Joseph Luster
November 4, 2024 
According to recent confirmation from anime studio GONZO, art director Shigemi Ikeda has passed away. The artist was 69 years old when he passed on October 13, 2024.
The Art director of #AfroSamurai, Mr.Shigemi Ikeda, has recently passed away.
Thank you for your dedicated work, may you rest in peace. https://t.co/e9OPiEb9F7— Gonzo Anime Global (@GonzoAnimeIntl) October 26, 2024
Ikeda enjoyed a storied career in the anime industry over the years, including art director credits for Afro Samurai, Inuyasha, Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack, Gundam Seed, My Hero Academia, Overlord, The Promised Neverland, Bubblegum Crisis and many more. He recently performed those duties on the Mobile Suit Gundam Seed FREEDOM anime film.
Ikeda even received a Primetime Emmy Award in 2009 in the category of Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation. The award was given to GONZO’s Afro Samurai: Resurrection movie.
A funeral will be held for close family members. Our thoughts go out to them as well as his friends, colleagues and fans.
Source: Anime News Network, GONZO
