Mechanic Designers Summit (MDS)

Hosted by Kunio Okawara, a leading mechanic designer in the animation industry, this roundtable event invites guests across genres and generations based on current themes and his interests to explore the theme of “creation” such as “design” and “manufacturing,” sharing thoughts and their processes.
The origin of the word "design" also includes the meaning of "designare (to indicate)." Aiming to offer some proposals for the great potential to open up the next era through the interaction of the people gathered here, the memorable first event was held at Inagi City i Plaza in December 2012.
It was well received as a place where people could hear the live voices of Mr. Okawara and guests, and from Vol.02 in 2013 to Vol.07, it was held annually as a spring event at Inagi City i Plaza, attracting many fans along with a variety of guests. In 2020, it was canceled due to the spread of COVID-19, but it was revived the following year in the form of online live streaming, and a total of 10 sessions were held up to Vol.10.

• MDS Vol.01 "What is Mecha Design?"
• MDS Vol.02 "The Relationship Between Merchandising and Mechanical Design"
• MDS Vol.03 "Methodology of Mechanic Design"
• MDS Vol.04 "The Frontline of 1:1 Life-Size Robots"
• MDS Vol.05 "Our Time Bokan Series, Peccha!"
• MDS Vol.06 "Showcasing! Kunio Okawara's Work!"
• MDS Vol.07 "Behind the Scenes of Anime Production"
• The Mechanic Designers Summit Vol.07 was held (March 16, 2019)
• MDS Vol.08 "Stream Base Talks About Gunpla!"
• MDS Vol.09 "A Mechanical Design Perspective on 'Mobile Suit Gundam SEED'"
• MDS Vol.10 "How Was 'Mobile Suit Gundam' Born!?"