Tonko House is a Berkeley based studio founded in 2014. Our objective is to inspire curiosity through stories that deliver entertainment and awareness for people of all ages.
Who We Are
In 2012 Pixar art directors Dice Tsutsumi and Robert Kondo wanted to expand their filmmaking experience. They decided to write and direct an independent animated short film together. The result was The Dam Keeper, a beautiful and emotional 18-minute film that earned an Academy Award nomination. The experience of making the film was life-changing for the two artists. They questioned the path they were on and searched for answers to their deepest ambitions and dreams. In 2014, they founded Tonko House to continue their artistic journey and share their stories with the world.
Robert Kondo
Robert Kondo is co-founder and president of Tonko House, a San Francisco bay area based studio focused on creating animated narrative content. Formerly an art director at Pixar Animation Studios on films such as Ratatouille and Toy Story 3, he lends his unique design sensibilities and passion for storytelling as co-director of the Academy-nominated short film, The Dam Keeper. Originally from Southern California, Robert graduated from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena as an illustrator. Robert took on the roles of both executive producer and production designer of Tonko House’s highly anticipated event series ONI: Thunder God’s Tale. He’s currently writing and illustrating Curiosities, a bedtime read-aloud book in partnership with First Second Books.
Dice Tsutsumi
Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi, originally from Japan, is a filmmaker and painter. A graduate from The School of Visual Arts in New York, Dice has worked as a visual development/color key artist at Blue Sky Studios on Ice Age, Robots and Horton Hears A Who! His credits at Pixar Animation include Lighting Art Director for Toy Story 3 and Monsters University. After the success of Dice’s directorial debut, the Academy Award nominated short film The Dam Keeper, Dice left Pixar to co-found Tonko House Inc. with Robert Kondo. Dice is passionate about charity work and spearheaded both The Totoro Forest Project and Sketchtravel and in 2021 was recognized for his charitable contribution to the animation community with the June Foray Award.
Bridge Between East and West
Our studio’s aspiration since its founding has been to serve as a bridge between two of the world’s greatest animation cultures, the U.S. and Japan. This stems from the founders, Robert Kondo and Dice Tsutsumi, drawing upon their Japanese roots and professional experience in Hollywood studios to influence our stories. The result is a unique voice that appeals to a global family audience–an audience that seeks out diversity in storytelling. We believe there is no better time to deliver our heartfelt stories and inspire families around the world.
Tonko House Japan
Tonko House has a strong presence in America and Asia. Soon after founding Tonko House in California we opened Tonko House Japan so that we could work with amazing artists in both countries. We believe this helps us create work that defies genre and style and allows us to stay connected to the cultures we share.
Opportunities
Join our team. Help us inspire audiences and each other.