Tensai Okamura
Encyclopedia
born on December 13, 1961, in Fukushima Prefecture
}} is a Japan
ese anime
director and animator
. Okamura grew up in Yokohama
, Kanagawa Prefecture
. He is a graduate of Waseda University
's department of science and engineering. In 1991, he changed his first name to Tensai.
as an animator with the recommendation of a friend. Lensman
was the first series he worked on as an animator. The first anime movies that he worked on were Kamui no Ken
and Bobby ni Kubittake. In 1989, he made his debut as an episode director with Yawara! and soon made his full directorial debut in 1995 with Memories
. He later left Madhouse and went freelance, working on several projects along the way.
Fukushima Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region on the island of Honshu. The capital is the city of Fukushima.-History:Until the Meiji Restoration, the area of Fukushima prefecture was known as Mutsu Province....
}} is a Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
director and animator
Animator
An animator is an artist who creates multiple images that give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence; the images are called frames and key frames. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, video games, and the internet. Usually, an...
. Okamura grew up in Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
, Kanagawa Prefecture
Kanagawa Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the southern Kantō region of Japan. The capital is Yokohama. Kanagawa is part of the Greater Tokyo Area.-History:The prefecture has some archaeological sites going back to the Jōmon period...
. He is a graduate of Waseda University
Waseda University
, abbreviated as , is one of the most prestigious private universities in Japan and Asia. Its main campuses are located in the northern part of Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as Tokyo Senmon Gakko, the institution was renamed "Waseda University" in 1902. It is known for its liberal climate...
's department of science and engineering. In 1991, he changed his first name to Tensai.
Biography
During his university days at Waseda University, Okamura was a part of Waseda's manga research society and together with other budding animators, produced his first independent anime there. Upon graduating from university, Okamura joined the animation production studio MadhouseMadhouse (company)
is a Japanese animation studio, founded in 1972 by ex–Mushi Pro animators including Masao Maruyama, Osamu Dezaki, Rintaro, and Yoshiaki Kawajiri. It has created and helped to produce many well known shows, starting with TV anime series Ace o Nerae! in 1973, and including western favourites Ninja...
as an animator with the recommendation of a friend. Lensman
Lensman (anime)
is an anime TV series and movie based on the Lensman novels by E. E. Smith. Although these were produced with the knowledge and consent of Smith's estate, they were so displeased with the result that for several years they rejected any other suggestions of adaptation...
was the first series he worked on as an animator. The first anime movies that he worked on were Kamui no Ken
The Dagger of Kamui
is a Japanese novel series by Tetsu Yano released by Kadokawa Shoten from 1984 to 1985.The series was adapted in 1985 into an anime film directed by Rintaro and animated by Madhouse and Toei Animation. The screenplay was adapted by Mori Masaki, and character designs were created by Moribi Murano,...
and Bobby ni Kubittake. In 1989, he made his debut as an episode director with Yawara! and soon made his full directorial debut in 1995 with Memories
Memories (film)
Memories is an anime produced in 1995 by artist/director Katsuhiro Otomo which were based on three of his manga short stories. The film is composed of three episodes: , and...
. He later left Madhouse and went freelance, working on several projects along the way.
TV anime
- Yawara! (1989, episode overview and storyboards)
- Blue SeedBlue Seedis a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yuzo Takada. The plot is based on the Izumo cycle of Japanese mythology and the tale of the god Susanoo and the eight-headed monster Yamata no Orochi. The main character, Momiji Fujimiya, is a descendant of the mythical . When Japan is menaced...
(1994, key animation) - Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995, episode direction, storyboards and key animation)
- Cowboy BebopCowboy Bebopis a critically acclaimed and award-winning 1998 Japanese anime series directed by Shinichirō Watanabe, written by Keiko Nobumoto, and produced by Sunrise. Its 26 episodes comprise a complete storyline: set in 2071, the series follows the adventures, misadventures and tragedies of five bounty...
(1998, storyboards) - MedabotsMedabotsMedabots, known in Japan as , is a role-playing video game franchise developed by Natsume and published by Imagineer in Japan in 1997. The video game franchise was later adapted into a Japanese anime television series produced by Bee Train. Spanning 52 episodes, the series originally aired on TV...
(1999, director, episode direction and storyboards) - Jinzō Ningen Kikaidā: The Animation (2000, director, episode direction, storyboards)
- Full Metal Panic!Full Metal Panic!is an ongoing series of light novels written by Shoji Gatoh and illustrated by Shiki Douji. The series follows Sousuke Sagara, a member of the covert anti-terrorist private military organization known as Mithril, tasked with protecting Kaname Chidori, a spirited Japanese high school girl.Individual...
(2002, storyboards and episode direction) - RahXephonRahXephonis a Japanese anime series about 17-year-old Ayato Kamina, his ability to control a godlike mecha known as the RahXephon, and his inner journey to find a place in the world...
(2002, storyboards) - Wolf's RainWolf's Rainis an anime series created by writer and story editor Keiko Nobumoto and produced by Bones Studio. The series was directed by Tensai Okamura and featured character designs by Toshihiro Kawamoto with a soundtrack produced and arranged by Yoko Kanno. It focuses on the journey of four lone wolves...
(2003, director, storyboards, episode direction) - Samurai ChamplooSamurai Champloois a Japanese anime series created and directed by Shinichirō Watanabe. It was broadcast in Japan from May 20, 2004 through March 19, 2005 on Fuji TV. Samurai Champloo has earned Watanabe a renowned title in the anime and Japanese television communities...
