Studio Khara Evangelion Production Company
Khara, Inc., is the Japanese animation studio known for the Rebuild of Evangelion film franchise. The studio was founded by the creator of the original Neon Genesis Evangelion anime series, Anno Hideaki. The name Khara was created in May 2006 and was made public when the studio posted job openings for the studio's headquarters in Suginami, Tokyo, Japan, later in August of that year. The name, Khara, is derived from the Greek word for "joy" and was developed by Anno's wife, Moyoko Anno.
History and main contributors
Anno founded the studio after working at GAINAX and realizing that not only would anything he created never be his own, but that much of his work would actually get in the way of other creators at the studio, he wanted his own space to work. The studio was originally intended to be a personal office, with Anno simply renting a room in Nishi Shinjuku, Tokyo. From there, he sought advice from his friend Takahashi Tsutomu at Nihon TV on how to proceed, and it was Tsutomu who decided to turn the office into a business by obtaining all the correct paperwork and registration forms, taking them to the Legal Affairs Bureau, and having the documents signed by Anno.
Hideaki Year
Founder Anno Hideaki , born on May 22, 1960, first gained attention as an artist while attending Yamaguchi Prefectural Ube High School and began creating short films for Japanese cultural festivals. His career really began while attending Osaka University of Arts, when he became an animator for the anime series The Super Dimension Fortress Macross (1982–1983). Working for anime became so time-consuming for Anno that he was eventually expelled from school. Anno later gained recognition upon the release of his work on Hayao Miyazki's Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. Anno continued his career by co-founding the animation studio GAINAX in December 1984, where he became Gainax's first anime director working on the television anime series Evangelion None.
Kazuya Tsurumaki
The deputy director of the animation studio is Kazuya Tsurumaki, born on February 2, 1966, in Gosen, Niigata Prefecture. Tsurumaki is Anno's protégé and has also been a longtime animator at the studio. Tsurmaki was hired at GAINAX in 1990 as animation director for the television series Fushigi no Umi no Nadia, and continued to direct at the studio, eventually working under Anno as an assistant director on the hit television anime series Evangelion , for which he not only served as assistant director but also as production designer, art director, and assistant set designer on a few episodes. He even directed episode 25 of the original Evangelion series, which was the first half of the series' cinematic conclusion. He followed Anno to his new studio, Khara, to assist him with work on the new Evangelion films, for which he currently serves as director.
Yoshiyuki Sadamoto
The key character designer for Khara, Inc. is Yoshiyuki Sadamoto , born on January 29, 1962, in Shunan, Yamaguchi Prefecture. Sadamoto is not only a character designer, but also a manga artist, and was also one of the founding members of the GAINAX animation studio alongside Anno. He was also the key character designer for the original Evangelion franchise, which is one of Sadamoto's most notable works. Sadamoto is often noted to be a perfectionist and loyal to his work, only drawing works that he is comfortable drawing without needing to study, meaning that the Evangelion Evangelion units are something he must be well-versed in. In August 2019, Sadamoto was at the center of criticism due to his comments on Statue of Peace (2011), which depicted a comfort woman (a sex slave used by the Imperial Japanese Army). Sadamoto claimed the statue was dirty and vulgar propaganda, which was considered offensive. The character designer has contributed to the Evangelion Rebuild series since the creation of Khara.
Shinji Higuchi
The studio's main storyboard artist is Shinj Higuchi, born on September 22, 1965, in Tokyo, Japan. Higuchi is known for being one of the best special effects supervisors in anime and tokusatsu projects throughout Japan, and is best known for his work on Shusuke Kaneko's Gamera trilogy. He was also one of the four founders of GAINAX. He was a key team member in the creation of the original Evangelion anime series, where he served as storyboard artist and art director/storyboard artist. Not coincidentally, he is also the namesake of the series' protagonist, Shinji Ikari. Higuchi not only led the storyboarding, but also served as the main director, visual effects director, special effects director, and storyboard artist. Higuchi is one of Hideaki 's closest friends.
Shiro Sagisu
Anno had also brought in Composer Shiro Sagisu , born on August 29, 1957 in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan. He is both a music producer and composer, with a 35-year career in music. He also contributed to the collaboration on the Evangelion franchise and was brought to Studio Khara to continue his work, where he eventually won the Tokyo Anime Award for Best Music in 2010 for his work in Evangelion: 2.0 You Cannot (Advance) None
The long-awaited fourth and final film from Rebuild Studios, Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 , is scheduled to be released in Japan in 2020. Their live-action film Shin Ultraman is scheduled to be released in 2021.
