Hiroyuki Morita

is a Japanese animator and director. He is best known for working as director on the Studio Ghibli film The Cat Returns. Life and career Early life Morita was born in Fukuoka Prefecture and graduated from Fukuoka Kenritsu Chikushikoto School. During his high school days, he produced an independent animated film called , which won a prize in an animation magazine contest at the time. One of the production staff members for the film was Katsuyuki Toda, who later became a manga artist. Animation career After graduating from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering at Fukuoka University, he joined the animation production company Shaft. His first work as an animator was Hiatari Ryōkō!. Afterwards, he became a freelancer and worked as an inbetweener on movies such as Akira and Kiki's Delivery Service, a key animator for Roujin Z, Hashire Melos!, Memories, Perfect Blue and many others, and an episode director for the OVA Golden Boy. Being an animator who cares about fundamentals, Morita even danced the choreography for the idols in Perfect Blue.