[4] Itamura was chosen to take over the Monogatari series succeeding Tatsuya Oishi due to Shinbo's faith in his abilities.
[5] Itamura stayed with the Monogatari series for the rest of its run until 2017 with Owarimonogatari II with the exception of Kizumonogatari that Oishi had directed.
[6] Itamura's style, specifically as the director of the Monogatari series, has been described as being much more minimalistic than his predecessor Tatsuya Oishi, with analysis of his style placing emphasis on sharp color contrasts, shifts in stylistic artistry,[7] changes in overall color schemes, and the implementation of "chapter breaks" that make use of the "adaptive nature" of the series.
[10] Reflecting on the eight years Itamura was a part of the Monogatari series, he said that he happened to join the production of Bakemonogatari at just the right time to work closely with Oishi, which he described as being a good learning experience.
[11] He discussed with Shinbo in regard to him taking over the television series starting with Nisemonogatari, and understood that he wouldn't be able to imitate Oishi's style even if he wanted to.
[12] In Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei, he was in charge of a segment that featured rakugo, so he went to a play in-person and watched ''Tiger & Dragon'' [ja] for research;[13] and in Owarimonogatari, he looked into ball-jointed dolls and cricket to use as motifs and gags.