Kenichirō Katsura

Kenichirō Katsura died on September 30, 2026, at the age of 59, while undergoing medical treatment for an illness. The specific illness and cause of death have not been made public, and the place of death was not stated.

His death was announced on October 5, 2026, when his wife, animator Satoko Miyachi, posted a written statement on her X account as representative of the bereaved family. She said the funeral had already been held privately with only close relatives, apologised that the news came after the fact, and thanked the fans who loved his work as well as the production companies and staff who worked with him.

She also asked fans who had praised his art to say quietly in their hearts which character, which licensed illustration or which animation of his they loved, saying she believed it would reach him and make him happy, and to watch his work again if they had time.

The official accounts of Knight's & Magic and SYNDUALITY Noir posted condolences from their production committees the same day, and his death was reported by ORICON NEWS, Sponichi, ENCOUNT, Game*Spark and Anime News Network. No public memorial has been announced.

Kenichirō Katsura was born on December 4, 1966, in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. Little has been published about his family background or childhood. According to fan-compiled records of animator interviews, he decided to become an animator as a student after seeing the illustrations of character designer Mutsumi Inomata, and he named animators such as Yasuomi Umetsu, Yūji Moriyama and Kōichi Arai among his influences.

Details of Katsura's schooling and any formal art training have not been made public. He learned his craft on the job in the Japanese animation industry, starting in the mid 1980s in the entry-level role of in-between animator before moving up to key animation.

Katsura began as an in-between animator in the mid 1980s, with credits including Fist of the North Star 2. From 1989 he was a key animator on the Ranma ½ television series, Madō King Granzort, Oishinbo and Mahō no Angel Sweet Mint, and on OVAs such as Tenchi Muyo!, Bastard!! and Madara. He was based for many years at the studio Gabou Miyabi, and in 1992 he served as an animation director on Ashita e Free Kick.

His breakthrough came with Macross 7 (1994), where he was animation character designer, animation director on several episodes and a key animator. He went on to design characters for the 1995 film Macross 7 the Movie: The Galaxy's Calling Me! and the Macross 7 Plus and Macross 7 Encore OVAs, and also contributed key animation to Macross Plus.

In the late 1990s and 2000s he designed characters for games including the Viper series (credited as Edage Katsura on adult titles) and worked closely on Aquaplus adaptations: character design and chief animation direction on Comic Party Revolution, character design on the ToHeart2 OVA series, and direction and character design on the Utawarerumono OVA (2009 to 2010). He also contributed key animation to series such as Noir, Black Lagoon, Madlax and Heroman.

From 2012 he returned to television as a lead artist. He was character designer and chief animation director on NAKAIMO: My Little Sister Is Among Them! (2012) and Walkure Romanze (2013), chief animation director on The Fruit of Grisaia (2014) and The Eden of Grisaia (2015), and character designer and chief animation director on Knight's & Magic (2017). He was chief animation director on How to Keep a Mummy (2018) and That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime (2018 to 2019), and designed characters for Zenonzard: The Animation (2019).

His final years included character design and chief animation direction on both seasons of Synduality: Noir (2023 to 2024), chief animation direction on the second season of Shy, key animation on Blue Lock's second season, animation direction on Sword of the Demon Hunter (2025), animation direction on Gintama: The Movie 2026: Yoshiwara in Flames and key animation on That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime the Movie: Tears of the Azure Sea, both released in Japan in February 2026.

Katsura was married to Satoko Miyachi, also an animator. Miyachi announced his death and represented the family in the public statement. He kept a low personal profile, and no information about children has been made public.

Katsura was known for characters drawn with a strong sense of three-dimensional form combined with an expressive, approachable charm, particularly in his female characters. Fan and industry accounts also praised his skill with mecha, effects and animals. In her statement after his death, his wife invited fans to remember the characters, illustrations and animation of his that they loved.

Katsura's career connected several generations of anime. Viewers who grew up with Macross 7 in the 1990s, players of the Aquaplus and Viper games, and newer audiences of Knight's & Magic, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime and Synduality: Noir all watched characters he designed or supervised. As a chief animation director he was responsible for keeping drawings consistent across entire series, a role central to how a show looks on screen. The formal condolences issued by the Knight's & Magic and SYNDUALITY Noir production committees reflected the regard in which studios held him.

No major individual awards for Katsura have been documented in the sources reviewed. His recognition came through decades of credits as a lead designer and chief animation director, and through tributes from the productions he worked on.

Television: Ranma ½ (key animation, 1989), Ashita e Free Kick (animation director, 1992), Macross 7 (animation character design and animation director, 1994), Comic Party Revolution (character design), NAKAIMO: My Little Sister Is Among Them! (character design, 2012), Walkure Romanze (character design, 2013), The Fruit of Grisaia (chief animation director, 2014), The Eden of Grisaia (chief animation director, 2015), Knight's & Magic (character design and chief animation director, 2017), How to Keep a Mummy (chief animation director, 2018), That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime (chief animation director, 2018), Synduality: Noir (character design and chief animation director, 2023 to 2024), Shy season 2 (chief animation director, 2024).

Films: Macross 7 the Movie: The Galaxy's Calling Me! (character design, 1995), Gintama: The Movie 2026: Yoshiwara in Flames (animation director, 2026), That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime the Movie: Tears of the Azure Sea (key animation, 2026).

OVA and web: Macross 7 Encore, ToHeart2 series (character design), Utawarerumono OVA (director and character design, 2009), Zenonzard: The Animation (character design, 2019).

Games: Viper CTR ~Asuka~ and Viper RSR (character design, as Edage Katsura), Utawarerumono: Prelude to the Fallen (opening animation director, 2006).