Writing

Wataru Kenmotsu

Born August 19, 1945 · Kanagawa, Japan

Died July 18, 2003 · aged 57

Wataru Kenmotsu (剣持 亘, Kenmotsu Wataru, August 19, 1945 - July 15, 2003) was a Japanese screenwriter. He often teamed up with director Nobuhiko Obayashi.

Known For

The Girl Who Leapt Through TimeThe Girl Who Leapt Through Time · 1983
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
★ 6.81983
MovieScience FictionRomance
Kazuko Yoshiyama is a third-year junior-high-school student. One day, while cleaning the lab, she smells lavender and faints. From then on, she has the power to travel through time.
Lonely HeartLonely Heart · 1985
Lonely Heart
★ 7.21985
MovieRomanceComedy
Lonely and love-stricken high-school student Hiroki pursues a girl, but another one mysteriously appears in his life. Is she a figment of his psyche, or is she real?
Kenya BoyKenya Boy · 1984
Kenya Boy
★ 5.81984
MovieAnimationAdventure
An 11-year-old boy who goes to Africa with his father in 1941. Because he is Japanese, the father is detained by the British. The boy joins up with a beautiful native girl, and the adventure begins.
Switching – Goodbye MeSwitching – Goodbye Me · 2007
Switching – Goodbye Me
★ 6.62007
MovieFantasyComedy
After his parent's divorce, Kazuo Saito moves with his mother from Onomichi and must leave his girlfriend behind. At his new school, Kazuo is surprised to reunite with his childhood friend Kazumi.
I Are You, You Am MeI Are You, You Am Me · 1982
I Are You, You Am Me
★ 6.41982
MovieComedyDrama
9th-graders Kazuo and Kazumi take a tumble at a temple in a small seacoast town in Japan. Through supernatural intervention, their minds and bodies are switched, and the result is a touching and hilarious coming-of-age comedy as they attempt to survive the pressures of junior high school life.
The Island Closest to HeavenThe Island Closest to Heaven · 1984
The Island Closest to Heaven
★ 6.41984
MovieDrama
A Japanese teenager travels to New Caledonia in search of the fabled "island closest to heaven" that her late father had told her about.
Curtain CallCurtain Call · 1984
Curtain Call
★ 6.01984
MovieMusicDrama
Miho Nakamichi, an orphan adopted by Haruko, dreams to star in a musical. One day, Haruko promised Miho that she could go on a journey to find her real father, "Daddy-Long-Legs", who sends a bouquet of flowers every birthday, once she can wear a special pair of pointe shoes. The day finally arrives and Miho's small adventure begins.
Aoi sanmyakuAoi sanmyaku · 1975
Aoi sanmyaku
1975
MovieDrama
Remake of 1949 film

Filmography

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White FangWhite Fang · 1990
White Fang
★ 8.51990
MovieDramaFamily
A gray wolf raised on a farm kills the family dog, and to save him from being destroyed, a boy named Lasset makes a trek through the wilderness with the wolf to a wilderness sanctuary 300 miles to the north. The BGM in the film consists entirely of Dvorak's Serenade for Strings, making it perhaps the only anime since Gauche the Cellist to make use of a single piece of classical music as the soundtrack. The plot of the film is simple and the outcome obvious, but the atmosphere of the film is genuine, and it is very moving in parts thanks to Dvorak's music (which is scored entirely for the most emotional of the instrument groups, the strings). This is a straightforward drama about the friendship between a boy and his wolf, and it pushes all the buttons you'd expect, but it's very enjoyable despite all that.

Writer