Tomomi Mochizuki

• 1. Introduction

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  Tomomi Mochizuki has two professional names. Under one, he directs. Under the other, he writes. He is a director, storyboard artist, and screenwriter whose credits span Studio Ghibli, Nippon Animation, Pierrot, and Sunrise. The writing alias is Gō Sakamoto, a name that turns up on storyboards and screenplays across a range of productions. Mochizuki's own name is sometimes misspelled as Tomomichi Mochizuki. How he came to direct for Studio Ghibli is one question his career raises. Why he chose to write under a different name entirely is another.

• 2. Waseda and the First Steps

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  Waseda University is where Mochizuki's interest in animation first became serious. He joined the Waseda University Animation Association, a student organization dedicated to the medium. In 1981, that interest translated into a professional position at Ajia-do Animation Works. His debut came one year later, when he served as production director on the 1982 series Tokimeki Tonight. From there, his career moved into the magical girl genre.

• 3. The Magical Girl Era

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  Magical Angel Creamy Mami was among the magical girl productions where Mochizuki worked as episode director. He directed several series in the genre across those years. In 1986, he moved up to chief director for the first time, on Hikari no Densetsu. His most widely noted work lay ahead.

• 4. Wider Ambitions

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  Ocean Waves was produced by Studio Ghibli as a TV movie. It is one of the works for which Mochizuki became known from the early 1990s, alongside Ranma ½ and Kimagure Orange Road. He also directed Porphy no Nagai Tabi, an entry in the World Masterpiece Theater programming strand that drew specific acclaim.

  Twin Spica saw him take on direction, series coordination, screenplay, and storyboards in a single production. In 2010, he directed House of Five Leaves under the noitaminA banner. His credit on that production was comprehensive: series direction, series composition, screenplay, and sound direction. He also directed and storyboarded episode 1, episode 12, and the title sequences. Battery followed in 2016, where he again served as both director and series composition writer.

  He is married to Masako Gotō, a fellow animator. Not all of his writing credits across these productions appeared under his own name.

• 5. Writing as Gō Sakamoto

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  Gō Sakamoto appears in the credits of Brave Command Dagwon, Seraphim Call, Eight Clouds Rising, and Dirty Pair Flash III, among others. That name belongs to Mochizuki. Code Geass and I My Me! Strawberry Eggs carry it too, as do the opening and ending sequences for Kage Kara Mamoru!.

  On Dirty Pair Flash III, he directed under his own name while the screenplay was attributed to Gō Sakamoto. The same person held two distinct credits on a single production.

  Among the productions where Mochizuki wrote under his own name, Tōka Gettan stands out. His credit there included not just series composition and scenario scripts but also the theme song lyrics for both the opening and ending sequences.