Favorite Anime Directors

[Milkymagic]

I put my favorite works from them in parentheses. Explanations optional.

1. Mamoru Oshii (Angel's Egg, Twilight Q2, Patlabor movies 1 & 2, Ghost in the Shell): I like his slow, methodical pacing, and the subject matter he covers always gets me thinking philosophically at all times. One of a kind.

2. Hideaki Anno (Gunbuster, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Kare Kano): The ultimate teen-angst director, as every one of his leads goes through some kind of inner trouble and adversity at the hands of their surroundings. Evangelion even addresses insecurities present in many people to some degree.

3. Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies, Only Yesterday, Pom Poko): A grittier Miyazaki, his films tend to delve into more mature issues than his protege'. GotF deals directly with the drama of wartime, and Only Yesterday shows a character who still needed somewhere they belong well into adulthood. Pom Poko was also a more realistic take on the Nausicaa/Mononoke theme.

4. Takahiro Omori (Hyper Police, Fancy Lala, Koi Kaze): A director who knows how to deal with unique storylines effectively. Hyper Police was a favorite growing up for me, and I still like how natural he made that environment feel. Lala was a unique take on growing up that he shed some nice fantasy touches to (ended nicely). And Koi Kaze is one of the most challenging anime you could possibly view (but handled well). Now if I can just see the rest of Gakuen Alice, and start finding some Aka-chan no Boku

5. Yoshiaki Kawajiri (Running Man, Wicked City, Ninja Scroll, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, X: TV series): His visual influence is more than enough for me, a true gothic visionary in every respect. Every one of his projects feels darker and more streamlined than most, and Wicked City was actually pretty darn creepy for me when I saw it years ago.

I also like other directors like Hayao Miyazaki and Satoshi Kon, but I wanted to do just my top 5. Keep in mind this is my opinion, and not a guideline. I hope to hear your favorites soon enough.

[NausicaaBoy]

Hayao Miyazaki
Isao Takahata
Hideaki Anno
Satoshi Kon

[gdavall2003]

Hayao Miyazaki. 'Nuff said.

[Tremolo]

Yoshiyuki Tomino (Mobile Suit Gundam, Zeta Gundam, Victory Gundam, Turn-A Gundam, Overman King Gainer, Aura Battler Dunbine...) - You can always expect big stories, operatic drama, occasional quirky humour and memorable characters. He's lightened up over the past few years, but any new work of his is usually always worth a watch - as long as you don't mind his tendancy to throw you into the thick of the action in the first episode.

Satoshi Kon (Perfect Blue, Millennium Actress, Tokyo Godfathers, Paranoia Agent) - Capable of telling any kind of story but always with his uniquely different character design style. With that in mind as well as Susumu Hirasawa doing the music on all his projects (think a Tim Burton/Danny Elfman kind of partnership) he truly is one of anime's real auteurs. Not only that, but he wrote Magnetic Rose, easily one of the greatest animated shorts of all time. I simply can't wait for his new movie, Paprika.

Shinichiro Watanabe (Cowboy Bebop, Knockin' on Heaven's Door, Samurai Champloo) - A director never afraid to make his series largely episodic, with each episode being different from the one before. Whilst there are a few duds in both Bebop and Champloo, the highlights are truly spectacular indeed and his sense of style and use of music is simply unmatched. And the Bebop movie is a thing of beauty.

Akitaro Daichi (Fruits Basket, Now and Then Here and There, Bokura ga Ita, Kodocha) - His handle of shoujo is quite simply brilliant in that he can make a seemingly girls-only kind of series appeal to everyone. And yet on the flipside, he can pull off darker subject matter, such as NTHT (he even worked on Grave of the Fireflies) perfectly.

Honourable mentions go to Mahiro Maeda, Hayao Miyazaki, Goro Taniguchi, Katsuhiro Otomo, Mamoru Oshii and Hideaki Anno.

[madpierrot]

#1 Satoshi Kon - my all time favorite director and the only director where I'll actually get excited if I hear he's doing something new. Perfect Blue, Paranoia Agent, Millennium Actress and Tokyo Godfathers, also I feel like I should just mention Paprika now as well b/c that's going to be great.

Makoto Shinkai - since he's 2 for 2 with Voices of a Distant Star and Places Promised in our Early Days, I'll even throw in She and Her Cat. What this guy has done with anime in such a short time is incredible. He really is going to be the next big director between his stories, art and music. I almost forgot to mentin that the trailer alone for his new work looks amazing and I can't wait for it.

Just a couple others I want to mention, Osamu Kobayashi seems like he could be up there especially if he keeps turning good manga into anime with Madhouse, haha. Anno b/c of Neon Genesis Evangelion and His and Her Circumstances and I guess the token mention of Miyazaki and Shinichiro Watanabe. That's what I can think of off the top of my head.

[Milkymagic]

Awesome to see the variety of choices you guys have. Well Tremolo, I definitely like your nod to Tomino and his grandose style, he definitely has so much happening at once you could never accuse him of shortchanging anybody in plot developments for the most part. Also your nod to Akitaro Daichi made me smack myself over the head for not mentioning him, he made me laugh my gourd with the senseless Elf Princess Rane, and also put up some great drama with Fruits basket and NTHT (now if I can only see Kodocha in its entirety). Shinichiro Watanabe is also one of a kind with his music driven styles, Cowboy Bebop ran its pace like a nice jazz riff, and just a factoid: he was Assistant Director on Macross Plus, check it out sometime and see if you can spot his stylistic touches!

Madpierrot made a good point with Shinkai, I did like Voices and Cat a great deal, hopefully he continues to release great material. Osamu Kobayashi actually directed the Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad anime, and I thought he did an excellent job with that. Also, KOR had some quality moments (love it when characters get boxed in when they're thinking about something).

And finally I'll talk about Miyazaki and Kon while I'm at it. Kon rocked me when Perfect Blue premiered here, the level of paranoia was captured perfectly, and it's clear to see why he would persue this level of storytelling again. I also love the unorthadox methods of Millenium Actress, it's like one big play told on a constantly shifting anime canvas, adding to the creativity Kon truly holds within himself. Now Miyazaki, a man who personalized Lupin with Castle of Cagliostro, changing Lupin into a princely figure and showing the more humane sides to every character in the process. He would continue with his breathtaking Nausicaa, and make a point about the stance of humans and the world around them. I also liked his commentary with growing up in Kiki and the very mature level of Porco Rosso's message about being a man (in its own way). I probably missed something (never hurts to let me know), but it's nice to hear your opinions, let's see if there's more directors that are missing from the fold!

[soundchazer]

I'll go with:

Makoto Shinkai for reasons mentioned above, plus the fact that he deals with my favorite subject: coming of age stories.

Osamu Dezaki: He pretty much defined how dramatic TV series should be made with Ie Naki Ko (Remi), Rose of Versailles, Treasure Island (Takarajima), Brother Dear Brother, Ace wo Nerae!, Ashita no Joe and a gazillion Lupin III specials. He has been the only director to also try his hand directing anime series for the U.S. with Bionic Six and Mighty Orbots (I loved Bionic Six when I was a kid).

Tomomi Mochizuki: Another great director for coming of age stories. He did the first KOR movie (probably THE best teenager coming of age movie), several episodes of Maison Ikkoku, the first season of Ranma 1/2, Ocean Waves (my favorite Ghibli movie), Twin Spica, Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou, Zettai Shounen, Princess Nine and Here is Greenwood.

Akitaro Daichi: Yes Trem... you really hit the nail on that one. Great anime all of them.

And obviously Hayao Miyazaki.

[Sae]

Hayao Miyazaki. 'Nuff said.

Done. Strangely enough, when I saw this thread, I could have sworn that it said "Favorite Anime DOCTERS" so I was ready to put SC down right then and there. Well fooy.....that would have been cool......sorry SC.....you rock!

Sae

[Milkymagic]

Tomomi Mochizuki is definitely a great director, the first KOR movie is one of the best dramas ever made period, and I was a big fan of My Dear Marie's oddities (another side of his directing perhaps?). Speaking of oddities, Here is Greenwood was definitely not the norm, that was quite different. I love Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou, and hopefully I'll get a chance to see some of those other shows you mentioned (Ranma, Maison Ikkoku, Ocean Waves). Definitely a director with considerable talent Soundchazer.

And I hope to someday see many of Osamu Dezaki's better works (seen Golgo, Sword for Truth, and a few crappy Lupin specials) aside from the excellent They Were 11. He seems like a very serious director, though it was cool to know he tried American shores a few times as well. Given I'm a Gunbuster fan, seeing Ace wo Nerae! should probably be in my best interest...if I can find it.

Thanks for the input! Hopefully we can uncover more greats in this fine medium!

[Sae]

Tomomi Mochizuki is definitely a great director, the first KOR movie is one of the best dramas ever made period, and I was a big fan of My Dear Marie's oddities (another side of his directing perhaps?). Speaking of oddities, Here is Greenwood was definitely not the norm, that was quite different. I love Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou, and hopefully I'll get a chance to see some of those other shows you mentioned (Ranma, Maison Ikkoku, Ocean Waves). Definitely a director with considerable talent Soundchazer.

And I hope to someday see many of Osamu Dezaki's better works (seen Golgo, Sword for Truth, and a few crappy Lupin specials) aside from the excellent They Were 11. He seems like a very serious director, though it was cool to know he tried American shores a few times as well. Given I'm a Gunbuster fan, seeing Ace wo Nerae! should probably be in my best interest...if I can find it.

