I’ve spoken before about my love for anime that use a distinct art style but, while every anime does have some difference when it comes to art, I’ve found that a lot of modern anime aren’t fulfilling my criteria for distinct artwork. Of course there are some such Puella Magi Madoka Magica, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, Redline etc. but each year feels like anime artwork becomes more and more homogenous. Then I watched some of Masaaki Yuasa’s films and was overwhelmed by how fresh and distinctive his artwork and animation felt within the field of not only anime but animation itself. Therefore, I thought it worth looking at one of the most fascinating modern anime directors, Masaaki Yuasa.
Born in Fukuoka, Japan in 1965, his enthusiasm for animation at a young age eventually led to him entering the anime industry. He started out working as an animator on a variety of anime series and films such as Chibi Maruko-chan, Doraemon, Crayon Shin-chan etc. He later became a freelance animator and began directing some short films such as Slime Adventures: Yay, the Sea! and the critically acclaimed Cat Soup. Even as he began to become more and more successful with his later films and TV series he directed, he continued to work as an animator for other projects until 2015.
The first film of his that I ever saw also happened to be the first feature film he ever directed. Mind Game, released in 2004 and animated by Studio 4°C, it proved to be quite a fascinating work that shifted through various visual styles and told an enjoyably absurd but moving story. Since then, I’ve seen a few of his other films such as Night is Short, Walk on Girl and Lu Over the Wall which have also proven to be enjoyable films with a strong visual flair but I’ve yet to see others like Inu-Oh and Ride Your Wave.
However, his experience as a director isn’t simply restricted to feature films. As part of the anthology film Genius Party, he directed a short called Happy Machine which proved to be one of the best in the whole anthology and he later directed another anime short called Kick-Heart which was funded through Kickstarter and got an airing on Toonami, an impressive feat given that it was a short.
As I looked further into his career, I was surprised to see that I’d already seen a TV series that he’d directed, Ping Pong The Animation. Looking back, I can see his hand at play in the incredible animation of that show but I, of course, didn’t know who he was at the time. Other TV series that he’s directed include Kaiba and The Tatami Galaxy, both of which I’ve picked up but have yet to watch, as well as a notable and popular Netflix anime called Devilman Crybaby. He even directed an episode of the Cartoon Network series Adventure Time, specifically Food Chain which was the seventh episode of season six and was entirely animated by Science SARU, an anime company established by Masaaki Yuasa.
In an industry where it feels increasingly difficult to establish unique and distinct art styles, I’m overjoyed to see a director such as Masaaki Yuasa achieve success, something which only became more notable when he was awarded a Medal with Purple Ribbon in 2021 and am eager to see more of his works. Let me know your thoughts on Masaaki Yuasa, arguably one of the most fascinating modern anime directors, which of his works you’ve seen, what you liked and disliked about them, other modern anime that have distinct art styles and any additional information you might have on the topic.
Hopefully you have found this article interesting and informative and, if you wish to seek any of the works I mentioned, don’t hesitate to use amazon.co.uk or amazon.com for all of your needs!