Kadzuya Konomoto
Description
Kadzuya Konomoto is a Japanese manga artist and screenwriter known for creating original works across both mediums, often in close collaboration with director Baku Kinoshita. Konomoto began his career as a manga artist in 2010 with the work Spinner Bait. He gained significant attention in 2013 with a one-shot titled Cloudy Sky Always Brings Rain, which was later retitled Setoutsumi and became a serialized manga. Setoutsumi, a story unfolding almost entirely through the conversations of two high school boys, was nominated for the 18th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize Reader Award in 2014 and was later adapted into both a live-action film and a television drama.
Konomoto’s profile expanded when he began working as a screenwriter for live-action and animated projects. He made his screenwriting debut in 2019 with the film Black Rule, which also spawned a drama and an original story for the streaming service Hulu. His most prominent work to date is the 2021 anime television series Odd Taxi. Konomoto is credited as the original creator, series composer, and scriptwriter for the show. A manga adaptation of Odd Taxi, written by Konomoto and illustrated by Takeichi Abaraya, was serialized in Shogakukan’s Superior Dalpana magazine from January 2021 to July 2022. The anime series, produced by OLM and the talent agency P.I.C.S., was followed by a compilation film titled Odd Taxi: In the Woods in 2022. Konomoto also contributed a short story for the series’ official guidebook and collaborated with the manga artist again for RoOT/Route of Odd Taxi, a spinoff project launched in 2023.
Konomoto has continued to develop original animated works with director Baku Kinoshita. The pair reunited for the original anime film The Last Blossom, also known as Housenka. Konomoto is credited as the original creator and screenwriter for the film, which is produced by CLAP Animation Studio. The film was previewed at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and is scheduled for release in Japan in October 2025. He joined the management company P.I.C.S. in 2018.
Konomoto’s profile expanded when he began working as a screenwriter for live-action and animated projects. He made his screenwriting debut in 2019 with the film Black Rule, which also spawned a drama and an original story for the streaming service Hulu. His most prominent work to date is the 2021 anime television series Odd Taxi. Konomoto is credited as the original creator, series composer, and scriptwriter for the show. A manga adaptation of Odd Taxi, written by Konomoto and illustrated by Takeichi Abaraya, was serialized in Shogakukan’s Superior Dalpana magazine from January 2021 to July 2022. The anime series, produced by OLM and the talent agency P.I.C.S., was followed by a compilation film titled Odd Taxi: In the Woods in 2022. Konomoto also contributed a short story for the series’ official guidebook and collaborated with the manga artist again for RoOT/Route of Odd Taxi, a spinoff project launched in 2023.
Konomoto has continued to develop original animated works with director Baku Kinoshita. The pair reunited for the original anime film The Last Blossom, also known as Housenka. Konomoto is credited as the original creator and screenwriter for the film, which is produced by CLAP Animation Studio. The film was previewed at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and is scheduled for release in Japan in October 2025. He joined the management company P.I.C.S. in 2018.
Works
- Topics: Manga overview