Thanks for the input! Hopefully we can uncover more greats in this fine medium!

Why you didn't include Miyazaki I fail to know. Are you ill?

Sae

[Milkymagic]

I included him in a previous post above, but just in case people think I don't like him, I certainly do. Some personal Miyazaki favorites include: Castle of Cagliostro, Nausciaa, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Porco Rosso. And just to make this post a little interesting, I'll talk about two more directors!

Akiyuki Shinbo (Soul Taker, Le Portrait de Petite Cossette, Moon Phase, Galaxy Fraulein Yuna Returns): Another director of darker proportions, his first anime I bared witness to was when he broke Yuna's heart in Returns by adding a level of drama not present in its cuter OAV set prior (there was death included). Eventually, this guy would continue to direct anime in a dark lined fashon similar to that of Yoshiaki Kawajiri, but he dealt with different material, and Gothic Lolita on top of that. Soul Taker would probably be classified as his crowning achievement. Also, Yamamoto Yohko and Tenamonya Voyagers showcase a bit of his lighter side.

Koichi Chigira (Tokyo Babylon, Full Metal Panic, Last Exile): A regular member of Gonzo by this point, Koichi's career began with the decidely creepy Tokyo Babylon, a dark and brooding look into the lives of Onmyouji at its most startling. Then, after a stint with Phantom Quest Corp. would leave the horror genre behind and work with Gonzo and make some of their best titles with the exciting Full Metal Panic and the epic scoped Last Exile (which is still their best told work in my opinion). Definitely fun to witness a director shift gears in some cases...

Well, until next time!

[alien222]

Hayao Miyazaki!!!

[Milkymagic]

Another Miyazaki shoutout! Don't worry though, shoutouts are welcome!

I also figure I should mention a few other directors mentioned above that I didn't get around to yet.

Katsuhiro Otomo was definitely a good one, his segment on Manie Manie was hilarious, the Akira film was done the best he could make it with all those production values, and I liked Steamboy's exciting airborne sequences. I should also mention his hilarious input for Robot Carnival, and his work on Memories (which I forgot to give Satoshi Kon and Koji Morimoto props for Magnetic Rose). Mahiro Maeda definitely did a great job with Blue Submarine no 6, it was a smarter show than I initially expected that was also loaded with visual flair, and he continues to do some of Gonzo's more recognizeable work (though I have yet to see Gankutsuou, and that looked just as cool as Last Exile and of course Sub no 6). Finally, I have yet to see anything with Goro Taniguchi's name on it, so I can't comment at the moment (but his resume looked interesting).

Thank you for the input everyone!

[NausicaaBoy]

kunihiko Ikuhara - due to the beutiful art and symbolism in his work utena

[Milkymagic]

Wow, that man's hair will always leave some kind of impression. Pretty much anyone who likes anime knows something about Sailor Moon at some point, though I heard good things about Utena in the process. His help in bringing anime to the mainstream is certainly apparent, but I'm not the sharpest with knowing his works.

Well, this is my last post for today, keep it up!

[soundchazer]

kunihiko Ikuhara -

why? Expand you answer please.

[silan]

Maeda Mahiro - For Gankutsuou, plain and simple. An absolutely beautiful series that perfectly captures the essence of the novel.

Satoshi Kon - Millennium Actress, Paranoia Agent, Tokyo Godfathers, Perfect Blue... I've loved every single series/movie he's had a hand in.

Kondo Yoshifumi - Whisper of the Heart is my favorite anime movie, besides Millennium Actress.

Akiyuki Shinbo - Le Portrait de Petit Cossette was awesome, with a very dark and distinctive style.

And... that's all I can think of right now.

[Milkymagic]

I definitely like Whisper of the Heart a great deal. Aside from: Grave of the Fireflies, Only Yesterday, and The Castle of Cagliostro I'd argue to say it was certainly one of my big favorites. Definitely sad Kondo passed away before he could give us another great film.

Nice list, and it's interesting to see somebody else who likes Shinbo as well. Not to mention another great dose of feedback about Gankutsuou, which I should probably get around to seeing.

Just some more favorites:

Noburo Ishiguro (Star Blazers, Astro Boy '80 TV, Macross TV, Megazone 23, Legend of the Galactic Heroes): One of anime's classic directors, alongside Shoji Kawamori, would help revolutionize mecha with the classic Macross series (helped direct the film too) and give one of the more dramatic examples of how to tell a sci-fi series through the usage of pop culture. Also he helped work through many other series worth mentioning like Astro Boy's reinterpretation, and Megazone 23's modest beginnings in the OAV format. Now if I can just see Legend of the Galactic Heroes in its entirety...

