| Chiaki J. Konaka | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Alias |
CJK |
|
Birth |
April 4, 1961 (Japan) |
|
Occupation |
Screenwriter, Scenarist |
|
Notable Works |
Serial Experiments Lain |
Chiaki J. Konaka (小中 千昭), born April 4, 1961, is a Japanese writer and scenarist who works predominantly in anime and manga. He is responsible for the scenario for the anime series Serial Experiments Lain and its video game adaptation.
Konaka's serious works generally have a dark, psychological tone. He cited Lovecraft as one of his inspiration particularly for the Cthulhu mythos.
He is a colleague and friend of Yoshitoshi ABe, with whom he also collaborated on the series Texhnolyze and Despera. He was also a colleague and friend with Ryūtarō Nakamura with whom he also collaborated, after Serial Experiments Lain, on Ghost Hound.
Biography
Real name Chiaki John Konaka, he began using his current stage name "Chiaki J. Konaka" at the age of 12, when he began making 8 mm films; he patterned the style after Western names such as "Charles M. Schulz".
He first gained fame in his work on the avant-garde anime Serial Experiments Lainand later for the Digimon season Digimon Tamers. He is also known to be the creator of Ultraman Gaia.
In 2009, he was announced as responsible for the scenario for the planned project Despera for which he wrote the graphic novel.
Notable Works
| Magician Tai! (1996) | Novel | Writer |
| Serial Experiments Lain (1998) | Anime television series | Series composition, Script |
| Serial Experiments Lain (1998) | Video game | Scenario |
| Ultraman Gaia (1998) | TV show | Composer |
| The Big O (1999) | Anime television series | Series composition, Script |
| Digimon Tamers (2001) | Anime television series | Series composition, Script |
| Texhnolyze (2003) | Anime television series | Series composition, Script, Scenario |
| Mononoke (2007) | Anime television series | Scenario |
| Ghost Hound (2007) | Anime television series | Series composition, screenplay |
| Vamp (2019) | Movie | Screenplay, Story |
Trivia
Portrait by Yoshitoshi ABe
- "Chiaki J. Konaka" is a very unusual name, as Japanese names typically do not include middle names. Konaka states that the "J." evokes the "Christian" name "John", due to him being born to parents who were members of the Anglican Church, but he does not identify as Christian.
- He has cited Ghost Hound as his favorite screenwriting project.