Cardiff Animation Festival x New Chitose Airport International Animation Festival Poster Q+A with Asaki Nishino

laurenormefilms
5 days ago
4 min read

Asaki Nishino is the designer of the poster for the Cardiff Animation Festival x New Chitose Airport International Animation Festival collaboration. We wanted to get to know her and her experience in the animation scene in Japan a little better, and to spotlight the amazing art that she creates, so we asked her some questions all about her work. We hope you love getting to know Asaki as much as we did!

1. Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got into animation?

Hello! I’m a short animation filmmaker based in Tokyo.

My work explores how we perceive “reality” in the post-internet era. I’m interested in capturing the moments when human nature and vitality unexpectedly spill out of structured systems, and I enjoy turning those moments into humor in my work.

When I was in high school, I dreamed of becoming a musician. My favorite band at the time was made up of art-school graduates, and they created their own album covers and music videos. I admired their creative freedom, which led me to enroll in an art university.

At first, I was also interested in live-action filmmaking, but back then, I had a strong desire to create everything by myself. Animation appealed to me because it allows a single person to make an entire film—from visuals to timing to storytelling. That’s how I found myself drawn into animation.

2. The poster you created for the collaboration between Cardiff Animation Festival and New Chitose Airport International Animation Festival is beautiful! Could you tell us a bit more about your process and inspiration?

Thank you so much.

I’m especially fond of the red Welsh dragon design. New Chitose is located in Hokkaido, the northernmost region of Japan, and I wanted to illustrate the idea of the dragon travelling from Wales all the way to this distant northern land.

In my first rough concept, the background was literally the geographical shape of Hokkaido lol

but it felt too explanatory and lacked poetry.

After receiving thoughtful feedback from the Cardiff team, the final poster evolved into a more emotional scene: a snowy Hokkaido landscape quietly illuminated by sunrise or sunset.

I’m very happy with the atmosphere and sense of journey that emerged.

3. You’re currently working on a short film with Nia Alavezos celebrating the collaboration between Wales and Japan - can you tell us a bit more about the film?

It’s going to be a short animation about the Welsh dragon from the poster traveling to Japan and sharing a special memory with the Japanese girl they meet there.

Nia is directing and writing the script, and I’m in charge of the animation. The story is deeply inspired by Nia’s memories from her artist residency in Itoshima, Japan.

In the animation, I want to pay close attention to the subtle gestures that reveal the personalities of the two characters.

I’m really excited about this collaboration!

4. When you graduated from university in 2022 you formed an animation collective with your classmates called Oh Hey Do, can you tell us a bit more about forming the collective and the work that you do?

We are a three-member collective consisting of two of us who studied Animation in the same graduate program and one member who majored in Film Producing. All three of us share a desire to portray people and perspectives that tend to be marginalised within society, and after graduating from graduate school we decided to try creating work together — that’s how Oh Hey Do was formed.

In 2024, we produced our first short animation The Countryside Planet, which combines stop-motion and digital 2D animation. The film tells the story of a curious summer day spent by Moyori, a high-school freshman who loves collecting junk, and Kayo, her imaginative friend, who live on a countryside planet at the far edge of the galaxy.

We made this film with the belief that the things often dismissed as “useless” in an efficiency-driven society are precisely where human complexity resides. We also felt a strong imbalance in how girls are often overly sexualized in mainstream Japanese “anime.” In contrast, we wanted to portray the kind of ordinary high-school girls who actually surrounded us when we were teenagers.

In addition to animation production, Oh Hey Do is actively involved in building communities and creating spaces through exhibitions and screening events.

5. What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced working in the anime industry?

I think the issues around working conditions are still extremely serious. This is a wider problem in Japanese society, but animation studios in particular have normalized long working hours and very low pay. For example, the standard rate for one in-between animation drawing is said to be around 200–400 yen, and a new animator can usually draw about 300 sheets a month… How can anyone survive on that? 😭

6. Have you ever visited Wales before?

I haven’t been to Wales yet, but while researching for our project, I became really interested in the language and culture. I would love to visit one day!

7. Do you have a favourite animated film or an animation that inspires you?

I have many, but I especially love the Beatles’ film Yellow Submarine. It always excites me and inspires my creativity whenever I watch it!

8. What's your dream project?

The Countryside Planet by Oh Hey Do was originally created as a pilot for a series. We have ideas for themes and characters for each episode. So, my current dream is to turn The Countryside Planet into a full series and share it with people all around the world.

9. Where can we see more of your work?

You can find my previous works on my website under the “ANIMATION” section - https://asakinishino.info/

I also share updates on my social media, so please feel free to check them out!

Instagram: @nsnask012

X: @nsnask

Oh Hey Do’s social media:

Instagram: @ohheydo

X: @OhHeyDo

You can find out about all of the CAF x New Chitose events here.

The online programme includes: