Honami Yano

Honami Yano (矢野ほなみ, Yano Honami, born 1991) is a Japanese animation director.[1]

Biography

Yano was born in 1991 on a small island in Japan.[2] She studied in Kyoto as an undergraduate, during which she participated in a student exchange program at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in the United States.[2] She later earned her degree at the Graduate School of Film and New Media, Tokyo University of the Arts, where she studied under animation director Kōji Yamamura.[2] Her graduation film, Chromosome Sweetheart (2017), was nominated at several festivals, including Frameline.[2] After completing her studies, Yano worked as a research assistant for three years. Since 2021, she has served as a Designated Assistant Professor at the Institutes of Innovation for Future Society, Nagoya University.[2] Her animation work often explores themes of sexuality and gender, and she has also organized queer animation screening events.[1]

Yano's early short film was A Wild Pants Chase (パンツをめぐる冒険, 2014).[3]

Her 2021 short film A Bite of Bone (骨噛み, Honekami) is a 9-minute-45-second piece about a young girl reflecting on a summer spent with her late father during his funeral. The film was produced by Kōji Yamamura and Sunae as the inaugural production of the studio Au Praxinoscope.[2] A Bite of Bone won the Grand Prize for Short Animation at the 45th Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) in 2021,[4][5] the New Face Award in the Animation Division of the 25th Japan Media Arts Festival, the Best Short Animation award at the 29th Raindance Film Festival, and the Gold Award (Animation category) at the 27th ifva Awards, among other festival honors.[6] The festival jury commended the film for combining "traditional techniques" with a dot-based visual style that allows the audience to "freely cross places and memories."[4]

In 2023, Yano created the ending animation for the television anime Trigun Stampede.[3]

In 2026, her new short film Eri (also known as Eri, the Cow) was selected for the Directors' Fortnight (Quinzaine des Cinéastes) at the Cannes Film Festival.[7][1] The film is set in a world where cows that do not bear calves cannot remain, and follows a Holstein cow who falls in love with another female.[8]

Filmography

  • A Wild Pants Chase (パンツをめぐる冒険) (2014)
  • Chromosome Sweetheart (2017)
  • A Bite of Bone (骨噛み, Honekami) (2021) – Grand Prize for Short Animation at Ottawa International Animation Festival; New Face Award (Animation) at Japan Media Arts Festival; Best Short Animation at Raindance Film Festival; Gold Award (Animation) at ifva Awards
  • Trigun Stampede (2023) – ending animation
  • Eri (2026) – Selected for Directors' Fortnight at Cannes Film Festival

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Honami Yano". Directors' Fortnight. Retrieved 2026-07-11.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "A Bite of Bone". Imaginaria. Retrieved 2026-07-11.
  3. 1 2 "Yano Honami". new-new.jp. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  4. 1 2 "Honami Yano's "A Bite of Bone" Animated Short Wins Award at Ottawa Int'l Animation Festival". Anime News Network. October 5, 2021. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  5. ↑ "Point by Point: Honami Yano Discusses Her Ottawa Grand Prize Film 'A Bite of Bone'". Animation Magazine. November 13, 2021. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  6. ↑ "骨嚙み" (in Japanese). Au Praxinoscope. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  7. ↑ Goodfellow, Melanie (April 14, 2026). "Cannes Directors' Fortnight Unveils Starry 2026 Lineup". Deadline. Retrieved 2026-07-11.
  8. ↑ "Animated Features & Shorts Announced for 2026 Cannes Directors' Fortnight". Cartoon Contender. Retrieved 2026-07-11.
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