Hiromasa Yonebayashi

A key animator for Japanese icons Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata's Studio Ghibli, Hiromasa Yonebayashi made his directorial debut with 2010's "The Borrower Arrietty" (released in North America as "The Secret World of Arrietty" in 2012). Yonebayashi was fascinated with Studio Ghibli after watching their 1995 film "Whisper of the Heart," about a young girl experiencing love for the first time, and he became determined to work for them. He didn't wait long: Yonebayashi joined the studio in 1996 and worked on the clean-up animation for the 1997 adventure, "Princess Mononoke," meaning that he was responsible for clearing up and smoothening the rough original drawings. He performed the same job for Takahata's light family comedy "My Neighbors the Yamadas" before landing his first key animation position for Miyazaki's lauded, award-winning 2001 film "Spirited Away." The success of this project led to two more key animation opportunities: 2004's "Howl's Moving Castle" and 2008's "Ponyo," both directed by Miyazaki. Much to Yonebayashi's surprise--a Studio Ghibli animator had never been offered to sit in the director's chair--Miyazaki asked him to direct "The Secret World of Arrietty" despite Miyazaki's aspirations to make the film himself. Based on the 1952 children's novel "The Borrowers," "Arrietty" received overwhelmingly positive reviews in the U.S., establishing Yonebayashi as an artistic talent to watch for in future Studio Ghibli films.