Atsuko Ishizuka  

While studying at art school, Ishizuka created several short animated films for personal enjoyment, often accompanied by music. One of these films, Gravitation, was later showcased at the 2005 Tehran International Short Film Festival and attracted the attention of both NHK and Madhouse. NHK offered Ishizuka the opportunity to animate a segment for their popular short film program Minna no Uta (Everyones Songs), which aimed to highlight emerging independent animators and musicians. However, Ishizuka had already been employed as a production assistant at Madhouse and felt it was not appropriate to accept freelance work outside of the studio. Nevertheless, the staff of Minna no Uta persisted in their request for Ishizuka to direct the music video project. In 2004, she rose through the ranks to create her first professional film, Tsuki no Waltz (The Moon Waltz).