Popular veteran anime director Tsutomu Shibayama has passed away. He was 84 years old at the time of his death. Under his direction, Doraemon is the favorite anime of people aged 8 to 80. He created and popularized Nobita and Shizuka, who fought a long battle with lung cancer and finally lost the battle for life. Tsutomu Shibayama breathed his last on March 6.
On Wednesday, the Japanese animation studio Asia Do Animation Works, the company of which Tsutomu Shibayama was one of the owners, officially announced the director’s death on their official website.
What did the official note say?
The official note read, ‘Former CEO Tsutomu Shibayama passed away on March 6th. Shibayama worked tirelessly as a director for Doraemon’s TV animation and movies for over 20 years. He also served as the general director of the TV animation Nintama Rantaro. We are grateful to him for the contributions he made during his lifetime. We announce this sad news out of respect for him.’
Tsutomu Shibayama’s career and early life
Incidentally, Tsutomu Shibayama was born in 1914. He is considered one of the greats of Japanese animation. He has directed 22 feature films of Doraemon. At the same time, he has also directed the 1979 TV anime of the series over the past 20 years.
Tsutomu Shibayama started his career at Toei Animation in 1963. Some of his best early works include The Gusty Frog, Tensai Bakabon series, etc. He did these works for Shin Ei Animation. In 1978, he left the company and started his own Ajia Do Animation Works. From 1984 to 2005, he was the chief director of the TV anime series Doraemon. He has directed several anime films including Nobita and the Castle Undersea Devil, Doraemon: Nobita in the One Nan Spacetime Odyssey.
Tsutomu Shibayama’s final works
He has also directed Chibi Maruko, Nintama Rantaro, Majime ni Fumajime, Kaikesu Zorori. In 2012, Tsutomu Shibayama was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs for his immense contribution to the anime industry.
As soon as the news of Tsutomu Shibayama’s death came out, a shadow of grief spread among Doraemon fans. Many expressed their condolences on social media.
