Ootani joined studio
Imagin as an in-between animator around 2004. He mostly worked as a sub-contracting animator, and eventual episode director, for
Madhouse and Imagin. He made his directorial debut with an
OVA adaptation of
Ayano Yamane's manga
A Foreign Love Affair. so, in the middle of the production for the series
Dance Dance Danseur, produced by
MAPPA, he was asked if he wanted to join the series as its "ballet director." Akiyuki Shinbo also commented in a separate interview that he felt Ootani and himself had similar visual sensibilities. Shinbo also said that Ootani was particularly good at horror-esque work, referencing episode 12 of
March Comes In like a Lion season 2 (episode 34 overall) and the similarities in atmosphere between it and parts of
Pretty Boy Detective Club. Commenting on Ootani's work with Okada, who acted as assistant director for
Pretty Boy Detective Club, Shinbo also said that the two complemented each other's weaknesses and strengths as directors. Despite originally being inspired by director
Hayao Miyazaki, Ootani has commented that his style is much more eccentric and different from Miyazaki's, which he described was due to trying to survive and stand out in the industry. ==Works==