Makoto Shinkai

Makoto Shinkai
Makoto Shinkai in Moscow 2013
Born	Makoto Niitsu (1973-02-09) February 9, 1973 Koumi, Nagano, Japan
Occupation(s)	Director, writer, producer, animator, editor, cinematographer, voice actor, manga artist
Known for	Voices of a Distant Star The Place Promised in Our Early Days 5 Centimeters Per Second Children Who Chase Lost Voices The Garden of Words Your Name
Spouse	Misaka Ikko

Makoto Shinkai (新海 誠, Shinkai Makoto), born as Makoto Niitsu (新津 誠, Niitsu Makoto, born February 9, 1973), is a Japanese director, writer, producer, animator, editor, cinematographer, voice actor, manga artist and former graphic designer. He is best known for directing Your Name, the current highest-grossing anime film of all time, and was listed by Variety as one of 10 animators to watch in 2016.

Life

A native of Nagano Prefecture, Shinkai studied Japanese literature at Chuo University where he was a member of juvenile literature club where he drew picture books. He traces his passion for creation to the manga, anime, and novels he was exposed to while in middle school. His favorite anime is Castle in the Sky by Hayao Miyazaki. Shinkai has been called "The New Miyazaki" in several reviews, including those by Anime Advocates and ActiveAnime—comparisons which he himself calls an "overestimation".

Career

After graduating from Chuo in 1994 he got a job at Falcom, a video game company and where he worked for 5 years by making video clips for games and graphic design including web content. During this time he met musician Tenmon who would later collaborate in many of his movies by providing the music score.

In 1999, Shinkai released She and Her Cat, a five-minute short piece done in monochrome. It won several awards, including the grand prize at the 12th DoGA CG Animation contest (2000). DoGA is an independent non-profit company set up to encourage entry-level animators with software and advice. The short details the life of a cat, entirely from the cat's perspective, as it passes time with its owner, a young woman.

After winning the grand prize, Shinkai began thinking about a follow-up while he continued for Falcom. A few months later in June 2000, Shinkai was inspired to begin Voices of a Distant Star by drawing a picture of a girl in a cockpit grasping a cell phone. Some time later, he was contacted by Manga Zoo (today a smartphone "app"), who offered to "work with him," giving him a grant to turn his idea into an anime they could sell. In May 2001, he quit his job at Falcom and began to work on Voices. In an interview, Shinkai noted that production took around seven months of "real work".

Voices of a Distant Star was followed by the 90 minute long The Place Promised in Our Early Days, which was released nationwide in Japan on November 20, 2004. It was critically acclaimed, winning many honors. Shinkai's next project was titled 5 Centimeters per Second and premiered 3 March 2007. It consists of three short films titled Cherry Blossom, Cosmonaut, and 5 Centimeters Per Second. The total play time is about 63 minutes. In September 2007 Nagano's leading newspaper, Shinano Mainichi Shinbun, released a TV commercial animated by Makoto Shinkai. Aside from his own projects, Shinkai also assists in animating visual novel opening movies for Minori, a visual novel company.

Shinkai spent 2008 in London, resting since the completion of 5 Centimeters per Second. He returned to Japan in 2009 to start work on his next project. He released two concept drawings for this film in December 2009. Shinkai noted that this film would be his longest animation film to date and described the story as a "lively" animated film with adventure, action, and romance centered on a cheerful and spirited girl on a journey to say "farewell". In November 2010, he revealed that his next work would be titled Children Who Chase Lost Voices from Deep Below. A teaser trailer was released on November 9, and the film was released on May 7, 2011.

His next feature, The Garden of Words, was released on May 31, 2013.

Shinkai's new film, Your Name was released on August 26, 2016. The film received critical acclaim, praised for its animation and emotional impact, and was also a commercial success, becoming the fourth-highest-grossing film of all time in Japan and, as of January 16, 2017, the highest-grossing anime film of all time, overtaking Miyazaki's Spirited Away.

Works

Films

• The Place Promised in Our Early Days (雲のむこう、約束の場所, Kumo no Mukō, Yakusoku no Basho) - Director / Writer / Producer / Storyboards / Background art / Design/Modeler / Theme Song Lyrics (2004)
• 5 Centimeters Per Second (秒速5センチメートル, Byōsoku Go Senchimētoru) - Director / Writer / Producer / Storyboard / Art Director / Color design (2007)
• Children Who Chase Lost Voices (星を追う子ども, Hoshi o Ou Kodomo) - Director / Writer / Producer (2011)
• The Garden of Words (言の葉の庭, Kotonoha no Niwa) - Director / Writer / Photography / Color design / Editing (2013)
• Your Name (君の名は。, Kimi no na wa.) - Director / Writer / Photography / Color design / Editing (2016)
• Untitled Upcoming Film - Director/Writer/other roles TBA

Shorts

• The world be enclosed (囲まれた世界) - Director/ Animator
• Other Worlds (遠い世界, Tooi Sekai) - Director / Animator, 1998
• She and Her Cat (彼女と彼女の猫, Kanojo to Kanojo no Neko) - Director / Writer / Animator / voice of Her Cat (1999)
• Voices of a Distant Star (ほしのこえ, Hoshi no Koe) - Director / Writer / Producer / voice of Noboru Terao (original voice) (2002)
• Egao (みんなのうた「笑顔」, Minna no Uta "Egao") - Director, 2003 (Music Video for Hiromi Iwasaki)
• A Gathering of Cats (猫の集会, Neko no Shūkai) - Director / Storyboards / Background art / Color design / Photography, (2007 short TV film featured on Ani*Kuri15)
• Dareka no Manazashi (だれかのまなざし, lit. Someone's Gaze) - Director (2013)

Commercials

• Bosphorus tunnel (ボスポラス海峡トンネル, Bosuporasu kaikyō ton'neru) - Director / Background art, 2011 (TV commercial released by Taisei Corporation)
• Sri Lanka highway (スリランカ高速道路, Suriranka kōzokudōro) - Director / Storyboards / Photography / Editing, 2013 (TV commercial released by Taisei Corporation), featuring the theme song Fight (ファイト, Faito) by Anri Kumaki
• Vietnam Noi Bai Airport (ベトナム・ノイバイ空港, Betonamu noibai kūkō) - Director / Storyboards / Shooting / Editing, 2014 (TV commercial released by Taisei Corporation)
• Z-Kai: Cross Road (Ｚ会 「クロスロード」, Kurosu Rodo) - Screenplay / Storyboards / Production / Supervision, 2014 (TV commercial released by Z-Kai)

Video games

• The Legend of Heroes V: A Cagesong of the Ocean - OP Director (1999, as Makoto Niitsu)
• Ys 2 ETERNAL - OP Director (2000, as Makoto Niitsu)
• Bittersweet Fools - Trailer & OP Director (2001)
• Wind: A Breath of Heart - Trailer & OP Director / Computer Animator (2002–2004)
• Haru no Ashioto - Trailer & OP Director (2004)
• Ef: A Fairy Tale of the Two. - Trailer & OP Director (2006)

Literary works

• Slug, 1994 (picture-book)
• 5 Centimeters per Second, 2007 (novel)
• The Garden of Words, 2014 (novel)
• Your Name., 2016 (novel)

Manga

• Beyond the Tower, 2002
• Voices from a Distant Star, 2004
• The Place Promised in Our Early Days, 2006
• 5 Centimeters per Second, 2010-2011
• Children who Chase Lost Voices from Deep Below, 2011
• The Garden of Words, 2013
• Your Name., 2016

Illustrations

• I Dream to Protect You (きみを守るためにぼくは夢をみる, Kimi wo Mamoru Tame ni Boku wa Yume wo Miru) - Illustrator (2003–2011)

External links

• Makoto Shinkai's Website Template:Ja icon
• Makoto Shinkai Fan Web
• Makoto Shinkai Fan Forum
• Makoto Shinkai at IMDb
• Makoto Shinkai at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
• Entry in the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction
• Media related to Makoto Shinkai at Wikimedia Commons