Makoto Shinkai

Born: February 9, 1973 in Nagano, Japan

Birth Name: Makoto Niistu

Nickname: The New Hayao Miyazaki

Favourite animes: Castle in the Sky (1986)

Favourite novelist: Haruki Murakami

In middle school he fell in love with anime, manga and novels

He studied Japanese Literature in Chuo University

Graphic Designer for Falcom (gaming company) (1996-2000)

"I want to grope the style of anime that comes from a place different from [large] studios by a small number of people." - Makoto Shinkai

Which is exactly what he did.

Voices of a Distant Star( 2002)

5 Centimeters Per Second (2007)

Children Who Chase Lost Voices from Deep Below (Coming Soon)

I chose Makoto Shinkai because of his talent. After Watching

5 Centimeters Per Second, his most recent work, I fell in love with his work. Also, I noticed people refer to him as the "New Hayao Miyazaki" so I knew I would enjoy his movies.

I can Relate to Makoto Shinkai because he had a dream and knew he was the only person who could make that dream come true, therefore, he worked towards it and he has now achieved it. He put a lot of time and effort into making his movies, most of the work is done by him alone. Which is the unique thing about him. Like Makoto Shinkai, I am also working toward my goal of becoming a novelist.

Makoto Shinkai's uses neutral diction, tone and point of view to make his audience truly feel what he is trying to portray and pathos for his main character. Makoto Shinkai uses everyday words to describe life. Through tone, Shinkai is able to portray a realistic view on life in his movies. Furthermore, I have noticed that Shinkai changes his point of view to create interest and pathos for his main characters. For example: She and Her Cat, Chico the cat is the narrator of the story of his owner's love and heartbreak.

The next Hayao Miyazaki?

Takaki: Yesterday, I had a dream.

Akari: A dream of long ago.

Takaki: Within the dream, the two of us were still thirteen...

Akari: ...standing upon the vast field blanketed in snow as far as the eye could see.

Takaki: In the distance, the lights shimmering in houses were set sparsely, far and wide.

Akari: All that was left upon the newly fallen snow were our footprints.

Takaki: Just like that...

Akari: ...we wished, without hesitation, that one day...

Takaki: ...the two of us would be able...

Akari: ...to see the cherry blossoms together again.

She and her Cat

5 Centimeters Per Second Review

Anime News Network

Overall (dub) : A-

Overall (sub) : A-

Story : A-

Animation : A-

Art : A-

Music : A-

The question that will inevitably get asked is where this work stands compared to Shinkai's previous efforts. It is his best effort to date, or his worst? The answer depends heavily on what you are expecting to get out of it. Evaluated purely on technical merits, the overall artistry is a very slight step down from Place Promised, but the timing and pacing of its storytelling is better. It has better character designs and more complexity than Voices, but not as broad an appeal nor as poignant and heartfelt an ending. It achieves the same degree of elegance and eloquence in storytelling, so the decision largely comes down to a matter of personal preference. From this reviewer's perspective, Voices is the true masterpiece of the lot, but this one works just fine, as long as you can come to terms with the ending.

She and Her Cat (1999)

The Place promised in Our Early Days (2004)

SCREEN WRITER