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Naoko Yamada
Born	(1984-11-28) November 28, 1984 (age 40) Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Nationality	Japanese
Alma mater	Kyoto University of Art and Design
Occupations	Animator director
Years active	2005–present
Employer	Kyoto Animation
Known for	Kyoto Animation employee
Signature

Naoko Yamada (Japanese: 山田 尚子, Hepburn: Yamada Naoko, born November 28, 1984) is a Japanese animator, television and film director. Working at Kyoto Animation, she directed the K-On!, and Tamako Market anime series and the anime films A Silent Voice and Liz and the Blue Bird.

Early life and education

Yamada was born in Kyoto Prefecture. She enjoyed drawing as a child and would copy images from the Patlabor and Dragonball anime series. She joined the volleyball club in primary school and the tennis and photography clubs in high school. At the Kyoto University of Art and Design, she studied oil painting and was a member of the special effects club.

Career

Yamada intended to work in film after university, but she decided to join Kyoto Animation after seeing an advertisement. Her first assignment at KyoAni was drawing inbetween frames for Inuyasha. She was eventually promoted to a key animator for Air.

After working as an episode director of Clannad, she was asked to make her chief directorial debut with K-On!, an adaptation of a slice-of-life manga. The series was very successful, spurring a second season and a film. In 2013, she directed Tamako Market, and followed it with the film Tamako Love Story in 2014. For Tamako Love Story, she was awarded the New Face Award at the Japan Media Arts Festival. She storyboarded the entire film herself, and also wrote the lyrics for the opening theme song, Everybody Loves Somebody. Yamada's next project was the feature film A Silent Voice, an adaptation of the manga of the same name, that reflected on elements of bullying and physical impairment in Japan. The film opened at #2 in the Japanese Box Office and grossed a total of ¥2.3 billion, the 19th highest-grossing film in Japan in 2016. The film also received multiple award nominations, including Best Animation Film in the Mainichi Film Awards and the Excellent Animation of the Year in the Japan Academy Prize.

For Yamada, the most important part of being a director is to observe people. She describes herself as a "method" director, emphasizing the minds of the characters.

On July 18, 2019, a man started a fire at the main studio of Kyoto Animation, killing 35 of Yamada's colleagues and wounding 33 others. Yamada was reported not to have been hurt in the fire.

Filmography

TV series

• Air (2005) - Key animation (ep 9, 11, 12, Air in Summer)
• Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid (2005) - Key animation (ep 9, 13)
• The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (2006) - Key animation (ep 2, 7, 10, 12)
• Kanon (2006-2007) - Key animation (ED, 3, 7, 11, 15, 18, 19, 24)
• Lucky Star (2007) - Key animation (ep 2, 8, 13, 14, 20, 24)
• Clannad (2007-2008) - Storyboard (extra ep), episode director (ep 17, extra), assistant episode director (ep 8, 12), key animation (OP, 5, 8, extra)
• Clannad: After Story (2008-2009) - Storyboard & episode director (ep 3, 10, 16, 22), key animation (OP, 22)
• K-On! (2009) - Director, storyboard (ep 1, 12, 13), episode director (ep 1), key animation (ep 12), ED storyboard & direction & key animation
• The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (rebroadcast) (2009) - Storyboard & episode director (ep 20), key animation (ep 20, 26)
• K-On!! (2010) - Director, storyboard (ep 1, 3, 24), episode director (ep 1, 24), ED1/OP2/ED2 storyboard & direction
• Nichijou (2011) - Storyboard & episode director (ep 5, 17), key animation (ED)
• Hyouka (2012) - Storyboard & episode director (ep 9, 14)
• Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions (2012) - Storyboard & episode director (ED), key animation (ep 2)
• Tamako Market (2013) - Director, storyboard (ep 1, 2, 11, 12), episode director (ep 1), OP/ED storyboard & direction, insert song "Koi no Uta" lyrics
• Free! (2013) - Storyboard & episode director (ep 7), key animation (ED)
• Beyond the Boundary (2013) - Storyboard & episode director (ep 5), key animation (ED)
• Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions -Heart Throb- (2014) - Storyboard (ED, ep 5), director (ED)
• Free!-Eternal Summer- (2014) - Storyboard & episode director (ep 12), assistant director (OP, ED)
• Sound! Euphonium (2015) - Series unit director, storyboard (ED, ep 1, 4, 13), episode director (ED, ep 1)
• Myriad Colors Phantom World (2016) - Storyboard (ep 6)
• Sound! Euphonium 2 (2016) - Series unit director, storyboard (ep 12, 13), episode director (ep 13)
• Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid (2017) - Storyboard & episode director (ep 8)
• Violet Evergarden (2018) - Storyboard (ep 5)
• Tsurune (2018) - Storyboard & episode director (ep 6)

