Award

The Okawa Hiroshi Award and the Fukiya Koji Award were established in 2023 to annually recognize the achievements of an animation production studio and a technical staff member, respectively, at this festival.

The awards are named in honor of Mr. Okawa Hiroshi, the first president of Toei Doga (now Toei Animation), and Mr. Fukiya Koji, an illustrator and animation director. Both were born in Niigata Prefecture, the host location of this festival. They played a significant role in establishing Japan's post-World War II animation culture, including founding Toei Doga Studio, the first full-scale studio, Japan's first color feature-length animated film.

Past Winners

The 4th Edition (2026)

Okawa Hiroshi Award:
ROCK'N ROLL MOUNTAIN Inc.(100 Meters)
Fukiya Koji Award:
Hidetsugu ITO Animation Director (ChaO), Animator (The Last Blossom)

The 3rd Edition (2025)

Okawa Hiroshi Award:
Shin-ei Animation Co., Ltd.(Totto-chan the Movie: The Little Girl at the Window)
Fukiya Koji Award:
Kiyotaka OSHIYAMA(“Look Back” Animator), Toshiyuki INOUE(“Look Back” Animator), Eriko KIMURA(“Look Back” Sound Director), Yuki HAYASHI(“My Hero Academia: You're Next” Composer)

The 2nd Edition (2024)

Okawa Hiroshi Award:
CLAP(POMPO:THE CINEPHILE)
Fukiya Koji Award:
Kazuki HIGASHIJI(“maboroshi”美術), Miho MARUO(”Lonely Castle in the Mirror”Winner), Takeshi HONDA(“The Boy and the Heron” Animation Director)

The 1st Edition (2023)

Okawa Hiroshi Award:
TOEI ANIMATION and DandeLion Animation Studio Inc(”THE FIRST SLAM DUNK”CG Animation）,MAPPA Co.,LTD(“JUJUTSU KAISEN 0”Animation production studio), Production I.G.
Fukiya Koji Award:
Yuichi TERAO(“Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Movie: Mugen Train”Cinematographer), Shinji KIMURA(“Nikuko of the Fishing Harbor”Art Director), Yoshimichi KAMEDA(“INU-OH”Animation supervisors), Satoshi NAKANO(“INU-OH”Animation supervisors)