The 12th annual Tokyo Anime Award Festival (TAAF) was held at the Toshima Civic Center in Ikebukuro on March 10. The festival showcases film screenings, animation workshops, panel discussions and various special events to celebrate domestic and international animation culture.
A total of 21 awards were presented at the ceremony, honoring both veteran and rising artists who have contributed to animation innovation worldwide.
“We need stories of hope… messages of repair and unity, rather than division. Films have the power to heal, to bring us together,” said director and jury member Suresh Eriyat.
Anime of the Year Awards
The TAAF Anime of the Year awards category focuses on animation works screened in Japan between October 2023 and September 2024. A total of 417 works were nominated. The Best Feature Film, Best TV Series and Individual awards were selected by industry professionals, while the Anime Fan Award was chosen by the public.
Best TV Series: Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End was adapted from a manga of the same name by Kanehito Yamada. The television series premiered in September 2023 with 28 episodes directed by Keiichiro Saito.
The series follows Frieren, an elf mage who defeats the Demon King with her fellow adventurers and brings peace to the world after 10 years of war. However, as an over 1,000-year-old elf already, Frieren will always outlive her friends and comrades. The story contemplates mortality, friendship and the meaning of life.
Best Feature Film: Look Back
Look Back is a coming-of-age drama film released in June 2024. It was directed by Kiyotaka Oshiyama and produced by Studio Durian, the studio also behind the animated series Chainsaw Man and The First Slam Dunk movie, which won last year’s TAAF Best Feature Film award.
The film is about the confident Ayumu Fujino and the reclusive Kyomoto. Despite their different personalities, a love of drawing manga brings these two small-town girls together as they develop their talents.
Anime Fan Award: The Birth of Kitaro: The Mystery of GeGeGe
The Birth of Kitaro: The Mystery of GeGeGe is a dark fantasy film directed by Go Koga. The movie was adapted from the manga series GeGeGe no Kitaro, which was created in 1960 by Shigeru Mizuki and published in Weekly Shonen Magazine.
The film is inspired by Japanese folklore creatures. Mizuki is a blood bank employee who comes to Nagura Village to mourn the death of the head of the family. It’s then that a chain of bizarre deaths begins to unfold.
Individual Awards
Best Writer: Hiroyuki Yoshino
Hiroyuki Yoshino is a scriptwriter best known for his work on Mobile Suit Gundam Seed and Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion.
Best Director: Kiyotaka Oshiyama
Kiyotaka Oshiyama has worked as a key animator on many renowned series such as Pokémon and the movie, Evangelion: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance. He has also contributed to several Studio Ghibli movies, including The Secret World of Arrietty, The Wind Rises, Mary and the Witch’s Flower and, most recently, The Boy and the Heron. Oshiyama made his directorial debut in the television miniseries Flip Flappers and directed an original animated short titled Shishigari after founding Studio Durian.
Best Animator: Toko Yatabe
Toko Yatabe made her debut as a key animator for the Japan Animator Expo in 2015. Since then, she has worked on Little Witch Academia: The Enchanted Parade, One Punch Man and Weathering with You, among other projects. Yatabe also worked as an in-between animator for the viral animated short Me!Me!Me!.
Best Visual Artist: Mai Ichioka
Mai Ichioka served as art director for television and film, notably for Fate/Grand Order the Movie, Digimon Ghost Game and The Birth of Kitaro: Mystery of GeGeGe.
Best Sound & Performance: Evan Call
Evan Call is an American composer who began his musical career in Japan in 2012. With a focus on creating music or visual and interactive media, Call has worked as a composer, arranger, lyricist and singer. His work includes NHK’s drama series The 13 Lords of the Shogun, along with anime series such as Violet Evergarden and My Happy Marriage.
Achievement Awards
TAAF’s Achievement awards honor the considerable efforts of artists who have contributed to the animation industry.
Masami Iwasaki
Masami Iwasaki has worked as producer and production assistant on various series such as Moomin and La Seine no Hoshi.
