Kunio Katō

Kunio Katō
加藤久仁生
Kunio Kato at Paris Salon du Livre in 2012
Kunio Kato at Paris Salon du Livre in 2012
Born (1977-04-24) April 24, 1977 (age 49)
Kagoshima City
OccupationsAnimator, director
Notable workLa Maison en Petits Cubes

Kunio Katō (加藤久仁生) (born April 24, 1977) is a Japanese animator known for the short film La Maison en Petits Cubes which won the 2008 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film. In 2008, the same film won the Cristal for a Short Film (Grand Prix) at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival, making Katō the second Japanese filmmaker to receive the award after Kōji Yamamura's Mt. Head in 2003. He also created The Diary Of Tortov Roddle, a surrealistic dream adventure.

Biography

After graduating from the graphic design department of Tama Art University, Katō joined the video production company Robot Communications in 2001. Affiliated with the character animation department's Animation Studio Cage, he worked on television programs, web animations, and spot commercials. In 2017, he left Robot Communications to work as a freelance animation artist. The same year, he directed the animation for NHK's Minna no Uta song "Kaze to Tomoni" (lyrics and music by Hiroji Miyamoto). In 2020, he also animated the song "Kaito" (sung by Arashi, written by Kenshi Yonezu) for the same program.

During his acceptance speech for the Best Animated Short Film award at the 81st Academy Awards in 2009, Katō famously concluded with "Dōmo arigatō, Mr. Roboto," quoting the lyrics from the American rock band Styx's song "Mr. Roboto", which drew laughter from the audience and was a pun on his production company, Robot.

In 2009, he also received the Commissioner for Cultural Affairs Award in the International Art Category, and the Grand Prize in the Animation Division at the 12th Japan Media Arts Festival for La Maison en Petits Cubes.

Filmography

List of production work in anime
Year Title Crew role Notes Source
2002O dore! Tai po
おどれ!タイポ		Supervisorshort film series
2004The Diary Of Tortov Roddle (或る旅人の日記, Aru tabibito no nikki; lit. The Diary of a Certain Traveler)short film series
2005Min'na no uta 'serunokoi'
みんなのうた「セルの恋」		Animation
2008La Maison en Petits Cubes (つみきのいえ, Tsumiki no Ie)DirectorOVA

Influence

In 2015 the Chilean writer José Baroja published the story "El hombre del terrón de azúcar", the winning text of the XIII Gonzalo Rojas Pizarro International Contest, inspired by the short film "Middonaitokafe" ("The Midnight Cafe"), included in the film The Diary Of Tortov Roddle (或る旅人の日記, Aru tabibito no nikki; lit. The Diary of a Certain Traveler).

References

  1. ↑ 「つみきのいえ」の加藤久仁生監督とは… (in Japanese). Nikkan Sports. 23 February 2009. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
  2. ↑ "Oscar Nominations 2021: The Complete List | 93rd Academy Awards". Archived from the original on 2 January 2010. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
  3. ↑ "Oscar-Winning Petits Cubes' Kunio Katō Makes Anime Ad". Anime News Network. 15 April 2010. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Morihiro Tsunoda (10 December 2019). オスカー受賞に感じた戸惑い 「つみきのいえ」加藤久仁生が生み出した新たな表現 (in Japanese). Asahi Shimbun GLOBE+. Archived from the original on 19 February 2025.
  5. ↑ アヌシー国際アニメーションフェスティバルで最高賞受賞 (in Japanese). Japan Animation Association. 25 June 2008.
  6. 1 2 "THEM Anime Reviews 4.0 – the Diary of Tortov Roddle".
  7. ↑ 嵐「カイト」、加藤久仁生のアニメーションによる優しくあたたかい映像 (in Japanese). Real Sound. 11 April 2020.
  8. ↑ "The 81st Academy Awards | 2009". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. 7 October 2014.
  9. ↑ 短編アニメーション賞は日本の『つみきのいえ』が受賞！加藤監督英語でスピーチ！ (in Japanese). Cinema Today. 23 February 2009.
  10. ↑ 『ルー』湯浅政明、『この世界』片渕須直に文化庁長官表彰 (in Japanese). Cinema Today. 12 July 2017.
  11. ↑ "12th Animation Division Grand Prize" (in Japanese). Japan Media Arts Festival. Archived from the original on 15 November 2024.
  12. ↑ "アニメ / メディア芸術データベース – 加藤久仁生" [Search results for Kunio Kato in anime]. Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Japan: Agency for Cultural Affairs. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
  13. ↑ "El hombre del terrón de azúcar – Wikisource". es.wikisource.org (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 July 2022.