Tensai Okamura

Tensai Okamura (岡村 天斎, Okamura Tensai^?) born Yutaka Okamura (岡村 豊, Okamura Yutaka^?) on December 13, 1961, in Fukushima Prefecture}} is a Japanese 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.

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 Madhouse 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.

Works

TV anime

• Yawara! (1989, episode overview and storyboards)
• Blue Seed (1994, key animation)
• Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995, episode direction, storyboards and key animation)
• Cowboy Bebop (1998, storyboards)
• Medabots (1999, director, episode direction and storyboards)
• Jinzō Ningen Kikaidā: The Animation (2000, director, episode direction, storyboards)
• Full Metal Panic! (2002, storyboards and episode direction)
• RahXephon (2002, storyboards)
• Wolf's Rain (2003, director, storyboards, episode direction)
• Samurai Champloo (2004, storyboards)
• Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd Gig(2004, storyboards)
• Victorian Romance Emma (2005, storyboards)
• Ouran High School Host Club (2006, storyboards)
• Project Blue Earth SOS (2006, director)
• Darker than Black: Kuro no Keiyakusha (2007, original concept, director, series composition)
• Soul Eater (2008, storyboards, episode direction, second opening theme storyboards and direction)
• Nijū Mensō no Musume (2008, storyboards)
• Real Drive (2008, storyboards)
• Kannagi (2008, storyboards)
• Canaan (2009, storyboards)
• Darker Than Black: Ryūsei no Gemini (2009; director)
• Blue Exorcist (2011; director)

Anime movies

• Ninja Scroll (1993, key animation)
• Ghost in the Shell / Kōkaku Kidōtai (1995, key animation)
• Memories Episode 2: Stink Bomb (1995, director)
• Neon Genesis Evangelion Gekijōban: The End of Evangelion (1997, #25 key animation)
• Spriggan (1998, gun art)
• Jin-Roh (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)

OVA

• Junk Boy (1987, key animation)

Video games

• Tales of Destiny (1997, opening animation direction)
• Tales of Phantasia (1998, opening animation direction)
• Wild Arms 2: 2nd Ignition (1999, opening animation direction)

External links

• Tensai Okamura at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia