8-9) *''

Basilisk In European bestiary, bestiaries and legends, a basilisk ( or ) is a legendary reptile reputed to be a Serpent symbolism, serpent king, who causes death to those who look into its eyes. According to the ''Natural History (Pliny), Naturalis Histo ...

'' (2005; screenplay, eps. 3, 6, 12, 14, 16, 20) *'' Canvas 2: Niji Iro no Sketch'' (2005; scenario, eps. 3, 5, 11, 14, 22) *'' Animal Yokochō'' (2005; scenario, eps. 62, 66, 78, 92) *'' Rozen Maiden: Träumend'' (2005; screenplay, eps. 4, 9, 11) *''

Fate/stay night ''Fate/stay night'' is a Japanese visual novel game developed by Type-Moon. It was first released for Microsoft Windows, Windows on January 30, 2004. The story takes place over three distinct routes: ''Fate'', ''Unlimited Blade Works'' ...

'' (2006; screenplay, eps. 4, 9, 12, 16, 20, 24) *'' Aria – The Natural'' (2006; screenplay, eps. 9-10, 14, 23) *'' Simoun'' (2006; screenplay, eps. 12-13, 15-16, 18, 20-21, 23-24) *'' Sasami: Magical Girls Club'' (2006; series composition) *'' Sasami: Magical Girls Club Season 2'' (2006; series composition) *''

Red Garden ''Red Garden'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese anime television series produced by Gonzo (studio), Gonzo which premiered in Japan on TV Asahi on October 3, 2006. The plot revolves around four girls who become involved in a series of supe ...

'' (2006; screenplay, eps. 5, 8, 13, 17-18, 21-22) *'' Venus to Mamoru'' (2006; series composition) *'' Sketchbook ~full color'S~'' (2007; series composition) *'' Kodomo no Jikan'' (2007; series composition) *''

True Tears ''True Tears'' (stylized as ''true tears'') is a Japanese popular culture, Japanese visual novel developed by La'cryma, a collaboration between Broccoli (company), Broccoli, Circus (company), Circus, GameCrab and Rei Izumi, and was originall ...

'' (2008; series composition) *'' Vampire Knight'' (2008; series composition) *'' Vampire Knight Guilty'' (2008; series composition) *'' Toradora!'' (2008; series composition) *'' Black Butler'' (2008; series composition) *'' Kyo kara Maoh! 3rd Series'' (2008; screenplay, ep. 22) *''

Canaan CanaanThe current scholarly edition of the Septuagint, Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus Testamentum graece iuxta LXX interprets. 2. ed. / recogn. et emendavit Robert Hanhart. Stuttgart : D ...

'' (2009; series composition) *'' The Book of Bantorra'' (2009; series composition) *'' Darker Than Black: Gemini of the Meteor'' (2009; series composition) *'' Black Butler II'' (2010; series composition) *'' Otome Yōkai Zakuro'' (2010; series composition) *'' Gosick'' (2011; series composition) *'' Fractale'' (2011; series composition) *'' Wandering Son'' (2011; series composition) *'' Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day'' (2011; series composition) *'' Hanasaku Iroha'' (2011; series composition) *'' Aquarion Evol'' (2012; series composition) *'' Black Rock Shooter'' (2012; series composition) *'' Lupin the Third: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine'' (2012; series composition) *'' AKB0048'' (2012; series composition) *'' Blast of Tempest'' (2012; series composition) *'' The Pet Girl of Sakurasou'' (2012; series composition) *'' AKB0048 next stage'' (2013; series composition) *''Ganbare! Lulu Lolo - Tiny Twin Bears'' (2013; screenplay, eps. 6-10, 21-23) *'' Nagi no Asukara'' (2013; series composition) *'' Selector Infected WIXOSS'' (2014; series composition) *'' M3: The Dark Metal'' (2014; series composition) *'' Selector Spread WIXOSS'' (2014; series composition) *'' Gourmet Girl Graffiti'' (2015; series composition) *'' Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans'' (2015; series composition) *'' Kiznaiver'' (2016; series composition) *'' The Lost Village'' (2016; series composition) *'' Dragon Pilot: Hisone and Masotan'' (2018; series composition) *''Rinshi!! Ekoda-chan'' (2019; screenplay, ep. 2) *'' O Maidens in Your Savage Season'' (2019; series composition, original creator) *'' Oni: Thunder God's Tale'' (2022; screenplay)

Original video animation

*'' Dead Girls'' (2007; screenplay) *'' Kodomo no Jikan: Anata ga Watashi ni Kureta Mono'' (2007; series composition) *'' Kodomo no Jikan Nigakki'' (2009; series composition) *'' Kodomo no Jikan: Kodomo no Natsu Jikan'' (2011; series composition) *'' Rurouni Kenshin: New Kyoto Arc'' (2011; series composition) *''Koitabi: True Tours Nanto'' (2013; series composition) *'' Zetsumetsu Kigu Shojo Amazing Twins'' (2014; series composition) *''Winter Oath, Summer Festival, Takeo Ōkusu'' (2016; screenplay) *''Cup's Promise, First Love of Arita'' (2016; screenplay)

Anime films

*'' Kaiketsu Zorori: Quest For The Mysterious Treasure'' (2006; screenplay) *'' Cinnamon the Movie'' (2007; screenplay) *'' Hanasaku Iroha: The Movie – Home Sweet Home'' (2013; screenplay) *'' Kaiketsu Zorori: Uchu no Yusha-tachi'' (2015; screenplay) *'' The Anthem of the Heart'' (2015; screenplay) *'' Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms'' (2018; director, screenplay) * '' Her Blue Sky'' (2019; screenplay) * ''Kimi dake ni Motetainda'' (2019; screenplay) *'' A Whisker Away'' (2020; screenplay) *''

Maboroshi is a 2023 Japanese animated science fantasy drama film. Produced by MAPPA and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures Japan, the film is directed and written by Mari Okada. The film debuted in Japanese theaters in September 15, 2023 and wa ...

'' (2023; director, screenplay) *'' Fureru'' (2024; screenplay)

Live-action films

*'' My Teacher'' (2017; screenplay) *'' Ankoku Joshi'' (2017; screenplay) * '' The Flowers of Evil'' (2019; screenplay)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Okada, Mari 1976 births 21st-century Japanese women writers Anime directors Anime screenwriters Japanese women film directors Japanese television writers Japanese women television writers Living people People from Chichibu, Saitama Writers from Saitama Prefecture 21st-century Japanese screenwriters Women animated film directors