Directing
Kenji Iwaisawa
Born January 1, 1981 · Tokyo, Japan (age 45)
Kenji Iwaisawa is an independent filmmaker and animator who was born in Tokyo Prefecture in 1981. After graduating from high school, Iwaisawa became an apprentice to the director Teruo Ishii. He began creating his own animation works by drawing on influences from live-action movies. In 2008 he finished his first animation piece, Fukuraicho, The Man in the Tunnel Alley. Henceforth, he focused on sh…
Known For
100 METERS · 2025100 METERS
★ 7.82025
MovieAnimationDrama
A gifted runner trains a determined but unskilled classmate, unaware he's creating a rival who will challenge him on the track for years to come.
Jinsei · 2025Jinsei
★ 4.02025
MovieDramaScience Fiction
Our hero (voiced by rapper ACE COOL), called by a different name in each chapter of his life, becomes a J-pop idol, an outcast, a leader, and an oracle in this hundred-year chronicle spanning the past, present, and future. Through a chance encounter with a transfer student, he trains to become an idol, starting his search for self-identity and a journey toward greatness beyond superstardom. Written, directed, edited and entirely hand-drawn by newcomer Ryuya Suzuki over eighteen months, JINSEI (meaning “life” in Japanese) is an anime tour-de-force that announces Suzuki to the world as a bold new talent in independent animation.
On-Gaku: Our Sound · 2020On-Gaku: Our Sound
★ 7.32020
MovieAnimationComedy
A bored trio of high school delinquents start a rock 'n' roll band together. They have no skill, money, or even a full set of drums, but are determined to jam out and impress their only friend.
Hina Is BeautifulHina Is Beautiful
MovieAnimationDrama
Set in Izu, Japan. Men are fighting over a woman called Hina. What is it exactly that makes Hina mislead men? As the men try to reveal their true feelings for Hina, strong, muscly men also get involved and the sound of the festival drum signals the start of a confrontation.
Nicky · 2008Nicky
2008
MovieAnimationMusic
A child is watching a music video on his television screen.
Mourning Ice Pop · 2009Mourning Ice Pop
2009
MovieAnimationDrama
While comically depicting the fragility of the end of summer from the perspective of popsicles, this work conveys the smell of the Showa era and the atmosphere of downtown.
Kotatsu Man · 2012Kotatsu Man
2012
MovieDrama
Ogasawara was supposed to spend New Year's Eve quietly alone in the kotatsu, but he is at the mercy of Goto, a mysterious man who appears every year. Iwaizawa's first live-action work, which he took on when he was trying to figure out whether he could compete with animation.
Fussa Dancing Animation · 2015Fussa Dancing Animation
2015
MovieAnimation
This work was created at the "Ginza Shoeikai Art Festival" event held in June 2014 in Fussa City, Tokyo, as part of a workshop that allowed visitors to experience up-close the rotoscope animation technique. Visitors drew each piece by hand. The complete short film consists of those joined individual sketches.