Takayuki Yoshii
Producer Takayuki Yoshii’s filmography includes Cowboy Bebop: The Movie, Crusher Joe: The Movie and Escaflowne. He also serves as the president of Sunrise, a major animation studio.
Kazuhide Tomonaga
Kazuhide Tomonaga is a legendary director and animator who has drawn countless vibrant action scenes and contributed to many beloved works such as the Lupin the Third franchise, Castle in the Sky, Little Nemo, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Animaniacs and The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.
Sachiko Nonaka
Sachiko Nonaka is a leading color coordinator. She was one of the founding artists of Shin-Ei Animation and worked on the early production of two of the company’s longest-running series, Doraemon and Crayon Shin-chan. Nonaka has worked as color coordinator for 22 Crayon Shin-chan films.
Shuichi Kakesu
Shuichi Kakesu is a film and television editor who is best known for his work on Ghost in the Shell and Cowboy Bebop: The Movie. As the industry transitioned from film to digital editing, Kakesu built Japan’s first digital editing system and continued to research further innovations.
Seiji Suzuki
Music Director Seiji Suzuki has contributed to the score of many animation productions. His work includes directing multiple Anpanman films and the Lupin the Third series.
Kenyu Horiuchi
Kenyu Horiuchi is a voice actor who has more than 400 credits on IMDb. With over 40 years of experience, he has voiced characters in a wide library of popular series such as One Piece, Spy x Family, Golden Kamuy, Demon Slayer and Naruto. Horiuchi is also known for often dubbing Brad Pitt.
Competition Awards
The aim of these awards is to discover new talent and to showcase original animated works from around the world. All entries are evaluated under four criteria: originality, innovative vision, popular appeal and technique. This year TAAF received 1,031 submissions, which were narrowed down to 26 shorts and four feature film nominees.
Grand Prize for Feature Animation: A Boat in the Garden
A Boat in the Garden (originally titled Slocum et Moi), directed by Jean-François Languionie, is a French film about a family who builds a boat in their garden in the postwar period. The film was selected for the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.
Grand Prize for Short Animation: Loneliness & Laundry
Loneliness & Laundry is a short animated film from the United Kingdom, directed by Jonny Eveson. It follows Tabitha, who lives alone. As she attempts to finally tackle the giant and stinky pit of her room, she’s sent to a world of sentient clothing. Through her struggle to adapt to and escape this environment, Tabitha learns to allow herself to accept help and feel warmth again.
Award of Excellence for Feature Animation: Clarice’s Dream
Clarice’s Dream (originally titled O Sonho de Clarice) is a Brazilian film directed by Guto Bicalho and Fernando Gutiérrez. The movie tells the story of Clarice, an extremely creative girl who is processing the loss of her mother.
Award of Excellence for Short Animation: The Bear and the Bird
The Bear and the Bird (originally titled L’Ourse et l’Oiseau) is a French animated short directed by Marie Caudry. She has illustrated numerous children’s books and The Bear and the Bird marks her first animated film. It follows Bear as winter approaches. Instead of hibernating as she does every year, Bear decides to join her friend Bird in migrating south and exploring the world.
Toshima City Award: Pietra
Pietra is a Portuguese film directed by Cynthia Levitan, who has curated an impressive portfolio of short films, sculptures and art installations. Pietra is the story of the photographer Pierre who transforms into Pietra after finishing work and returning home.
The award was presented by Miyuki Takagiwa, the mayor of Toshima city, who said, “Toshima city aims to be a city where diversity is recognized and respected, and where each and every resident can feel happy and live his or her own life. We feel that this work genuinely teaches us the importance of evaluating everyone’s own character.”
Best Student Film: Yobi and Amari: Story of Spares
Miou Hiruma from the University of Tsukuba was crowned as the winner of the Best Student Film for her short film, Yobi and Amari: Story of Spares. Though still a student, Hiruma has already worked as an animator, manga artist, illustrator and writer.
Yobi and Amari: Story of Spares won the Grand Prize for Outstanding Achievement in the Master’s Program in Art at the University of Tsukuba. The film brings playing cards to life with 54 cards becoming performers to entertain guests night after night.
