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Shigeki Awai, also known as Shigenori Awai, director of Naruto and One Piece, passed away on March 19 at 71. His family has not disclosed the cause of death, and little is known about them due to his private nature.
Shigeki Awai is popular for significantly influencing several anime series. Fan favorites include Naruto: Shippuden, Bokuto: Naruto Next Generations, One Piece, Detective Conan, Doraemon, and others.
Shigeki Awai is known for animes like One Piece and Attack on Titan
According to Anime News Centre’s March 20 X post, since the 1980s, the animator has made a significant contribution to the anime industry throughout his five-decade career.
He took on over 500 projects and directed over 200 episodes, leaving a lasting legacy. Black Clover, My Hero Academia, Attack on Titan, One Punch Man, Bungo Stray Dogs, Food Wars!, and Haikyu!! are just a few of the most well-known anime series created by him.
In addition, he was also the creator of Tower of God, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Beyblade, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, Kuroko's Basketball, Mobile Suit Gundam, Seven Deadly Sins, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, and more. Additionally, his most recent works include Terminator Zero, Suicide Squad ISEKAI, Uzumaki, and The Misfit of Demon King Academy Season 2.
Throughout his career, Awai also took on a variety of roles. He worked as an episode director, unit director, and storyboard artist. He further contributed to Doraemon the Movie: Nobita's Dinosaur in 1980. Unconstrained, Awai has worked on adult-oriented shows like Mizuiro and Behind Closed Doors.
Shigeki Awai’s fans and colleagues mourn his death
Shortly after the news went public, his coworkers flooded the social media and posted heartfelt recollections of working with him.
Hideaki Matsuoka, a seasoned animator, spoke on their early collaborations in the 1980s and 1990s. As reported by Indian Express, Matsuoka posted on the same day on X that he "was surprised to see the news of Awai Shigeki's death."
After that, Matsuoka expressed his sympathies and recalled their time together at work. He thought back to the projects they had worked on together. As translated using Google translation, Matsuoka further shared:
“The first time I met Awai was about 40 years ago when Studio Gallop was still in its prefab days. At that time, both Awai and I were working as key animators."
He continued:
"We were both from Kyushu, and since we worked on the same projects from the beginning, we had a lot to talk about and often chatted about everyday things.”
The same outlet said that Matsuoka further talked about how he felt when he saw the news on X. He added:
“I was watching X just now and was surprised to see the news of Awai Shigeki’s death. I don’t know the details, but I would like to express my deepest condolences.”
Furthermore, according to another animator Tsutomu Ohno, whose work includes Bleach, Blue Lock Season 2, MF Ghost, and Oshi no Ko, during their time together, Awai became his mentor. He also paid tribute to Shigeki's lasting influence, as reported by Indian Express.
Meanwhile, Shigeki Awai's family members haven't said anything about his passing as of yet.
