Kenzou Masaoka

Masaoka Kenzou, October 5, 1898 - November 23, 1988, was a second generation animator. He is probably most famous for creating the earliest anime to use cell animation and sound. He also did work under the pseudonym Masaoka Donbei (正岡 どんべい).

Masaoka was born in Osaka, Japan and died in Tokyo, Japan.

He was the son of wealthy landlord in Osaka. He learned painting and music since he was young. In 1922, he entered the art school in Kyoto and learned Japanese painting there, then Western painting at Aoibashi Art Institute of Kiyoteru Kuroda. Three years later he entered Makino Production in Kyoto. He worked as an assistant director for Shouzou Makino and as a set maker for the location of the movie Nichirin by Teinosuke Kinugasa held in Nara park. He also appeared with Tuyako Okajima in the movie directed by Yoshinosuke Hitomi, Hitojichi, using the name of Rurinosuke Segawa. In the same year, he became independent and founded Donbei Production in Kyoto. He produced and directed the children film Umi to Kyuden with the aid from his family. In 1929, Masaoka started working at Nikkatsu Uzumasa Studio in Kyoto. First he worked as a cameraman for period dramas for a short time, then became the chief of technical section in the Educational movie department. Because the department was closed in the next year, he borrowed the production cost in stead of his resignation, and completed and released the animation film The Monkey Island. This was the start of his career as an animation film maker.

In 1932, he established Masaoka Film Production at his house in Kitano, Kyoto, and got down to production of animated cartoon films with his followers, such as Mitsuyo Seo. Having got to know his work, Shirou Kido in Shouchiku offered the cooperation with him. So they produced the first full talking picture in Japan Chikara to Onna no Yononaka using Tuchihashi style talkie. For this movie, Tadao Ikeda worked as a writer and dramatizer, Masaoka as a director, Hiromasa Nomura as a recording director, Kakuzan Kimura as a cameraman, Seo as an animator, and Roppa Furukawa, Akio Isono, Yoko Tsushima, and Ranko Sawa as voice-over actors. This was the story about the husband who became crazy about a typist and his attractive wife. It was released at Asakusa Teikokukan Theater on Apr. 15, 1933. In the same year, he directed Adauchi Karasu and Gang and Dancer, both of which were drafted by Yasujirou Shimazu. He also began to show his talent on special effect movies, such as Kaguya Hime which made him known as Japanese Melies. In 1934 he used a lot of serges which were still expensive and succeeded in producing beautifully smooth-moving animation such as Mori no Yakyuudan and Chagama Ondo. Mori no Yousei, especially, was said to be the best Japanese animation film at that time. He was even called "Japanese Disney".