Keiichi Hara was born on July 24th, 1959. Hara drew widespread praise for his irreverent feature Crayon Shin-chan: The Storm Called: The Adult Empire Strikes Back (2001), and won numerous awards in Japan for Crayon Shin-chan: Fierceness That Invites Storm! The Battle of the Warring States (2002) and Summer Days with Coo (2007). He subsequently became one of Japan’s most globally revered animation auteurs for his body of work, including the Annecy International Animation Film Festival double award-winning Colorful (2010), Miss Hokusai (2015), and The Wonderland (2019). In 2018, he became the third animation director (following Isao Takahata and Katsuhiro Otomo) to receive a Medal with Purple Ribbon, awarded by the Japanese government to individuals who have made great contributions to artistic and academic fields. His work continues to be highly anticipated both at home and abroad.