Tokyo Anime Awards Festival 2023" announces seven honorees, including Motomu Kiyokawa, who played Kozo Fuyutsuki in "Eva!

Tokyo Anime Awards Festival 2023 (TAAF2023) announced the winners of the Animation Merit Award.

Tokyo Animation Awards Festival 2023 (TAAF2023), an international animation film festival, will be held in Ikebukuro, Tokyo from March 10 (Fri) to 13 (Mon), 2023. The "Animation Merit Award" honors those who have made significant contributions to the development of the animation industry and culture, and this year, the festival has selected seven honorees who are active in various fields.

The seven honorees this year are: Toru Hara, a producer who supported Studio Ghibli in its early days and created many masterpieces; Yoshio Urasawa, a screenwriter who has long contributed to the fields of animation and special effects with his unique style; Akihiro Kanayama, an animator who emerged in the early days of Japanese animation and continues to be active in the industry.

The seven legends are: Kazutaka Miyatake, a leading mechanical designer who embodies imaginary worlds in pictures; Iwao Yamaki, a cinematographer who finishes with precise calculations and techniques; Shizuo Kurahashi, a sound effects artist who continues to give rich "sound" to animation; and Motomu Kiyokawa, a voice actor whose acting has a softness that is at once harsh and gentle. legendary voice actors.

TAAF2023 plans to hold special exhibitions and programs to introduce the achievements of the honorees.

List of Honorees
Toru Hara (Producer), "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
Yoshio Urasawa (Scriptwriter): "Lupin the Third Part 2
Akihiro KANAYAMA (Animator) Works: "Ashita no Joe" (Tomorrow's Joe)
Kazutaka Miyatake (Mechanical Designer), "Psalms of Planets Eureka seveN
Iwao Yamaki (Director of Photography, Producer) Works: "Metropolis
Shizuo Kurahashi (Sound Effects) Works: "AKIRA
Motomu Kiyokawa (voice actor) representative works: "Neon Genesis Evangelion" (as Kozo Fuyutsuki)

(In no particular order, titles omitted, introduction of representative works)

Profile]

Toru Hara (Producer)
Space Patrol Hoppa", "The Hobbit Adventure", "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind", "Grave of the Fireflies".
After working for Toei Doga and then for the co-production company Top Craft, he became a prominent producer who supported Studio Ghibli in its early days.

Representative works: "Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind," "Laputa: Castle in the Sky," "My Neighbor Totoro

Yoshio Urasawa / Screenwriter
Yoshio Urasawa has worked on "Lupin the Third," "Oshitama Rantaro," and many other Pierrot works, as well as "mysterious comedy" films. With his unique style full of nonsense and surrealistic charm, he has contributed to the fields of animation and special effects for many years.

Representative works: "Lupin the Third Part 2," "Princess Anmitsu," "Nintama Rantaro

Akihiro Kanayama / Animator
Akihiro Kanayama is an animator who emerged in the early days of Japanese animation and continues to be active in the field. He has also made great contributions to the Japanese animation industry in terms of fostering the next generation of animators.

Representative works: "Ashita no Joe," "Super Electromagnetic Robot Con Battler V," "Super Electromagnetic Machine Vortez V

Kazutaka Miyatake / Mechanical Designer
Kazutaka Miyatake is a leading mechanical designer who gives shape to concepts in the manner of science fiction and embodies imaginary worlds in his drawings.

Representative works: "Psalms of Planets Eureka seveN," "The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Ai omoete kara no ka," "Mazinger Z

Iwao Yamaki / Director of Photography, Producer
Director of Photography and Producer of "Jungle Emperor," "Firebird," "Genma Taisen," "Yona Yona Penguin," "Wings of Honneamise," etc. From TV series to theatrical versions, he is a visual director who concentrates animation materials and finishes them with precise calculations and techniques.

Representative works: "Metropolis," "Genma Taisen," "Yona Yona Penguin

Shizuo Kurahashi / Sound Effects
A leading expert in giving rich "sound" to animation, from works depicting everyday life to fantasy films. He has also contributed to the training of many younger artists.

Representative works: "AKIRA," "Lupin III: Cagliostro's Castle," "Cowboy Bebop

Motomu Kiyokawa / Voice Actor
A famous voice actor with a softness in his acting that gives him a toughness that makes him hard to be a bad guy even when he plays a villain.

Representative works: "Neon Genesis Evangelion," "Mobile Suit Gundam," "Nadia of the Mysterious Sea

The "塚" in Tezuka Productions is the old form of the character "塚".

Outline of the festival
Tokyo Anime Award Festival 2023
Dates: Friday, March 10 - Monday, March 13, 2023
Venue: Ikebukuro, Tokyo
Organizers: Tokyo Anime Awards Festival Executive Committee, Japan Animation Association
Co-organized by: Tokyo Metropolitan Government
Secretariat: Tokyo Anime Award Festival Executive Committee Office (in Japan Association of Animation Arts)
Official website: ##

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind" © 1984 Studio Ghibli H
Lupin the Third Part 2" Original Story: Monkey Punch ©TMS
Ashita no Joe" © Asao Takamori, Tetsuya Chiba/TMS
Psalms of Planets Eureka seveN" ©2005 BONES / Project EUREKA
Metropolis" ©Tezuka Production / METROPOLIS Production Committee
AKIRA" ©1988 MUSHROOM / Akira Production Committee
Neon Genesis Evangelion" Director: Hideaki Anno ©Color / Project Eva.