The important japanese anime director Satoshi Kon has passed away. The director died suddenly on August 24 at the age of 46. The cause of death has been reported as pancreatic cancer.

During his final years, Kon was working on the film THE DREAMING MACHINE. It is unclear at this point, whether the film will be finished wiothout its writer/director. The last finished work by Kon, the 2006 film PAPRIKA, was seen in HIFF in 2007. Also other films by the author, MILLENNIUM ACTRESS, MEMORIES and PERFECT BLUE have been shown in HIFF in various years.

Kon specialized in strongly visual, sometimes also frightening, stories mixing dreams, illusions and reality. Kon's style has influenced numerous other directors, including Darren Aronofsky and Christopher Nolan.