OVAs

• Munto (2005) - In-betweening
• A Relatively Leisurely Day in the Life of a Fleet Captain (2006) - Key animation
• Lucky Star OVA (2008) - Unit director

Films

• The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (2010) - Unit director, key animation
• K-On! The Movie (2011) - Director, storyboard, unit director
• Tamako Love Story (2014) - Director, storyboard, unit director, OP theme "KOI NO UTA" lyrics, ED theme "koi no uta" lyrics
• Sound! Euphonium The Movie - Welcome to the Kitauji High School Concert Band (2016) - Series unit director
• A Silent Voice: The Movie (2016) - Director, storyboard
• Sound! Euphonium The Movie - May the Melody Reach You! (2017) - Series unit director
• Liz and the Blue Bird (2018) - Director, storyboard, unit director, ED song lyrics
• Sound! Euphonium The Movie - Our Promise: A Brand New Day (2019) - Chief unit director, key animation

References

1. "京アニ山田尚子氏の無事確認「けいおん！」など監督 - 社会 : 日刊スポーツ". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). Retrieved July 22, 2019.
2. 歴代受賞作品, 文化庁メディア芸術祭. "山田 尚子 | プロフィール一覧". Japan Media Arts Festival (in Japanese). Archived from the original on July 20, 2019. Retrieved July 22, 2019.
3. 増田弘道 (26 June 2012). "宮崎駿氏は71歳だけど……アニメ監督の高齢化は進んでいるか？" [Mr. Hayao Miyazaki is 71 years old ... Are animation directors getting older?]. ITmedia (in Japanese). Retrieved 8 April 2015.
4. ^ Noel, John (14 October 2012). "Scotland Loves Anime 2012: Day 3, Naoko Yamada Q&A session". chaostangent. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
5. "キャリタス進学" [Career+: Entering University] (in Japanese). 京都造形芸術大学 (Kyoto Art and Design University). Retrieved 8 April 2015.
6. "Giovanni's Island Film Wins Media Arts Award". Anime News Network. 28 September 2014. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
7. "監督インタビュー" [Director interview]. Tamako Love Story official website (in Japanese). 2014. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
8. "マニュエラ作家陣活躍の「たまこまーけっと」歌モノベスト" [Manual of Errors Artists' Tamako Market best musical pieces]. 音楽ナタリー (in Japanese). 18 March 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
9. "Top 20 Highest-Grossing Films in Japan Has 6 Anime Films". Anime News Network. December 18, 2016. Retrieved December 20, 2016.
10. Eimi Yamamitsu, Motoko Rich and Makiko Inoue (July 19, 2019). "Japan Fire Killed Mostly Women, at a Studio Known for Hiring Them". New York Times. Retrieved July 19, 2019.

External links

• Official blog Template:Ja icon
• Translated interviews with Yamada
• Naoko Yamada at Anime News Network's encyclopedia

• 1984 births
• Living people
• Anime directors
• Japanese film directors
• Japanese television directors
• Japanese women film directors
• Kyoto Animation
• People from Kyoto Prefecture
• People from Gunma Prefecture
• Women television directors