Japanese media reported that anime industry icon Yuji Nunokawa passed away suddenly on December 25 at the age of 75. Nunokawa is best known as a producer, founder of Pierrot studios, and a contributor to many initiatives that helped evolve the anime industry, including the powerful collective Japan Animation Association.
Yuji Nunokawa was born on February 11, 1947 in the city of Sakata, in Yamanashi Prefecture. The son of tailors, he grew up loving drawing. On the recommendation of the advisor of the art club he was a part of at the Institute, Nunokawa went to Tokyo to study at the Nippon Design Welfare College , where he graduated in 1967.
Nunokawa started in the anime industry at a company subcontracted by TCJ , which is now Eiken , as a colorist. His first job as an animator was for Space Boy Soran and later as a key animator on Robotan . As a freelance in the industry, he worked on many productions for Mushi Productions and Tsuburaya Enterprises .
During the bankruptcy of Mushi Productions , he was asked to join the founding staff of the anime studio Soeisha , now known as Bandai Namco Filmworks , or Sunrise . Declining the offer, thanks to an offer from Hiroshi Sasagawa , he joined the staff of Tatsunoko Production in 1971, working as a character designer. It was there that Nunokawa became the director of the Time Bokan! .
Nunokawa left Tatsunoko Production in 1978 after the death of the founder, Tatsuo Yoshida , along with animation directors Mitsuo Kaminashi and Hiroko Tokita and formed a collective in a Kichijoji apartment. This collective grew to include animation directors Toriumi Hisayuki and Masami Anno and became Pierrot Studios , of which Nunokawa became president. The main belief of him was to create animator-centric anime with a decent production schedule.
During his time as president of Pierrot, Nunokawa helped produce many hits, such as the original anime Urusei Yatsura , Naruto , Yu Yu Hakusho , Tokyo Mew Mew , Great Teacher Onizuka , Bleach , Kimagure Orange Road , and directed Creamy Mami , among countless other series. of anime. In 2012, Nunokawa became Chairman and Representative Director of Pierrot , moving from the roles of Chairman and Producer to becoming Supreme Counselor of the board of directors.
During the 2000s, Nunokawa was involved in the creation of the Japan Animation Association , which manages the Suginami Animation Museum , publishes the annual report, and helps organize the annual Anime Japan convention together with the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Nunokawa was president from 2009 to 2014, having previously served as vice president.
Along with famed animator Noriyuki Abe , the late Kazunori Mizuno , and Atsushi Wakabayashi , Nunokawa created NUROANI Juku to train new animators as well as producers, planners, and directors. Nunokawa continued to teach at the school until his death.
To commemorate Nunokawa's achievements in life for anime, she received the 2018 Cultural Affairs Commissioner's Award and the Japanese government's Blue Ribbon Medal of Honor , one of the highest honors in Japanese society. Pierrot 's management posted a statement on Twitter stating that Nunokawa " will be sorely missed for his leadership, commitment and passion ."
Source: Oricon News
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