The 2022 Seiun Award nominees were revealed on May 15. The announcement of the winners and the award ceremony will be held at the 59th Japan Science Fiction Convention (F-CON) to be held in Fukushima Prefecture from August 27-28, 2022.

Thanks to N. for the translation. All titles are in English, with Romanji in the Long Work and Short Story categories. English titles, in the event of no existing English title, are translated.

BEST JAPANESE LONG WORK

• A Situation Beyond Statistics (Toukeigai Jitai), by Yuri Shibamura (Hayakawa Bunko JA, 2/17)
• Space Battleship Yamato: Dawn Chapter, Aquarius Algorithm (Uchuu Senkan Yamato: Reimei-hen Aquarius Algorithm), by Yuya Takashima (Kadokawa, 9/27)
• What Will You Be Doing at the End? Can I See You Just One More Time? (Shūmatsu Nani Shitemasu ka? Mō Ichido dake, Aemasu ka?) by Akira Kareno (Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko, 7/30, 11 volumes)
• The Youngest Princess in Blue (Aoi no Suehime), by Mitsuhiro Monden (Sōgen Suiri Bunko, 9/24)
• JAGAE Eccentric Legend of Oda Nobunaga (JAGAE Oda Nobunaga Den Kidou), by Baku Yumemakura (Shodensha, 6/10)
• Irina: The Vampire Cosmonaut (Tsuki to Raika to Nosferatu), by Keisuke Makino (Gagaga Bunko, 10/19, 7 volumes)
• Kiryu Police: White Bone Road (Kiryu Keisatsu: Hakkotsu Kaidou), by Ryoe Tsukimura (Hayakawa Shobō, 8/18)
• Man Kind, by Taiyo Fujii (S-F Magazine, serialization ended in August 2021 issue)

BEST JAPANESE SHORT STORY

• “Anonymous Akashic Records” (UchiAka-shic Record), by Yuba Isukari (S-F Magazine, June 2021)
• “A Human History of Cleaning & Cleaning Equipment” (Souji to Souji Yougu no Jinruishi), by Yuri Matsuzaki (Anomalous Papers, Kyosuke Higuchi, ed. Hayakawa Shobō, 10/19)
• “You Made Me Human” (Kisho ga Watashi wo Ningen ni Shitekureta), by Todoki Uka (S-F Magazine, February 2021)
• “The Subjectivist” (Shukansha), by Koichi Harukure (S-F Magazine, August/October 2021)
• “On the Imagination and Creativity of Invertebrates” (Musekitsui-doubutsu no Souzouryoku to Souzousei ni Tsuite), by Yuichi Sakanaga (Kawade Shobo Shinsha NOVA 2021 Summer Issue, 4/6)
• “How to Defeat a Science Fiction Writer” (SF Sakka no Taoshikata), by Satoshi Ogawa (Anomalous Papers, Kyosuke Higuchi, ed. Hayakawa, 10/19)
• “Seven Billion Pessimists” (Nana Okunin no Pessimist), by Nirou Katase (S-F Magazine, August 2021)
• “Selling The Body” (Shintai wo Uru Koto), by Miyuki Ono (S-F Magazine, August 2021)

BEST TRANSLATED LONG WORK

• Network Effect, by Martha Wells (translated by Naoya Nakahara)
• The Man with the Compound Eyes, by Wu Ying-Mi  (translated by Satoshi Oguriyama)
• The Fated Sky, by Mary Robinette Kowal (translated by Akinobu Sakai)
• Death’s End, by Cixin Liu (translated by Nozomi Omori, Wan Chai, Sakura Mitsuyoshi, Ko Tomari)
• No Enemy But Time, by Michael Bishop (translated by Yutaka Oshima)
• Project Hail Mary, by Andy Weir (translated by Kazuko Onoda)
• This Is How You Lose the Time War, by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone (translated by Kazuko Yamada)
• Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky (translated by Masayuki Uchida)

BEST TRANSLATED SHORT STORY

• “Yakiniku Planet,” by Liang Qingshan (translated by Keita Kojima)
• “Mother Tongues,” by S. Qiouyi Lu (translated by Umiyuri Katsuyama)
• “Nomad,” by Karin Lowachee (translated by Naoya Nakahara)
• “The Man Who Ended History: A Documentary,” by Ken Liu (translated by Yoshimichi Furusawa)
• “Power Armor: A Love Story,” by David Barr Kirtley (translated by Naoya Nakahara)
• “The King of Time,” by Baoshu (translated by Kosaku Ai)
• “A Witch’s Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies,” by Alix. E Harrow (translated by Fumiyo Harashima)
• “The One With the Interstellar Group Consciousnesses” by James Alan Gardner (translated by Chiori Sada)

