---
name: "Isao Takahata"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/isao-takahata"
fi1m_id: "isao-takahata"
imdb_id: "nm0847223"
tmdb_id: 628
wikidata_id: "Q178713"
roles: ["Director","Producer","Writer"]
born: "29 October 1935"
died: "5 April 2018"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 6
average_fi1m_score: 89
average_as: "director"
average_over: 2
updated: "2026-09-17T14:21:28.642433+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Isao Takahata

## Identity

Isao Takahata

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/isao-takahata
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** isao-takahata
- **IMDb ID:** nm0847223
- **TMDB ID:** 628
- **Wikidata ID:** Q178713
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isao_Takahata, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q178713, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0847223/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/628

Director and producer. Born 29 October 1935 in Ujiyamada [now Ise], Mie, Japan. Died 5 April 2018.

## Details

- **Work:** Director, Producer, Writer
- **Born:** 29 October 1935, Ujiyamada [now Ise], Mie, Japan
- **Died:** 5 April 2018
- **Active:** 1984–2016
- **Also known as:** Такахата Исао, たかはた いさお, Paku-san, 타카하타 이사오, ایسائو تاکاهاتا
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 6: 2 directing, 3 producing, 1 crew
- **Frequently works with:** [Hayao Miyazaki](https://film.one/person/hayao-miyazaki.md), [Toshio Suzuki](https://film.one/person/toshio-suzuki.md)
- **Academy Awards:** 1 Oscar nomination
- **Average Fi1m score:** 89, as director, over 2 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1980s 87 (4), 2010s 84 (2)
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isao_Takahata, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q178713, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0847223/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/628

## Streaming the US now

- **HBO Max:** [*Warriors of the Wind*](https://film.one/film/warriors-of-the-wind.md) (85), [*The Tale of The Princess Kaguya*](https://film.one/film/the-tale-of-the-princess-kaguya.md) (84), [*Castle in the Sky*](https://film.one/film/castle-in-the-sky.md) (82)
- **Netflix:** [*Grave of the Fireflies*](https://film.one/film/grave-of-the-fireflies.md) (94)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Isao Takahata

> Isao Takahata’s animated characters have ordinary needs, distractions and failings. We rate him highly for his attention to how people behave under pressure, and for his willingness to find different ways of drawing them.

In *Grave of the Fireflies* (1988), Seita and Setsuko still find things to enjoy while trying to survive. Takahata gives their distractions the same care as their distress, allowing them to remain recognisably children. Their drawn bodies look vulnerable, and the moments of natural beauty do nothing to make their circumstances safer. We were harrowed by the film because its small pleasures make the suffering harder to bear. It is the clearest reason we rate him so highly: he takes an ordinary hour in someone’s life seriously.

His screenplay is equally exact about the people around the children, whose own needs make generosity harder. Scarcity encourages selfishness, and pride gets in the way of decent behaviour without turning anyone into a theatrical villain. Tsutomu Tatsumi, voicing Seita, and Ayano Shiraishi, voicing Setsuko, help make the children convincing company. Their performances support the drawing’s attention to ordinary responses, preventing the children from existing only to be pitied. The film asks a great deal of us, but it gives us a reason to keep watching.

The ambition was already there in his first feature, *Horus: Prince of the Sun* (1968), which attempted more adult-oriented animation. He co-founded Studio Ghibli with Hayao Miyazaki and producer Toshio Suzuki in 1985, with *Grave of the Fireflies* his first feature there. *Only Yesterday* (1991) then took up memory and everyday adult life through a woman’s recollections of childhood.

He did not draw animation himself, but the films he directed changed their appearance radically from project to project. *My Neighbors the Yamadas* (1999) used a vignette structure; his final feature, *The Tale of the Princess Kaguya* (2013), adopted an ink-wash style. His working methods could be difficult for teams, with *Yamadas* among the productions troubled by delays. We recommend beginning with *Grave of the Fireflies*, though not when you need a comforting evening.

## Biography

Isao Takahata (29 October 1935 – 5 April 2018) was a Japanese film director, screenwriter and producer. He graduated from the University of Tokyo with a degree in French literature in 1959 and joined Toei Animation the same year. He directed numerous television series in the 1970s, including *Heidi: Girl of the Alps* (1974) and *Future Boy Conan* (1978).

In 1985 Takahata co-founded Studio Ghibli with Hayao Miyazaki, Toshio Suzuki and Yasuyoshi Tokuma. He directed five feature films for the studio: *Grave of the Fireflies* (1988), for which he also wrote the screenplay; *Only Yesterday* (1991); *Pom Poko* (1994); *My Neighbors the Yamadas* (1999); and *The Tale of the Princess Kaguya* (2013). He died in Tokyo aged 82.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, theguardian.com, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (6)

### Directed (2) — the average rests on these

- *The Tale of The Princess Kaguya* (2013), Fi1m 84, Director, Original Story, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/the-tale-of-the-princess-kaguya.md)
- *Grave of the Fireflies* (1988), Fi1m 94, Screenplay, Director — [page](https://film.one/film/grave-of-the-fireflies.md)

### Produced (3)

- *The Red Turtle* (2016), Fi1m 84, Producer, Other — [page](https://film.one/film/the-red-turtle.md)
- *Castle in the Sky* (1986), Fi1m 82, Producer — [page](https://film.one/film/castle-in-the-sky.md)
- *Warriors of the Wind* (1984), Fi1m 85, Producer — [page](https://film.one/film/warriors-of-the-wind.md)

