Kazunori Ito

Writer

December 24, 1954 (71 years)

Yamagata, Japon

Biography

Kazunori Ito is a Japanese screenwriter well known for his work in the .hack franchise, the Patlabor films and the Ghost in the Shell movie. He is a founding member of Headgear, a group of five main writers and artists that include Masami Yuki, Yutaka Izubuchi, Akemi Takada, and Mamoru Oshii. Ito is also a fan of classic tokusatsu leading to his work on Shusuke Kaneko's Gamera trilogy.

Filmography

6.8

.hack

.hack follows several young players as they navigate the vast, mysterious MMORPG known as “The World” – a place, it turns out, that is sometimes impossible to leave.

7.9

Ghost in the Shell

In the year 2029, the barriers of our world have been broken down by the net and by cybernetics, but this brings new vulnerability to humans in the form of brain-hacking. When a highly-wanted hacker known as 'The Puppetmaster' begins involving them in politics, Section 9, a group of cybernetically enhanced cops, are called in to investigate and stop the Puppetmaster.

7.2

Patlabor: The TV Series

Patlabor: The TV Series is an anime television series, created by Headgear, animated by Sunrise, and based on the Patlabor anime franchise.

9.8

Patlabor: The New Files

Special Vehicles Division 2 is back on duty, along with their Ingram Patrol Labor (Patlabor) robots. Using their courage as well as the Ingrams, Captain Goto's motley crew of officers battle crime in Tokyo city. They also deal with their personal lives, as well as the supernatural.

6.6

Magical Angel Creamy Mami

Creamy Mami, the Magic Angel is a magical girl anime series by Studio Pierrot which aired from 1983 to 1984 on Nippon Television. It went on to have five OVA adaptions and featured in other Studio Pierrot special presentations. A three volume manga was released during the original TV run, with the story written by Kazunori Itō and art by Yuuko Kitagawa. This was the first of five magical girl anime to be produced by Studio Pierrot, and the first of these to feature the designs of Akemi Takada. In 2005, the web-poll for TV Asahi's top-100 anime of all time saw Creamy Mami, the Magic Angel poll 82nd. The series is currently streaming in North America via Yomiuri Group's planned Anime Sols video service, as of spring 2013. Thus far, a limited DVD release of the first thirteen episodes has been successfully crowd-funded at Anime Sols, with the second set of episodes currently in crowd-fund mode.

7.5

Absolute Boy

Ayumu Aizawa who can't recall his childhood. He doesn't suffer from amnesia but his younger days are a mystery to him. When asked to spend the summer with his father in Tana, a rural town two hours away from his home in Tokyo, Ayumu refuses as he has not seen his divorced father in four years. He gets bribed by his mother with a mountain bicycle and reluctantly agrees. Unbeknownst to him, this fateful trip will put together bits of his past. Soon after arriving at Tana, Ayumu encounters strange happenings such as meeting a mysterious boy called Wakkun, who lives in an enchanted forest, and floating orbs of lights appearing in the sky.

7.0

The Next Generation: Patlabor

In a world where giant robots are built and used for labor, a special police force of robots is created to handle crimes relating to these machines.

7.4

Patlabor: Early Days

In the future, rapidly advancing technology gives birth to giant robots known as "Labors," so named for their usefulness in heavy industry. However, this also gives rise to "Labor crimes," resulting the the need for a new branch of law enforcement equipped with and dedicated to the policing of Labors. When Izumi Noa, a female police officer, becomes the newest recruit of Special Vehicles Division 2, she and her top of the line "Patrol Labor" (or "Patlabor") Alphonse are swept into a series of adventures featuring crazed construction workers, eco-terrorists, and sea monsters.

7.6

Dirty Pair

The semi-coherent adventures of two teenage intergalactic private eyes, Kei and Yuri. Members of Trouble Consultant team 234, their code name is 'Lovely Angels'. However, they're better known – universe-wide, in fact – as the 'Dirty Pair', a moniker they're not fond of. Their arrival at the scene is always a source of hope and dread, since they always solve the case, but wherever they go, something gets destroyed, up to and including entire planets. Luckily for them – but not so much for the universe – there's typically some extenuating circumstances that support their oft-uttered phrase, "It's not our fault".

6.5

Twilight Q

A Knot in Time — Reflection — Mayu found a camera floating in the ocean while she was on vacation. A very unusual camera. The film, mostly intact, reveals a picture of herself with a man she has never seen before. But that is not all. The unusual part is that this camera has not been made yet... and will not be made for another two years. And soon, Mayu finds herself swinging uncontrollably back and forth through time like a pendulum... Mystery Case — File 538 — A down-on-his-luck detective accepts the first case to come his way: surveillance of a man and a little girl. But who are they? And why do aeroplanes that fly over them turn into giant imperial carp? An investigator's normal methods do not apply when reality itself no longer applies...

6.8

.hack//Liminality

.hack//Liminality is an OVA series directly related to the .hack video game series for the PlayStation 2, with the perspective of Liminality focused on the real world as opposed to the games' MMORPG The World. Liminality was separated into four volumes; each volume was released with its corresponding game. The initial episode is 45 minutes long, while subsequent episodes are 30 minutes long. The video series was directed by Koichi Mashimo, written by Kazunori Itō with music by Yuki Kajiura. Primary Animation production was handled by Mashimo's studio Bee Train which collaborated for the four games as well as handled major production on .hack//Sign.

N/A

Monster Magnitude: 9

Monster attacks are a common occurrence in Japan. A special division of the Japan Meteorological Agency has been established to predict such attacks, as well as support the Japan Self-Defense Forces and minimize the damage from the attacks.

2.5

MiniPato

"Digital paper puppet theatre" short film parodies of the Patlabor franchise.

7.4

Patlabor 2: The Movie

A Japanese police unit who use giant anthropomorphic robots (called Labors) is caught up in a political struggle between the civilian authorities and the military when a terrorist act is blamed on an Air Force jet. With the aid of a government agent, the team gets close to a terrorist leader to stop things from going out of control when after the military is impelled to impose martial law.

N/A

Patlabor EZY: File 1

Patlabor EZY File 1 is the first of a 3-part theatrical series taking place in 2036, 38 years after the events of Patlabor on Television and The New Files.

7.4

Ghost in the Shell 2.0

In the year 2029, Section 9, a group of cybernetically enhanced cops, are called in to investigate and stop a highly-wanted hacker known as 'The Puppetmaster'.

7.4

Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris

With the Gyaos re-emerging, Gamera's ties to humanity have been severed with his bond to Asagi broken. Nagamine and Asagi investigate while an orphaned girl named Ayana discovers a new creature she names Iris. Nagamine and Asagi must reach Ayana before she takes her revenge on Gamera, who she blames for the death of her family.

7.4

Gamera: Guardian of the Universe

A ship runs aground on a mysterious atoll leading to an investigation by insurance representative Kusanagi, who discovers an ancient bead that he gives to his daughter Asagi. Meanwhile, ornithologist Nagamine investigates reports of a new species of large bird named Gyaos. As the Gyaos begin to attack, an ancient guardian with a bond to Asagi emerges.

7.5

Gamera 2: Attack of Legion

A strange meteor lands in Japan and unleashes hundreds of insect-like "Legion" creatures bent on colonizing the Earth. When the military fails to control the situation, Gamera shows up to deal with the ever-evolving space adversary. However the battle may result in Gamera losing his bond with both Asagi and humanity.

7.0

Patlabor: The Movie

A mysterious suicide and a series of unmanned robot run-aways sparks off a Police investigation into the suspicious software on-board thousands of industrial robots around Tokyo.