Yoshimi Yamagata Aoyagi

May Exclusive Diary: Kimura

Added 2021-05-25 00:59:18 +0000 UTC

Hello.

I got a gold rubber chicken for my birthday. Kimura here.

Since my training has seen little variation, I thought I’d talk about why I decided to become an animator this time around.

A love of anime since childhood...has nothing to do with it. I set my sights on animation 5 years ago. I’ve always loved drawing but I was a manga and illustrations type of person. Back then, I wasn’t thinking of making a job out of it.

(I started drawing because my brother was good at drawing illustrations of Dragon Ball, and I looked up to him for that.)

It all changed in my third year of high school when I was thinking about my next steps. I watched an anime movie called Little Witch Academia. It’s a story about a protagonist at the bottom of her class who dreams of becoming a great witch. Even when she’s made fun of by the people around her, or can’t exactly do something, she moves forward without losing heart. I thought how nice it would be to live like her.

To be serious about something or to like something is surprisingly embarrassing. I bought into words like “there’s no way” or “only a few make it” and gave up without seeing what could have been, but since then, I decided I’d look myself in the eyes and try making a living from my drawings.

Also, I chose animation from all of the jobs in art because I enjoy tracing, and I’d like to pass on the inspiration given to me through the tools I have. I’d like to be on a project where I can do that. I’m just started, but I’m gonna keep challenging myself. Thank you for your support.

It’s getting hot out there. Take good care of yourselves. See you next time.

May 18th, 2021,

Kimura.