Kenzō Masaoka

Kenzo Masaoka
Born(1898-10-05)October 5, 1898
Osaka, Japan
DiedNovember 23, 1988(1988-11-23) (aged 90)
Tokyo, Japan
Other nameDonbei Masaoka
OccupationAnimator

Kenzō Masaoka (政岡 憲三, Masaoka Kenzō; October 5, 1898 – November 23, 1988) was a Japanese animator and voice actor.

Masaoka was the first to use cel animation and recorded sound in anime.[1] He worked at a number of companies as an animator and actor, and was one of the founders of what became Toei Animation. His work as a special effects artist earned him the title "Japanese Méliès."[2]

He also did work under the pseudonym Donbei Masaoka (正岡 どんべい, Masaoka Donbei).

Famous animators who worked under him include Mitsuyo Seo and Yasuji Mori.

Biography

Masaoka was born in Osaka in 1898 and initially trained in Japanese-style painting at Kyoto City University of Arts before an ambition to paint in oils took him to Tokyo; he soon returned to Kyoto, however, and found work as a costume designer on Shōzō Makino's film Sun (日輪).[3] His own venture came in 1927 with the founding of Nonbei Production in the Shimogamo district of Kyoto, where he produced the children's film Shell Palace (貝の宮殿) and occasionally performed on screen under the stage name Rurinosuke Segawa.[3] A longstanding curiosity about animation led him to Nikkatsu's Uzumasa Studio in 1929; the well-received Nonsense Story, Vol. 1: The Monkey Island (難船ス物語第壱篇 猿ヶ島), released in 1931, was his first work in the medium.[3]

Masaoka struck out on his own again in 1932, founding Masaoka Eiga Seisakusho in Kyoto, where a commission from Shochiku's Kamata studio head Shirō Kido resulted in The World of Power and Women (力と女の世の中, 1933), Japan's first talkie animation.[3] Renamed Masaoka Eiga Bijutsu Kenkyusho that December and rehoused in a purpose-built two-story facility with its own recording studio, the operation pursued higher production values through the then-costly technique of cel animation, but its finances could not sustain the ambition and the studio eventually closed.[3]

He resurfaced at Shochiku Doga Kenkyusho in 1941, where he made the film for which he remains best known, The Spider and the Tulip (くもとちゅうりっぷ, 1943).[3] Following World War II, Masaoka teamed up with Sanae Yamamoto at Shin Nihon Dogasha (later Nihon Mangaeiga Corp.), though he departed after only a single, unreleased production, Sakura (桜, 1946); the two then launched Nihon Doga Corp.—the forerunner of Nichido and eventually Toei Animation—whose Tora-chan series (すて猫トラちゃん, 1947–1950) could not overcome the company's recurring money troubles, and Masaoka gradually turned his attention to cartooning and picture books instead.[3]

Filmography

YearEnglish nameJapanese nameRomajiSource
1927Sea Palace貝の宮殿Kai no kyūden
1927Shell Palace海の宮殿Umi no kyūden
1930Nonsense Story, Volume 1: Monkey Island難船ス物語 第壱篇 猿ヶ嶋Nansensu Monogatari Daīppen Sarugashima[4]
1931Shipwreck Story - Second Chapter - The Pirate Ship難船ス物語　第二篇　海賊船Nansensu Monogatari - Daini-hen - Kaizokusen[5]
1931Bakahachi and the Castle Lord(?)馬鹿八と城主様Bakahachi to jōshu-sama[6]
1933The World of Power and Women力と女の世の中Chikara to Onna no Yo no Naka[7]
1934Three Crows三羽烏Sanba garasu
1934The Gang and the Dancerギャングと踊り子Gyangu to Odoriko
1934Vengeful Crow-Adauchi Karasu
1934The Dance of the Chagamas
The Teakettle Marching Song		茶釜音頭Chagama ondo[7]
1935Fairy Forest森の妖精Mori no yōsei
1935Ta-chan's Underwater Adventureターチャンの海底旅行Tāchan no kaitei ryoko[8]
1935Ta-chan's Monster Adventureターチャンの怪物退治Tāchan no kaibutsu taiji
1935Princess Kaguyaかぐや姫Kaguya Hime
1936The Sparrows' Lodge雀のお宿Suzume no Oyado[8]
1938-やっこのタコ平Yakko no Takohei: Otomo wa tsuyoi ne
1939Monkey and Crabsマングワ 新猿蟹合戰Shin Saru Kani Gassen[9]
1939Cat's Folktaleニャンの浦島Nyan no urashima[10]
1939Benkei and Ushiwaka弁慶対牛若Benkei tai Ushiwaka[11][12]
1940Magician In The Dream夢の魔術師Yume no Majutsushi[13]
1941Attack on Fuku-chanフクちゃんの奇襲Fuku-chan no kishū[14]
1943Spider and TulipくもとちゅうりっぷKumo to chūrippu[7][15]
1946Cherry Blossom: Spring's Fantasy桜 - 春の幻想Sakura: Haru no genso[16]
1947Abandoned Cat Little Toraすて猫トラちゃんSute Neko Tora-chan
1948Tora-chan and the Brideトラちゃんと花嫁Tora-chan to Hanayome[17]
1950Tora-chan and the Insectトラちゃんのカンカン虫Tora-chan no Kankan Mushi[18]

References

  1. ↑ Kōdansha (1993). Japan: an illustrated encyclopedia. Kōdansha, ISBN 978-4-06-206489-7
  2. ↑ The World History of Animation, Stephen Cavalier p. 144
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Kenzo Masaoka". Japanese Animated Film Classics. National Film Archive of Japan. Retrieved 2026-07-14.
  4. ↑ "作品一覧 (3)". animation.filmarchives.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  5. ↑ "難船ス物語 第二篇 海" (in Japanese). Japanese Movie Database. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Bakahachi to jōshu-sama". Japanese Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  7. 1 2 3 Sharp, Jasper (23 September 2004). "Pioneers of Japanese Animation". Midnight Eye: The Latest and Best in Japanese Cinema. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  8. 1 2 "Japanese Anime Classic Collection [Disc 3]". www.digital-meme.com. Archived from the original on July 14, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  9. ↑ "Monkey and Crabs". animation.filmarchives.jp. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  10. ↑ "Cat's Folktale". Japanese Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  11. ↑ "Benkei and Ushiwaka". The Roots of Japanese Anime. Episode 7. 1939.
  12. ↑ Sharp, Jasper (23 September 2004). "Pioneers of Japanese Animation (Part 2)". Midnight Eye: The Latest and Best in Japanese Cinema. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  13. ↑ "Magician In The Dream". Japanese Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  14. ↑ "Attack on Fuku-chan". Japanese Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Animage Top-100 Anime Listing". Anime News Network. January 15, 2008. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  16. ↑ "東京都・京橋で「こども映画館2013」。喜劇王の無声映画や初期アニメを公開". mynavi.jp (in Japanese). June 14, 2013. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  17. ↑ "トラちゃんと花嫁". The National Film Center Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  18. ↑ "トラちゃんのカンカン虫". Japanese Media Arts Database (in Japanese). Retrieved August 10, 2017.
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