(2004, storyboards) - Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GigGhost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GIGis the second season of the anime series Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, based on Masamune Shirow's manga Ghost in the Shell. It was written and directed by Kenji Kamiyama, with original character design by Hajime Shimomura and a soundtrack by Yoko Kanno...
(2004, storyboards) - Victorian Romance Emma (2005, storyboards)
- Ouran High School Host ClubOuran High School Host Clubis a manga series by Bisco Hatori, serialized in Hakusensha's LaLa magazine since August 5, 2003. The series follows Haruhi Fujioka, a scholarship student at Ouran High School, and the other members of the popular host club. The romantic comedy focuses on the relationships within and without the...
(2006, storyboards) - Project Blue Earth SOSProject Blue Earth SOS-External links:* *...
(2006, director) - Darker than Black: Kuro no KeiyakushaDarker than Blackis an anime television series, created, directed and written by Tensai Okamura and animated by Bones. It premiered across Japan from April 5, 2007 on MBS, TBS, and its affiliated broadcast stations, with its satellite television premiere in Japan on Animax in May 2007. The music for the series is...
(2007, original concept, director, series composition) - Soul Eater (2008, storyboards, episode direction, second opening theme storyboards and direction)
- Nijū Mensō no MusumeNiju Menso no Musumeis a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by manga author Shinji Ohara. The manga was serialized in the seinen manga magazine Comic Flapper between 2002 and 2007, but continued serialization in the same magazine with the title Nijū Mensō no Musume Utsushiyo no Yoru since October 5, 2007...
(2008, storyboards) - Real DriveReal Driveis an anime TV series, created by Production I.G and Masamune Shirow. Real Drive is produced in collaboration with broadcaster Nippon Television , and premiered in Japan on NTV on 8 April 2008.-Storyline and setting:...
(2008, storyboards) - Kannagi (2008, storyboards)
- CanaanCanaan (anime)Canaan is a 13-episode anime television series, conceptualized by Type-Moon co-founders Kinoko Nasu and Takashi Takeuchi, based on the scenario that they created for the Nintendo Wii visual novel 428: Fūsa Sareta Shibuya de, which is noted for being one of the few games to be have been awarded a...
(2009, storyboards) - Darker Than Black: Ryūsei no GeminiDarker than Black: Ryūsei no Geminiis an anime television series, created, directed and written by Tensai Okamura and animated by Bones. It is a sequel to the anime series Darker than Black which premiered in October 2009 and ended in December 2009. Though details of the sequel series were leaked beforehand, it was officially...
(2009; director) - Blue Exorcist (2011; director)
Anime movies
- Ninja ScrollNinja Scrollis a 1993 Japanese animated action thriller film set in feudal Japan, written and directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri who was best known for his previous thriller Wicked City . The character designs were done by Yutaka Minowa. The movie is in homage to the Ninpōchō series, ninja novels by Futaro Yamada...
(1993, key animation) - Ghost in the Shell / Kōkaku KidōtaiGhost in the Shell (film)"See You Everyday" is different from the rest of the soundtrack, being a pop song sung in Cantonese by Fang Ka Wing. It can be faintly heard playing in the marketplace scene, when Batou is hunting the ghost-hacked puppet....
(1995, key animation) - Memories Episode 2: Stink Bomb (1995, director)
- Neon Genesis Evangelion Gekijōban: The End of EvangelionThe End of Evangelionis a 1997 Japanese animated science fiction film written and directed by Hideaki Anno along with Kazuya Tsurumaki; it ended the anime releases in the Neon Genesis Evangelion franchise until the Rebuild of Evangelion tetralogy remakes were announced in 2006....
(1997, #25 key animation) - SprigganSpriggan (manga)is a manga series written by Hiroshi Takashige and illustrated by Ryōji Minagawa during the early 1990s. It was initially released as Striker in the North American English translation, as it is the English translation of the word Spriggan from Celtic.Spriggan takes places in the last years of the...
(1998, gun art) - Jin-RohJin-Rohis a 1999 Japanese animated feature film directed by Hiroyuki Okiura. The film is the third adaptation of Mamoru Oshii's Kerberos saga manga, Ken-Roh Densetsu, after The Red Spectacles released in 1987 and StrayDog: Kerberos Panzer Cops released in 1991 in Japanese theaters.The film takes place in...
(2000, key animation) - Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door (2001, western scene storyboards, key animation, animation direction coordinator)
- Gekijōban Naruto: Daikatsugeki! Yukihime Ninpōchō Dattebayo!! (2004, director)
- Gekijōban Naruto: Daigekitotsu! Maboroshi no Chiteiiseki Dattebayo (2005, key animation)
Video games
- Tales of DestinyTales of Destinyis a video game in the RPG genre published for the PlayStation console by Namco on December 23, 1997 in Japan, selling 1,139,000 copies. Tales of Destiny's characteristic genre name is...
(1997, opening animation direction) - Tales of PhantasiaTales of Phantasiais a Super Nintendo game in the RPG genre published by Namco and released in Japan in 1995, selling 212,000 copies. It is the first mothership title in the Tales RPG series and was later remade/re-released on the PlayStation, Game Boy Advance and PlayStation Portable...
(1998, opening animation direction) - Wild Arms 2: 2nd IgnitionWild Arms 2Wild Arms 2, known in Japan as , is a role-playing game developed by Media.Vision and published by Sony Computer Entertainment and the second installment in the Wild Arms series...
(1999, opening animation direction)