Manabu Ohashi debuted as an animator for Toei Animation, well known for the distinctiveness of his cloud drawings, has passed away on February 12, at the age of 72.
This sad news announced on Manabu Ohashi official Twitter account that he passed away at the age of 72. His cause of death is unknown as of now. Mr Ohashi was a legendary animator, who worked on Cobra, Astroboy, Black Jack, Treasure Island, Ashita No Joe and he was also director of “Cloud” in Robot Carnival. His best known directorial work is the “Cloud” short for the 1987 Robot Carnival anime anthology project.
A tweet surfaced on his Twitter account with this sad news. The tweet says, “There were so many things he wanted to do and ideas he had, but we are sorry that the years were not long enough. Thank you for all the love and support you gave him during his life.”
He had many ups and downs in his life journey. First started his career as an animator for Toei Animation in 1964 at age 15 with the “Shōnen Ninja Kaze no Fujimaru” anime. Later he left Toei Animation in 1968, and worked on various other projects for Tatsunoko Production and Mushi Production. He and his fellow animators from Mushi Production eventually founded Madhouse in 1972.
His last animation work was in 2019 for the 130th episode of the NHK series Natsuzora. Which portrays the early Japanese animation industry. Rest In Peace G.O.A.T.