Project: Represent! Character research

   

 I decided to choose a female animator for my class project, so I first searched online for female African American animators. Most of the films they animated I have yet to watch myself. As a result, I decided to try and research some Japanese female animators. I later learned of Makiko Futaki, a Japanese female animator that worked with Hayao Miyazaki in Studio Ghibli. She worked as a key animator for most of the films from Studio Ghibli. She even worked on my favorite Studio Ghibli films, Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke. She also worked as a key animator for the classic Japanese animated film, Akira. I learned that Hayao Miyazaki saw her as a valuable asset and someone he could trust by animating the stories in the way he envision them. Sadly she died on May 13, 2016, due to an unknown illness. She is an animator that I never knew of until today and I am happy that I  learned about Makiko. These reasons are why I choose to design a character in honor of Makiko Futaki for my project.