was a Japanese animator, director and storyboarder. He started working at

Shin-Ei Animation is a Japanese animation studio owned by TV Asahi and founded in Tokyo in 1965 as A-Production by Daikichirō Kusube, who was previously an animator for Toei Animation. Shin-Ei is known for being the animation studio behind two of the anime tele ...

, later became part of Animaruya and then he became affiliated with

Kyoto Animation , often abbreviated , is a Japanese animation studio and light novel publisher located in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture. Founded in 1985 by Yoko and Hideaki Hatta, it has produced anime works including '' The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya'' (2006), '' ...

Career

When he was young, Kigami was a big fan of

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

movies and anime shows based on the manga series of Osamu Tezuka, and this lead him to becoming an animator. He started working at

before joining

. Kigami became well known in the industry for his work on ''

Grave of the Fireflies is a 1988 Japanese animated war tragedy film based on a 1967 short story by Akiyuki Nosaka. It was written and directed by Isao Takahata, and animated by Studio Ghibli for Shinchosha Publishing. The film stars , , and . Set in the city ...

'' and '' Akira'' as a key animator. In 2003, Kigami directed his first work, ''

Munto ''Munto'' (stylized as ''MUNTO'') is a two-episode original video animation (OVA) project by Kyoto Animation, first released in 2003 titled ''Munto'' followed by a 2005 sequel ''Munto: Beyond the Walls of Time''. An animated television series ...

'', and later became an instructor at Kyoto Animation's teaching program. In Kyoto Animation productions, he used the pen name Ichirou Miyoshi (三好一郎) when storyboarding, and Fumio Tada (多田文男) when doing key animation.

Death

On 18 July 2019, during the Kyoto Animation arson attack, Kigami was killed alongside 35 of his colleagues, with 33 others wounded; Kigami was initially declared missing after the attack due to his mother declaring that he could not be contacted immediately following the fire. His death was confirmed on 2 August 2019.

Filmography

*''

'': Key Animation *'' Cat's Eye'': Key Animation (4 episodes) *'' Akira'': Key Animation *''

Doraemon ''Doraemon'' ( ja, ドラえもん ) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Fujiko F. Fujio. The manga was first serialized in December 1969, with its 1,345 individual chapters compiled into 45 ''tankōbon'' volumes and ...

'' (7 movies): Key Animation *'' Robotan: Episode director (ep 5) *'' Lucky Star'': Animation Director (ep 18) *''

Clannad Clannad () is an Irish band formed in 1970 in Gweedore, County Donegal by siblings Ciarán, Pól, and Moya Brennan and their twin uncles Noel and Pádraig Duggan. They have adopted various musical styles throughout their history, including ...

'': Animation Director (ep 3); Key Animation (ep 12, ep 23, ep 24) *''

Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions , also known as ''Chū-2'' for short, is a Japanese light novel series written by Torako, with illustrations provided by Nozomi Ōsaka. The work won an honorable mention in the Kyoto Animation Award competition in 2010, leading the company ...

'': Episode Director (ep 6); Storyboard ep (ep 6) *'' Crayon Shin Chan Movies (1; 3;7;9) '': Key Animation *''

Hyouka is a 2001 Japanese mystery novel written by Honobu Yonezawa. It is the first volume of the series. Five additional volumes have been published between 2002 and 2016. A manga adaptation drawn by Taskohna began serialization in the March ...

'': Key Animation; Storyboard (ep 5); Episode Director (ep 5) *''

K-On! is a Japanese four-panel manga series written and illustrated by Kakifly serialized in Houbunsha's '' Manga Time Kirara'' magazine between the May 2007 and October 2010 issues, and also serialized in Houbunsha's '' Manga Time Kirara Car ...

'': Key Animation (ep 10, ep 12) *'' K-On! Movie'': Key Animation *''

'': Director *''

Tamako Market is a Japanese anime television series produced by Kyoto Animation, directed by Naoko Yamada, and written by Reiko Yoshida. The series aired in Japan between January 10 and March 28, 2013. The anime has been licensed in North America by Sen ...

'': Episode Director (ep 2, ep 9), Storyboard (ep 9), Key Animation (ep 1) *'' Violet Evergarden'': Episode Director (ep 6), Storyboard (ep 6) *''

Nichijou is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Keiichi Arawi. The manga began serialization in the December 2006 issue of Kadokawa Shoten's manga magazine '' Shōnen Ace'', and was also serialized in ''Comptiq'' between the March 2007 ...

'': Episode Director (ep 6, ep 14, ep 20), Storyboard (ep 6, ep 14, ep 20) *''

Air The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing f ...

'': Storyboard (ep 11), Episode Director (ep 11) *'' Free!'': Key Animation *'' Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu'': Storyboard (ep 3, ep 7), Episode Director (ep 3, ep 7) *''Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid'': Storyboard (ep 4, ep 8, ep 12), Episode Director (ep 4, ep 12) *''

Sound! Euphonium is a Japanese novel series written by Ayano Takeda. The story is set in Uji, Kyoto and focuses on the Kitauji High School Music Club, whose concert band is steadily improving thanks to the newly appointed adviser's strict instructio ...

'': Episode Director (ep 5, ep 12) *''Baja no Studio'': Director *'' A Silent Voice'': Key Animation

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kigami, Yoshiji 1957 births 2010s missing person cases 2019 deaths Anime directors Deaths from fire in Japan Formerly missing people Japanese animated film directors Japanese animators Japanese film directors Japanese murder victims Japanese television directors Kyoto Animation people Male murder victims Missing person cases in Japan People from Osaka Prefecture People murdered in Kyoto Place of birth missing Victims of the Kyoto Animation arson attack Akira (franchise)

Career

Death

Filmography

See also

References

External links