taku furukawa

Born in Iga, Japan, 1941. Out of admiration of animator Osamu Tezuka, Furukawa began writing manga during his high school years. While in school, Furukawa began working at TCJ (Television Corporation of Japan Co.,Ltd, now EIKEN Co.,Ltd.) and worked on the production of TV anime “Tetsujin 28.” After graduating college, Furukawa worked at Yōji Kuri Experimental Manga Studio, and helped with the animation work by artists such as Tadanori Yokoo, Makoto Wada, Akira Uno, Yoshitarō Isaka, and others. In 1969, Furukawa’s work Oxed Man won an award at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival. In 1972, the film Head Spoon was selected “best of world animation films” by MoMA, gaining recognition for his simple imagery and humorous worldview. Furukawa’s field of work ranges from animation, illustration, manga, to children’s book.

Furukawa has received awards including: Phenakistiscope (1975, Annecy jury special), TarZAN (1990, Hiroshima), From Heart to Heart (1992, Hiroshima), and TYO STORY (1999, 3rd Japan Media Art Festival Excellence Award). Retrospective was held in Ottawa in 2003. Selection and Juries include festivals in Hiroshima, Seoul, Shanghai, Holland, and others. He has served as the New Chitose Airport International Animation Festival Honorary Chairman (2014-), Japan Media Arts Festival Operating Committee (2013-), and President of JAA (Japan Animation Association).

古川タク
手塚治虫に憧れ、高校時代から漫画を描き始める。在学中からTCJ（現・エイケン）で働き、テレビアニメ『鉄人28号』の初期制作に参加する。大学卒業後の1964年、久里実験漫画工房へ入社。横尾忠則、和田誠、宇野亜喜良、伊坂芳太良らのアニメーション制作を手伝う。1969年、『牛頭』がアヌシー国際アニメーション映画祭に入選。『ヘッド･スプーン』（1972）がニューヨーク近代美術館のベスト・オブ・ワールドアニメーションフィルムズに選ばれるなど、シンプルな画風とユーモラスな世界観が国際的な評価を受けている。活動領域は、アニメーション、イラストレーション、漫画、絵本と多岐に渡る。