Kenji Kamiyama Individual Award winner at 9th Animation Kobe 2004

9th Animation Kobe

Kenji Kamiyama is Individual Award Winner at the 9th Animation Kobe
The award is given to prospective young artists who had produced anime in Japan between August 2003 and August 2004, and who contributed their creativity to the industry while demonstrating unique and innovative skills.

Award Motivation
Director Kamiyama's inventiveness comes from his will "to portray the present world". His award-winning anime, Stand Alone Complex, as well as its follow-up 2nd Gig, which is currently airing on TV, both appear to be Sci-Fi action anime. But Kamiyama has successfully kept his critical stance on current political and economic issues by tackling matters such as drug-induced diseases and refugees. This means that he is careful not to simply rely on his fascinating animation, which by itself could easily enthrall the audience. He does not run away from reality. Rather, he is ready to face it and he creates stories. We see a stoic challenger in Kamiyama, and we can't wait to see where he will take us after the S.A.C. series.