Leiji Matsumoto also honored at May 16 ceremony.
The 26th Annual Japan Movie Critics Awards announced its list of winners at a ceremony on Tuesday. The winners honored films from the 2016 calendar year. Naoko Yamada and Kyoto Animation‘s A Silent Voice (Koe no Katachi) anime film won the Best Animation of the Year Award.
Additionally, Masako Nozawa (Dragon Ball Z) won the Best Animation Voice Actors Award for her role in Kaze no Yō ni and Makoto Shinkaiwon Best Animation Directors Award for his anime film your name. Leiji Matsumoto was awarded the Diamond Grand Prize in the animation category; the prize is awarded to individuals who have made great efforts to support and win fame for Japanese movies internationally.
Previous winners of Best Animation of the Year include The Boy and The Beast, Expelled from Paradise, The Tale of Princess Kaguya, Wolf Children, and the Detective Conan series. Previous winners of the Best Animation Directors Awards include Masakazu Hashimoto, Hiromasa Yonebayashi, Isao Takahata and Hideaki Anno. Manga creator Go Nagai (Devilman, Mazinger Z) won the Diamond Grand Prize in the animation category last year.
Japan started hosting the awards in 1992 after seeing many other countries host similar awards. Before 2010 the awards did not include animation-specific categories. Frequent Studio Ghibli composer Joe Hisaishi won the Best Movie Music Artist Award in 2009.
Source: Mantan Web
Top image: Your Name official website
More from Anime News Network:
Shinkai’s “Your Name” tops South Korean box office with US$8.1 million
Makoto Shinkai Comments on your name.’s 10 Billion Yen Revenue
Anime film Your Name’s director Makoto Shinkai is immortalized in an asteroid’s name
Makoto Shinkai announces new anime movie Suzume no Tojimari
Your Name director Makoto Shinkai, other anime creators invited to join Oscar Academy
Japanese beef bowl chain Sukiya’s 2026 Smile Box lucky bag basically pays for itself
Majority of Japanese mayors say foreign residents are essential but most see good and bad effects
There’s a new world’s largest anime robot statue, and it’s not in Japan【Photos】
Cat lovers can now put a canned ring on it with new line of capsule toys
Can we win a PS5 from this premium 2,000-yen gacha machine in Japan?
McDonald’s Japan adds the flavour of okonomiyaki to its menu for a limited time
Do gohan no otomo, Japan’s traditional easy white rice toppings, work with toast?【SoraKitchen】
Number of foreign students in Japan hits record high, one country accounts for over 35 percent
7-Eleven Japan now sells…matcha burritos?!?
YouTube’s AI Japanese translation calls for Jimmy Kimmel’s death on his own show【Video】
Starbucks Japan ready to get Year of the Horse started with adorable drinkware and plushies【Pics】
Hayao Miyazaki says Happy New Year to Studio Ghibli fans with new art for Year of the Horse
We found possibly the quietest Japanese-style hotel in Tokyo’s bustling Shinjuku district
Cup Noodle tries an authentic Jiro-style ramen, but something’s not quite right
The best Starbucks Japan Frappuccinos we want to drink again in 2026
We revisited Sweets Paradise after a decade to see if Japan’s dessert buffet still delivers
That time Seiji called JASRAC to ask why he didn’t get paid royalties for his song being on TV
Japan’s oldest largetooth sawfish in captivity back on display in Mie Prefecture
Pizza Hut Japan’s hot lucky bags are perfect for a New Year’s pizza party
7-Eleven Japan starts new temporary luggage storage service in over 300 branches
Disillusionment at Tsukiji’s tourist-target prices led us to a great ramen restaurant in Tokyo
Starbucks teams up with 166-year-old Kyoto doll maker for Year of the Horse decorations【Photos】
Tokyo considering law requiring more trash cans following litter increase in heavily touristed area
Tokyo’s Tsukiji sushi neighborhood asks tour groups to stay away for the rest of the month
Tokyo event lets you travel back in time, for free, to celebrate 100 years since Showa era start
Japan may add Japanese language proficiency, lifestyle classes to permanent foreign resident requirements
Sanrio theme park in Japan announces plans to expand into a Sanrio resort
Stamina-destroying “Paralysis Noodles” are Tokyo’s newest over-the-top ramen innovation
Survey asks foreign tourists what bothered them in Japan, more than half gave same answer
Japan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
Japan’s deadliest food claims more victims, but why do people keep eating it for New Year’s?
We deeply regret going into this tunnel on our walk in the mountains of Japan
Studio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home
Major Japanese hotel chain says reservations via overseas booking sites may not be valid
Put sesame oil in your coffee? Japanese maker says it’s the best way to start your day【Taste test】
No more using real katana for tourism activities, Japan’s National Police Agency says
Starbucks Japan reveals new sakura drinkware collection, inspired by evening cherry blossoms
Updated cherry blossom forecast shows extra-long sakura season for Japan this year
Anime hit Your Name to get Academy Award-qualifying U.S. theatrical run this year
Award-winning novelist theorizes director of Your Name didn’t have a girlfriend in high school
Hit anime film Your Name’s Academy Award qualification run dates officially announced
Gundam creator thinks Makoto Shinkai anime need more female crotch grabbing and/or horniness
Your Name director Makoto Shinkai talks about his next anime film, gives hopeful timeframe
Makoto Shinkai’s Your Name is about to do something no non-Ghibli anime has ever done
Weathering with You is first anime submitted for Best International Film Oscar in over 20 years
Spinoff novel of Shinkai’s Your Name film gets manga in July
New trailer for “your Name.”, newest anime from Makoto Shinkai, is packed with emotion【Video】
Jaw-dropping trailer released for Makoto Shinkai’s new anime movie, Suzume no Tojimari【Video】
Anime industry takes in record 2.0 trillion yen in 2016
Makoto Shinkai’s upcoming anime has a new trailer to make the wait for its release all the harder
Makoto Shinkai’s new anime, Your Name, is a battle between the heart and the head【SoraReview】
Makoto Shinkai’s Your Name passes two Hayao Miyazaki anime’s earnings, box office romp continues
Makoto Shinkai or Mamoru Hosoda, who makes the better anime movies?【Survey】
One-man anime creator Makoto Shinkai’s She and Her Cat becoming an animated TV series this spring
Leave a Reply