Yuichiro Saito (齋藤優一郎, Saitō Yūichirō, born November 5, 1976) is a Japanese film producer. He is the founder and current president of Studio Chizu. Saito studied in the US. In 1999, he joined Madhouse Animation Studio, where he participated in several animation projects led by Masao Maruyama. In 2004, Saito met Mamoru Hosada eight years before they founded Studio Chizu. They worked together in the opening of Shinichiro Watanabe's Samurai Champloo (2004). Saito produced Hosoda's films The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006) and Summer Wars (2009). In 2011, Saito left Madhouse and joined Mamoru Hosoda to found Studio Chizu. Saito has been nominated for Best Animated Feature Film APSA with Summer Wars, Wolf Children, and Mirai. Saito was nominated for the 91st Oscars Award in the Best Animated Film category with Hosada's film Mirai. Description above from the Wikipedia article Yuichiro Saito, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- November 5, 1976 (49)
- Moriya, Ibaraki, Japan
- Producer
- 10 on Motif
What are Yûichirô Saitô's films like?
Across their 9 Motif titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 9
A split, not a type: Light 5 · Serious 2 · Dark 2
A split, not a type: Grounded 0 · Stylized 5 · Heightened 4
Gentle 2 · Charged 4 · Intense 3
Steady 4 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 1
Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 0
A split, not a type: Slow burn 5 · Even-paced 2 · Relentless 2
Casual 2 · Engaged 6 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 2 · Affecting 5 · Heavy 2
Resolved 6 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Happy2
- Bittersweet6
- Cyclical1
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Yûichirô Saitô's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 6 of their 10 Motif titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on HBO Max (5).
- Crunchyroll
Subscription and free streaming for Yûichirô Saitô's titles on Motif; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Motif score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
10 credits, 10 with a Motif page.
Scarlet(2025)
Motif score: 53rd percentile of all films
Belle(2021)
Motif score: 86th percentile of all films
Mirai(2018)
Motif score: 84th percentile of all films
The Boy and the Beast(2015)
Motif score: 96th percentile of all films
Wolf Children(2012)
Motif score: 99th percentile of all films
Summer Wars(2009)
Motif score: 91st percentile of all films
Batman: Gotham Knight(2008)
Motif score: 68th percentile of all films
The Piano Forest(2007)
Motif score: 86th percentile of all films
Motif score: 96th percentile of all films
Motif score: 78th percentile of all films
Career shape
A full career of 8 titles from 2005 to 2025.
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Motif score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on Motif, shown from 5 scored.
Awards
Nominated for an Oscar in 2019, Best Animated Feature Film.
Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.
How do Yûichirô Saitô's films land?
Their typical Motif film has a Motif score in the 86th percentile, the median of all 10; across their 9 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 87th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up8
- 50th to 74th2
Shape of the crowd
None of their 10 titles divides audiences: 5 are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved4
- Crowd Pleaser5
- Mixed1
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on Motif; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Motif score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their Motif titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Yûichirô Saitô's work okay for kids?
Across up to 6 Motif titles with content scores, sex & nudity, profanity and alcohol & drugs run lighter than most films.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.
Who does Yûichirô Saitô work with?
People who share at least 2 of Yûichirô Saitô's Motif titles, grouped by what they did on them; Mamoru Hosoda shares the most, 6.
Directors
- Mamoru HosodaShared titles: Scarlet (2025), Belle (2021), Mirai (2018), The Boy and the Beast (2015), Wolf Children (2012), Summer Wars (2009)See all 6 shared titles with Mamoru Hosoda
Writers
- Satoko OkuderaShared titles: Wolf Children (2012), Summer Wars (2009)See all 2 shared titles with Satoko Okudera
Actors
- Haru KurokiShared titles: Mirai (2018), The Boy and the Beast (2015), Wolf Children (2012)See all 3 shared titles with Haru Kuroki
- Shôta SometaniShared titles: Belle (2021), The Boy and the Beast (2015)See all 2 shared titles with Shôta Sometani
- Kōji YakushoShared titles: Mirai (2018), The Boy and the Beast (2015)See all 2 shared titles with Kōji Yakusho
- Aoi MiyazakiShared titles: The Boy and the Beast (2015), Wolf Children (2012)See all 2 shared titles with Aoi Miyazaki
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Shigeru NishiyamaShared titles: Belle (2021), Mirai (2018), Wolf Children (2012), Summer Wars (2009)See all 4 shared titles with Shigeru Nishiyama
- Masakatsu TakagiShared titles: Mirai (2018), Wolf Children (2012)See all 2 shared titles with Masakatsu Takagi
- Yukihiro MasumotoShared titles: Summer Wars (2009), Last Order: Final Fantasy VII (2005)See all 2 shared titles with Yukihiro Masumoto
- Kashiko KimuraShared titles: Batman: Gotham Knight (2008), Last Order: Final Fantasy VII (2005)See all 2 shared titles with Kashiko Kimura
Producers
- Nozomu TakahashiShared titles: Scarlet (2025), Belle (2021), Mirai (2018), The Boy and the Beast (2015), Wolf Children (2012), Summer Wars (2009)See all 6 shared titles with Nozomu Takahashi
- Genki KawamuraShared titles: Belle (2021), Mirai (2018), The Boy and the Beast (2015), Wolf Children (2012)See all 4 shared titles with Genki Kawamura
- Takuya ItôShared titles: Mirai (2018), The Boy and the Beast (2015), Wolf Children (2012), Summer Wars (2009)See all 4 shared titles with Takuya Itô
- Seiji OkudaShared titles: The Boy and the Beast (2015), Wolf Children (2012), Summer Wars (2009), The Piano Forest (2007)See all 4 shared titles with Seiji Okuda