### Crew (1)

- *Kiki's Delivery Service* (1989), Fi1m 86, Music Director — [page](https://film.one/film/kikis-delivery-service.md)

## Complete filmography (48)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *The Story of Yanagawa Waterways* (2026), Director, Screenplay
- *The Red Turtle* (2016), as Other · Producer — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/the-red-turtle.md)
- *Anne of Green Gables Digest Version* (2014), Storyboard Artist, Director, Writer
- *The Tale of The Princess Kaguya* (2013), Screenplay, Director, Original Story — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/the-tale-of-the-princess-kaguya.md)
- *Toy Story 3* (2010), Thanks — Fi1m 87, [page](https://film.one/film/toy-story-3.md)
- *Winter Days* (2003), Director
- *The Birth of Studio Ghibli* (2003), Actor
- *Super TV: Frontline Information 15 Months of Exclusive Coverage! The Secret Behind "My Neighbors the Yamadas"* (2000), Actor
- *My Neighbors the Yamadas* (1999), Director, Screenplay, Songs
- *Marco: Carry a Dream* (1999), Original Series Creator
- *Pom Poko* (1994), Director, Writer, Original Story
- *Heidi: Girl of the Alps: Heidi and Clara* (1993), Director
- *Heidi: Girl of the Alps: Mt. Alm* (1993), Director
- *Only Yesterday* (1991), Director, Screenplay
- *Anne of Green Gables: Road to Green Gables* (1990), Director, Writer
- *Kiki's Delivery Service* (1989), Music Director — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/film/kikis-delivery-service.md)
- *Grave of the Fireflies* (1988), Screenplay, Director — Fi1m 94, [page](https://film.one/film/grave-of-the-fireflies.md)
- *Au* (1988), Producer
- *Castle in the Sky* (1986), Producer — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/film/castle-in-the-sky.md)
- *Warriors of the Wind* (1984), Producer — Fi1m 85, [page](https://film.one/film/warriors-of-the-wind.md)
- *Gauche the Cellist* (1982), Director, Screenplay
- *Chie the Brat* (1981), series, Series Director
- *Chie the Brat* (1981), Director, Writer
- *3000 Leagues in Search of Mother: The Movie* (1980), Director, Screenplay, Director of Operations
- *Gegege no Kitaro: The All Seeing Eye* (1980), Co-Director
- *Future Boy Conan* (1979), Storyboard Artist
- *The Story of Heidi* (1979), Director
- *Taro the Dragon Boy* (1979), Concept Artist, Original Concept
- *Anne of Green Gables* (1979), series, as Series Composition · Writer, Director, Storyboard Artist
- *Future Boy Conan* (1978), series, Director, Storyboard Artist
- *Heidi in the City* (1977), Director
- *3000 Leagues in Search of Mother* (1976), series, Director, Series Director
- *母をたずねて三千里* (1976), series, Creator
- *Laura, the Prairie Girl* (1975), series, Creator
- *Heidi: Girl of the Alps* (1974), series, Director
- *Heidi in the Mountains* (1974), Director
- *Panda! Go Panda!: Rainy Day Circus* (1973), Director
- *Yuki's Sun* (1972), Writer
- *Panda! Go Panda!* (1972), Director
- *Panda! Go Panda!* (1972), Director
- *Lupin the 3rd* (1971), series, Director
- *Horus: Prince of the Sun* (1968), Director
- *Spooky Kitaro* (1968), Co-Director
- *Wolf Boy Ken: Scared by a Ghost: The Greatest Operation in the Jungle* (1964), Director
- *Duel of the Underworld* (1963), Assistant Director
- *The Little Prince and the Eight-Headed Dragon* (1963), Assistant Director, Producer's Assistant
- *Story of Iron* (1962), Production Assistant, Assistant Director, Script Supervisor
- *The Orphan Brother* (1961), Assistant Director

## Gallery

- ![Isao Takahata](https://film.one/media/person/102507/gallery-deec8a057da9.jpg) Isao Takahata — Boungawa, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Isao_Takahata.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Isao Takahata](https://film.one/media/person/102507/gallery-1752d7cb3bd9.jpg) Isao Takahata — Image via TMDB
- ![Isao Takahata](https://film.one/media/person/102507/gallery-e98eb887337a.jpg) Isao Takahata — Image via TMDB
- ![Isao Takahata](https://film.one/media/person/102507/gallery-3b39e3c1ee69.jpg) Isao Takahata — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 0 won, 1 nominated

- 2015: Best Animated Feature (nominated), for *The Tale of the Princess Kaguya*

### Other awards — 7 won

- Officer of Arts and Letters 2015: Officer of Arts and Letters (won)
- Winsor McCay Award 2015: Winsor McCay Award (won)
- Medal with Purple Ribbon 1999: Medal with Purple Ribbon (won)
- Annecy International Animation Film Festival 1995: Annecy International Animation Film Festival (won), for *Pom Poko*
- Mainichi Film Award for Best Animation Film 1994: Mainichi Film Award for Best Animation Film (won), for *Pom Poko*
- Art Encouragement Prizes 1992: Art Encouragement Prizes (won), for *Only Yesterday*
- Ōfuji Noburō Award 1981: Ōfuji Noburō Award (won), for *Gauche the Cellist*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/isao-takahata