Hiromasa Yonebayashi

Hiromasa Yonebayashi (米林 宏昌), born July 10, 1973 in Nonoichi, Ishikawa, Japan, is a celebrated Japanese animator and director whose career has spanned more than two decades. After graduating from the Kanazawa College of Art with a major in commercial design, he joined Studio Ghibli in 1996, quickly establishing himself as a versatile talent in the studio’s animation pipeline. His early contributions included in‑between animation on Princess Mononoke (1997) and Jin‑Roh: The Wolf Brigade (1998), followed by key animation work on landmark Ghibli films such as Spirited Away (2001) and Howl's Moving Castle (2004). Yonebayashi also served as animation director on the short Mei and the Kittenbus (2003) and assisted on Tales from Earthsea (2006), demonstrating a keen eye for detail and a deep understanding of Miyazaki’s visual storytelling. Throughout his tenure he contributed key animation to other Ghibli masterpieces, including Ponyo (2008), From Up on Poppy Hill (2011), and The Wind Rises (2013), cementing his reputation as a reliable and inventive craftsman within the studio’s elite creative team. In 2010, Yonebayashi made his directorial debut with The Secret World of Arrietty, becoming the youngest director to helm a theatrical release for Studio Ghibli. The film’s delicate animation and heartfelt narrative earned critical acclaim, and his follow‑up, When Marnie Was There (2014), garnered an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature. After 18 years at Ghibli, he left with producer Yoshiaki Nishimura in December 2014, co‑founding Studio Ponoc in June 2015 to continue the tradition of hand‑drawn animation. At Ponoc, Yonebayashi directed Mary and the Witch's Flower (2017) and Modest Heroes (2018), both praised for their visual richness and imaginative storytelling. His recent work includes key animation on The Boy and the Heron (2023), illustrating his ongoing influence on contemporary Japanese animation.