LibGuides: Anime and Manga: History

Influential Creators

Tezuka Osamu

朝日新聞社 [Public domain]

Tezuka Osamu is considered the God of Manga, specifically modern day manga as we know it after World War II. His internationally famous work Astro Boy is an anime classic and is known in Japan as Mighty Atom. His work Astro Boy has influenced artwork, character development, plot development, AI (Artificial Intelligence), and Science Fiction genre in pop culture. Some of his other influential works include Black Jack, Princess Knight, Phoenix, Kimba the White Lion, etc. See "Museums" on the "More Reference" page for Osamu's museum. His works' most recent anime adaption was Dororo (2019).

Katsuhiro Otomo

Selbymay [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]

Katsuhiro Otomo is a famous manga writer and film director best known for his work Akira. Otomo's Akira introduced to the international audience that anime and manga could have adult themes and were not just meant for children. The work also demonstrated influence of Tezuka Osamu's intention of manga bringing in complex characters and world building to a wider audience.

Yoshiyuki Tomino

Dick Thomas Johnson from Tokyo, Japan [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)]

Yoshiyuki Tomino is the influential creator of Gundam and influencer of following additions to the series. Gundam is recognizable all over the world, making guest appearances in pop culture films such as Ready Player One. The Gundam Series has main tourist attractions in Tokyo with the Gundam Cafe in Akihabara and the giant Gundam statue in Diver City or short for Odaiba. For more Gundam news, click here. Tomino was awarded a Persons of Cultural Merit in 2021.

Eiichiro Oda

蘭斯特 [Public domain]

Eiichiro Oda's One Piece is the current best selling manga of all time. With millions in sales of the manga around the world, One Piece has been translated into many international languages and has fourteen movies with the fifteenth premiering November 4, 2022 in the US titled One Piece Red. Oda's masterpiece has set the tone for the adventure and shounen genres in manga. Shounen is the japanese term for young boy and the genre in manga and anime features many action and adventure titles. One piece is one of Shounen Jump's, a magazine dedicated to the shounen genre, longest serials being published since 1998.

One Piece Live Action on Netflix debuted on August 31, 2023. It has been very popular on the streaming service. Season 2 is currently in the works.

Akira Toriyama

Kami Sama Explorer Museum from São Paulo, Brasil [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)]

Akira Toriyama is influential for his series Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z. Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z is the most recognized action anime, influencing fighting animation techniques for generations and has spawned multiple video game adaptations and movies. The image of Goku, the main character, turning into a super saiyan is known internationally. Recent successes include the giant movie hit Dragon Ball Super: Broly (2018) and Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, a video game from 2020. The latest film Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero released June 11, 2022. Toriyama passed away March 1, 2024.

Hayao Miyazaki

Thomas Schulzdetengase @ Flickr [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)]

Hayao Miyazaki is one of the founding members of Studio Ghibli beginning in 1985. Studio Ghibli is internationally renown and has produced titles like Princess Mononoke and Academy Award winning Sprited Away. Miyazaki was the main screen writer for movies between 1985-2013. Miyazaki was awarded a Persons of Cultural Merit in 2012. While he continues to work on short films and manga, Miyazaki is still working for the tourist attraction Studio Ghibli Museum which can be found in Mitaka, Tokyo. The legendary filmmaker came out of retirement to help with the film The Boy and the Heron which takes its Japanese title from a 1937 novel by Yoshino Genzaburo: How Do You Live?. The Boy and the Heron premiered in theaters in the United States December 8, 2023. Read a review here. It won Best Animated Feature at the 96th Acadedmy Awards (2024 Oscars).

Hideaki Anno

Dick Thomas Johnson from Tokyo, Japan, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Hideaki Anno is an animator, filmmaker, and actor. His most celebrated creation, the Evangelion franchise: Neon Genesis Evangelion, has had a significant influence on the anime television industry and Japanese popular culture. Neon Genesis Evangelion is also known by the names of Eva or Evangelion for short. It is hailed as one of the influential anime for the Mecha anime genre, like the Gundam series, and is known for its postmodernist themes, psychoanalytic accounts of human behavior, and theological questioning. Other Anno works include Shin Godzilla (2016) and Shin Kamen Rider (2023). Fun Fact: In 1994, the astroid 9081 Hideakianno was named after him by his old friend Akimasa Nakamura, a famous Japanese astronomer.

Shinichiro Watanabe

Georges Seguin (Okki) / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

Shinichirō Watanabe is a Japanese anime television and film director. He is known for directing successful anime series Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo, and Space Dandy. Watanabe is known for incorporating multiple genres into his anime creations and most notably uses multiple genres in his music soundtracks like hip-hop in Samurai Champloo. His most recent work is the anime Carol & Tuesday that won Crunchyroll's 2020 Anime Award for Best Music Score. As of November 19, 2021, Cowboy Bebop was adapted into a live-action series by streaming platform giant Netflix, having one season.

Hiromu Arakawa

Image: Anne Darkly, SDCC 2010: Exhibit Hall: Square Enix, Original art: Fullmetal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa, Flickr, Uploaded on July 29, 2011, Taken on July 25, 2010

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Hiromu Arakawa is a Japanese manga artist. She is best known for the critically acclaimed manga series Fullmetal Alchemist (2001–2010). Also known as Fullmetal for short or the Japanese title: Hagane no Renkinjutsushi, the series has been adapted into two anime series with the most popular one titled: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (2009-2010). Arakawa's work explores social problems and explores themes of religion and philosophy. Read some fun trivia facts about the authoress on CBR here.

Makoto Shinkai

Elena Ternovaja, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Makoto Niitsu, known as Makoto Shinkai is a Japanese animator, filmmaker, author, and manga artist. He has been called "The New Miyazaki" by several news outlets and reviewers of his work. He has won several awards. His most notable works are his three recent films Your Name (2016), Weathering with You (2019), and Suzume (2022) which were all commericial successes domestically and internationally. Fun fact: He has an asteroid, 55222 Makotoshinkai named after him. For a review of Suzume (2022) click here.