From Nonoichi, Ishikawa Prefecture. While attending Kanazawa College of Art, he worked part-time drawing portraits and making animation for commercials. He joined Studio Ghibli in 1996 and worked as an in-between animator on Princess Mononoke (1997) and My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999). He then became key animator and worked on Spirited Away (2001), Ghiblies, Episode 2 (2002), Howl’s Moving Castle (2004), and Ponyo (2008), and was Assistant Supervising Animator for Tales from Earthsea (2006). Yonebayashi has also worked on short films and exhibits for the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka, Tokyo, including as Directing Animator for Mei and the Baby Cat Bus (2002) and Supervising Animator for Imaginary Flying Machines (2002). He created the storyboards and animation for the museum’s permanent exhibit Films Go Round showpiece called Shinka Ron (Theory of Evolution; 2008).