BEST DRAMATIC PRESENTATION

• Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song (TV anime)
• Godzilla Singular Point (TV anime)
• Knights of Sidonia: Love Woven in the Stars (anime film)
• Dune (live-action film)
• Sing a Bit of Harmony (anime film)
• Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time (anime film)
• Japan Sinks: People of Hope (live action TV series)
• The Door into Summer (live-action film)

BEST COMIC

• Ōoku: The Inner Chambers, by Fumi Yoshinaga (19 volumes)
• Attack on Titan, by Hajime Isayama (34 volumes)
• An Interstellar Voyage Fit for a Baron (Danshoku ni Fusawashii Ginga Ryokou), by Rasenjin Hayami (3 volumes)
• Psychic Squad (Zettai Karen Children), by Takashi Shiina (63 volumes)
• Astronaut Cat, by Ryo Aizawa (one-shot)
• Beastars, by Paru Itagaki (22 volumes)
• JoJolion, by Hirohiko Araki (27 volumes)
• Sōbōtei Kowasubeshi, by Kazuhiro Fujita (25 volumes)

BEST ARTIST

• Yufu
• Nagaharu Yagi
• Kia Asamiya
• Noriko Nagano
• YOUCHAN
• Ikuto Yamashita
• Yoshiyuki Sadamoto
• Naoyuki Kato

BEST NONFICTION

• NHK: 100 Minutes of Masterpieces – Ray Bradbury’s “Fahrenheit 451”, by Kazuhisa Todayama (NHK Publishing)
• SF Prototyping: New Strategies of Innovation from Science Fiction, by Michito Miyamoto, Yuuki Namba, Hirotaka Osawa (Hayakawa)
• Rurubu Universe, edited by Kimiyo Hayashi (JTB Publishing)
• The Thoughts of Shinichi Hoshi, by Michiaki Asaba (Chikuma Shobō)
• The Best of Japanese SF Comics, edited by Kenta Fukui (Sōgen Suiri Bunko)
• Super Sentai (Illustrated Gakken Book), edited by Dai Matsui (Gakken)
• A Physicist Gets Into Sci-Fi Movies, by Yuichi Takamizu (Kobunsha)
• World Science Fiction Writers Conference, edited by Hayakawa Shobo Editorial Department (Hayakawa Shobo)

FREE NOMINATION

• AI Novelist (7/1)

“A novel-generating AI created by an individual and released in July 2021, as it became a hot topic as a creative AI that can be easily enjoyed on the Web.”

• Uma Musume Project (2/4)

“Date is the app’s release. For the app’s release and its scale as a social phenomenon after the production announcement in 2016.”

• Super Robot Wars 30th Anniversary (10/28)

“Date is the release of the most recent game in the series, “Super Robot Wars 30.” In honor of the increased visibility of robot works, including past works, due to the crossover of robot works.”

• Donations Flood in for Professor Toru Miyazaki’s Research on Drugs to Treat Kidney Disease in Cats (7/11)

“Research into a treatment for kidney disease in cats made the news and raised more than 200 million yen. The reason for this event was that it drew attention to the theme of animal physiology, a topic that is close to our hearts, and that it was a reminder of the high impact of “buzz” on the Internet.” (English article)

• The completion of Evangelion’s story in “Evangelion: 3.0+1.0” (1/23)

“The new movie version, which spanned almost 15 years since 2007, has finally come to an end. Starting from the TV series, it has been about 25 years. Many people did not live to see the end, and the conclusion of the event literally embodied the curse of Eva. We would like to pay tribute not only to the movie as a stand-alone product, but also to the completion of the series over the years.”

• Construction of full-size Nu Gundam and Freedom Gundam (4/28)

“While the whole world was suffering from the new coronavirus, the Freedom was built in Shanghai, China in April, and the Nu Gundam was built in Fukuoka, Japan in December. The construction of two mobile suits (Freedom is not a Gundam) in one year was unprecedented and the first time in history. It could be said to be a modern version of the construction of the Great Buddha to pray for the dispersal of Corona.” (English article)

• SpaceX, the world’s first manned space flight by a private citizen alone (Inspiration4) (9/18)

“Although private citizens have used public organizations for space travel in the past, it is significant that they have successfully completed a manned spaceflight mission that will lead to private space travel in the future.”