News Reporting

Studio Wanpack Founder Kōji Yamada Passes Away; Studio to Close 2/28/2018

Written By Samantha Ferreira

This is a truly sad day in the anime world.

Earlier today, Studio Wanpack announced that founder and studio head Kōji Yamada passed away on January 2. Due to his passing, the Toyonaka, Osaka based studio will officially close its doors on February 28.

Studio Wanpack was founded in 1993 and, as of last month, maintained a workforce of 90 employees. Though the studio was never a force in the front lines of anime production, they were a vital source for outsourced labor. The studio handled key animation and in-between work for nearly one thousand titles, including Attack on Titan, Case Closed, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, and the Monogatari series.

The company has two main animation production roles to its name:

  • School-Live!
  • The Eden of Grisaia

We’d like to offer our deepest condolences to Yamada-sensei’s family and friends, and we hope the studio’s employees can land on their feet.

Source: Yaraon!

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About the author

Samantha Ferreira

Samantha Ferreira is Anime Herald’s founder and editor-in-chief. A Rhode Island native, Samantha has been an anime fan since 1992, and an active member of the anime press since 2002, when she began working as a reviewer for Anime Dream. She launched Anime Herald in 2010, and continues to oversee its operations to this day. Outside of journalism, Samantha actively studies the history of the North American anime fandom and industry, with a particular focus on the 2000s anime boom and bust. She’s a huge fan of all things Sakura Wars, and maintains series fansite Combat Revue Review when she has free time available. When not in the Anime Herald Discord, Samantha can typically be found on Bluesky.

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