Ryutaro Nakamura (Serial Experiments Lain, Kino's Journey, Colorful): A very abstract director who can twist minds, the very static-like delivery he dishes out is more than enough aside from his (in Lain and Kino's case) great philosophical debating mixed right in. Colorful was also quite different from what I expected, and kept much of the director's signature detached methodologies.

Hiroyuki Kitakubo (Tale of Two Robots, Roujin Z, Golden Boy): A director great with working at a fast pace. His Robot Carnival segment featured the perfect amount of parody and insanity necessary for a nice short. Roujin Z sped along at the confused pace of the elder's captivity at the hands of "modern technology." And finally, Golden Boy's many comedic cues and hyperactive animations were more than well placed in their usage.

Keep the posts coming!

SC: Try to avoid double posting. The Edit button is your friend.

[L-sama]

Yoshiyuki "Kill 'em All" Tomino (Gundam, Zeta Gundam, Gundam ZZ, Victory Gundam, etc.) - Every anime that he's been at the helm at has been a favorite of mine for quite some time. Just about everything about his directing is flawless.

Hideaki Anno (Evangelion, Kare Kano) - Though the endings to both of those anime bother the living daylights out of me, Anno still gets a spot. Characters in anime under his eye have been interesting and fun to watch in one way or another.

Hayao Miyazaki (Mononoke Hime, Spirited Away, and the list goes on...) - Do I really have to say anything? I believe everyone else who has said Miyazaki has summed it up pretty well.

[Milkymagic]

Thanks Soundchazer, I'll definitely remember not to double post, since it's just a bad as double dipping at a party (I'll let everyone take a turn).

It's nice to see an appreciation for Tomino (his bleeding heart mentality for directing mecha anime his way was essential, he even inspired Anno for his Evangelion project!), I can honestly say that he made mecha anime in the vein of how he knew war, and his anime were definitely real in how uncompromising war can be. Macross gained more popularity as a result of having a mech show that showed the possibility that everyone (through the guise of J-pop no less) could at least understand one another through their cultures (perhaps like our world?).

But Tomino's works from Gundam onward showed war that never let up, the fighting continued on and on, stressing the characters big time. Also, the enemies (as humane as some tried to be) could not compromise with each other because they both held strong amounts of pride (though there were a few characters capable of seeing through that in his anime). However, his material wasn't recognized fully until Macross premered and gave mecha the popularity it finally deserved.

This is not to say Macross wasn't as good as Gundam (it showed war just as uncompromising at its best moments, and it actually had a love triangle that kept things going through all the lead's troubles), but that they needed each other to show the difference of war between two unique forces, and a war of understanding that lies within each of us. I feel they're both necessary viewing, but I don't think I would force anyone to like them per say. Also, for the record, I'm probably more of a Macross fan (though I do love both of them regardless).

A lot of this is just from my interpretation too (and opinion), so I might've missed a point in there somewhere, but I do feel they compliment each other nicely. Just figured I'd talk about Tomino and the mecha genre a bit.

[Ghostmaster]

Well obviously I have to say Hayao Miyazaki because of everything. Issao Takahata is also up there. I'm also begin to like Satoshi Kon because of Tokyo Godfathers and I want to see Millenium Actress. Also Makoto Shinkai who directed Voices of a Distant Star. I really wanted to see Place Promised in Our Early Days. And he's also directing the upcoming 5 cm per second.

[Milkymagic]

I had no idea Shinkai was already back for another project so soon, I'll definitely check it out, though for the record I like Voices better than Place (which is still worth seeing once).

Some more directors I wish to highlight!

Yasuomi Umetsu (Presence, Kite, Mezzo Forte): A director who started with the very startling Robot Carnival short Presence, a very Blade Runner styled story about a man who creates a robot out of obsession, but later falls into fear and self-loathing. His distinct, stylistic cuts were prominent even back in his participation in many other projects, but he wouldn't garner worldwide fame until the gutsy Kite shocked audiences everywhere. His underworld sensibilities in his latter works are a great mix with an alway jazzy sensibility cutting into his colorful violence and tortured characters. He is currently on his long worked project: Kiss and Cry.

Hiroyuki Yamaga (Daicon Films, The Wings of Honneamise, Mahoromatic, Abenobashi): A director filled with mounds of depth, he would direct the most influential Gainax project in The Wings of Honneamise (aside from Anno's Evangelion) and show just how serious the studio was in creating great anime in its modest beginnings (with a nod going to their tongue-in-cheek humor). After that pet project, he would lend a hand in many other projects before dishing out the surprising Mahoromatic, a show that did its fanboy tendencies with a nod to a decidedly brooding backdrop of a robot that would one day leave its master. Mahoromatic remains an example in how to conceal an intriguing concept inside the guise of a typical anime, with unique tendencies to pay homage to past anime shows. Also, Abenobashi's parodies were hilarious to note too, along with its unusual story methods. Bushilord will be his latest offering.

That's all for now!