Kimitoshi Yamane

Kimitoshi Yamane (山根 公利, Yamane Kimitoshi; born 1966) is a Japanese mecha designer.^[1] He was born in Kawamoto, Shimane Prefecture, and lives in Hamada, Shimane Prefecture.^[2][3] His representative works include Cowboy Bebop, Infinite Ryvius, The Vision of Escaflowne and the Gundam series.^[3][1]

Yamane's designs are characterised by a sense of industrial product, designed with motifs from real vehicles and weapons, or from war and science fiction films.^[2][4] While Yamane has a deep knowledge of tanks and ships, he has little interest in robot in human form.^[1][5] In the Gundam series, he sometimes designs the main robot Gundam, but his work is basically focused on naval vessels, aircraft and vehicles.^[4][5]

His hobbies include fishing, working on cars, and riding motorcycles.^[1][6] He owns several old cars and would like to try his hand at designing real cars if he gets the chance.^[7]

Biography

After graduating from high school, Yamane moved to Tokyo and attended the Animation Department of Chiyoda Technical Art College in Tokyo for two years while working as a newspaper scholarship student.^[8][9]

Yamane belonged to Artmic^[a], whose main business is planning anime works, where he worked on mecha designs for animation, mainly OVAs, while receiving guidance from Shinji Aramaki, Hideki Kakinuma, and Kenichi Sonoda.^[8][10] He participated in co-productions with foreign countries such as the United States and France, and spent some time in Paris.^[8] He was also involved in the remake of Tatsunoko Production's Casshan and Science Ninja Team Gatchaman.^[10]

Around the time Artmik went into financial difficulties, Yamane decided to become a freelance designer in 1994, as he began to work for Sunrise on Mobile Fighter G Gundam and made contacts.^[8][9][10]

Yamane designed the main robot for the first time in The Vision of Escaflowne.^[8][10] However, although his title was main designer, it is more correct to say that he co-designed the robot based on director Shōji Kawamori's first draft.^[11]

Yamane participated in Cowboy Bebop from the planning stage.^[12] After passing the audition, Yamane was entrusted with the mecha design by director Shinichirō Watanabe, making it his first work as a designer to create a mecha from concept.^[9][12][13] In episode 19, Wild Horses, he went beyond the position of mecha designer and proposed the plot of the episode.^[14] This work was a huge hit, and he also gained recognition as a mecha designer.^[9]

Yamane also participated in the next work, Infinite Ryvius, from the early stages, and was involved in creating the concept for the work.^[15]

Yamane subsequently worked on Argento Soma, designing a human-shaped mecha to symbolize the work, as well as most of the aircraft and facilities.^[16]

However, after those ambitious works, mecha design became increasingly fixed in the Japanese animation industry, and Yamane's free-thinking designs found it difficult to gain approval.^[2][9] Feeling stuck in a rut at work and a sense of entrapment in the industry, he began to think about leaving Tokyo and returning to his hometown to reconsider himself.^[2][9] He then returned to his home town of Shimane in 2000 at the age of 34, got married and found a large plot of land in Hamada City where he built a house.^[2][9] He thought it would be a good place to build a garage for tinkering with his car, so he could use his hobbies in his work, and it would also be a turning point for his career.^[2] At first, he was prepared to lose his job in anime, but the internet infrastructure made it easier to exchange image data, and he continued to receive offers of work from Tokyo.^[2][9]

Main works

TV series

• The Three-Eyed One (1990–1991)
• Mobile Fighter G Gundam (1994–1995)
• The Vision of Escaflowne (1996)
• Cowboy Bebop (1998–1999)
• Infinite Ryvius (1999–2000)
• Argento Soma (2000–2001)
• Overman King Gainer (2002–2003)
• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED (2002–2003)
• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny (2004–2005)
• Cluster Edge (2005–2006)
• Starship Operators (2005)
• Tide-Line Blue (2005)
• Galaxy Angel II (2006)
• Ergo Proxy (2006)
• Kishin Taisen Gigantic Formula (2007)
• Eureka Seven: AO (2012)
• Space Battleship Yamato 2199 (2013)
• Gundam Reconguista in G (2014)

Anime films

• Spriggan (1998)
• Escaflowne (2000)
• Cowboy Bebop: The Movie (2001)
• Zeta Gundam: A New Translation II (2005)
• King of Thorn (2010)
• Short Peace (2013)
• Genocidal Organ (2017)
• Gundam Reconguista in G the Movie I〜V (2019-2022)
• Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway's Flash (2021)
• Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan's Island (2022)
• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom (2024)

OVA

• Genocyber (1994)
• Bubblegum Crisis (1987–1991)
• Metal Skin Panic MADOX-01 (1988)
• Hades Project Zeorymer (1988–1990)
• Rhea Gall Force (1989)
• A.D. Police: Dead End City (1990)
• Bubblegum Crash (1991)
• Detonator Orgun (1991-1993)
• Gall Force: New Era (1991)
• Casshan: Robot Hunter (1993–1994)
• Gatchaman (1994–1995)
• Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team (1996–1999)
• Voogie's Angel (1997-1998)
• Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO (2004–2006)
• Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO 2 (2008–2009)
• Five Numbers! (2011)
• Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin (2015)

Video game

• Shadow Squadron (1995)^[17]

Web animation

• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED C.E. 73: Stargazer (2006)
• Xam'd: Lost Memories (2008–2009)
• Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance (2024)

Sources:^{[18][19][20][21][22]}

Art books

• Yamane, Kimitoshi (January 20, 2008). Yamane Kimitoshi Meka Zukan (山根公利 メカ図鑑) 'Kimitoshi Yamane Mecha Picture Book'. MdN Corporation. ISBN 4-8443-5960-6.
• Yamane, Kimitoshi (February 19, 2024). Yamane Kimitoshi Mekanikku Dezain Shū Mono Gurafu (山根公利メカニックデザイン集 モノGRAPH) 'Kimitoshi Yamane Mechanic Design Collection Mono Graph'. Time. ISBN 4-9091-8515-1.