Takayama Fumihiko

Takayama Fumihiko (高山文彦, Takayama Fumihiko) is a Japanese anime director best known for directing Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket, a critically acclaimed 6-episode OVA that brought an intimate, character-focused, and profoundly anti-war perspective to the Universal Century timeline.

Career

Early Work

Takayama worked as an episode director and assistant director on various anime productions during the 1980s, developing his skills in dramatic storytelling and character-focused narratives. His experience in episodic television prepared him for the challenges of directing an OVA series where each episode needed to advance both plot and emotional development efficiently.

Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket

In 1989, Takayama was selected to direct War in the Pocket, Sunrise’s first Original Video Animation set in the Gundam universe. This marked a significant departure from previous Gundam productions – whilst Tomino Yoshiyuki had explored war’s tragedies in the mainline series, War in the Pocket would tell an intimate story from a civilian child’s perspective.

Working with screenwriter Yamaga Hiroyuki, character designer Mikimoto Haruhiko, and mechanical designers Okawara Kunio and Katoki Hajime, Takayama crafted a story that:

Focused on ordinary people rather than aces and commanders
Explored war’s impact on civilians and neutral colonies
Built emotional investment in characters before tragic outcomes
Questioned the meaning of victory when costs are measured in human lives

Directing Approach

Takayama’s direction emphasized:

Intimate Scale: Focusing on personal relationships rather than grand strategy
Civilian Perspective: Telling the story through Alfred Izuruha’s eyes, a child who initially romanticizes warfare
Character Development: Building genuine relationships between Al, Bernie, and Chris before tragedy strikes
Emotional Restraint: Trusting the audience to understand tragedy without melodrama
Anti-War Message: Showing war’s cost without glorifying combat

The OVA’s famous final scene – Al crying as the war ends, having lost Bernie – exemplifies Takayama’s approach: understated, emotionally devastating, and profoundly humanistic.

Critical Reception

War in the Pocket received widespread critical acclaim, with particular praise for its directing and emotional impact. The OVA demonstrated that Gundam stories could work at intimate scales and that war narratives could be powerful without epic space battles.

Takayama’s work established a template for subsequent UC side stories like The 08th MS Team, showing that the Universal Century could accommodate character-focused narratives alongside the main timeline’s grand conflicts.

Later Career

Following War in the Pocket’s success, Takayama continued working as a director and episode director on various anime productions. Whilst he did not return to direct another full Gundam series, his influence on the franchise’s storytelling approach persisted, particularly in how later productions depicted war’s human cost.

Legacy

Takayama’s direction of Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket remains influential within both the Gundam franchise and anime generally. The OVA demonstrated:

Side stories could equal or surpass main series in emotional impact
Civilian perspectives on mecha warfare could be compelling
Anti-war messages could be powerful without being preachy
Intimate character drama could coexist with mecha action

The OVA is frequently cited as one of the best entries in the Gundam franchise, with Takayama’s direction recognized as central to its success. His approach influenced how subsequent UC productions depicted ordinary soldiers and civilians, moving beyond the “ace pilot” focus of earlier series.

Behind the Scenes

Takayama has discussed in interviews how War in the Pocket deliberately avoided many Gundam conventions. There are no Newtypes, no grand battles determining war’s outcome, and no ace pilots performing impossible feats. Instead, the story focuses on how global conflicts affect individuals who have no power to change their circumstances.

The decision to end the OVA with the war’s conclusion – Al learning that the war ended just as he lost Bernie – exemplifies Takayama’s approach to depicting war’s tragedy: personal loss occurring against backdrop of events beyond individual control.

Working with screenwriter Yamaga Hiroyuki, Takayama ensured that every episode built towards the inevitable tragic conclusion whilst making the audience hope it might turn out differently.

Appearances

Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket – Director

External links

Fumihiko Takayama on Anime News Network