is a Japanese

manga artist A is a comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. As of 2006, about 3,000 professional manga artists were working in Japan. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist be ...

that usually works as the illustrator in collaboration with a writer. He first gained international attention for '' Hikaru no Go'' (1998–2003) with Yumi Hotta, but is better known for ''

Death Note ''Death Note'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata. It was serialized in Shueisha's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from December 2003 to May ...

'' (2003–2006) and '' Bakuman'' (2008–2012) with Tsugumi Ohba. Obata has mentored several well-known manga artists, including Nobuhiro Watsuki of '' Rurouni Kenshin'' fame, ''

Black Cat A black cat is a domestic cat with black fur that may be a mixed or specific breed, or a common domestic cat of no particular breed. The Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) recognizes 22 cat breeds that can come with solid black coats. The Bombay b ...

'' creator Kentaro Yabuki, and '' Eyeshield 21'' artist Yusuke Murata.

Career

Takeshi Obata chose to be a

because he always loved drawing. As a child he re-read Shotaro Ishinomori's '' Cyborg 009'' over and over. His first published manga was in Higashi-Yamanoshita Elementary's school newspaper when he was in the third grade. It was about a hero who turned into a disposable

pocket warmer Hand warmers are small (mostly disposable) packets which are held in the hand and produce heat on demand to warm cold hands. They are commonly used in outdoor activities. Other types of warmers are available to provide soothing heat for muscular ...

when in trouble. Obata originally became noticed in 1985 when he took a prize in the

Tezuka Award The is a semi-annual manga award offered by the Japanese publisher Shueisha since 1971, under the auspices of its ''Weekly Shonen Jump'' magazine. It awarded new manga artists in the Story Manga category. Its counterpart award, Akatsuka Award, aw ...

for his

one-shot One shot may refer to: Film and television * One-shot film, a feature film shot in one long take with no edits, or manufactured to look like so * ''One Shot'' (2005 film), a Sri Lankan action film directed by Ranjan Ramanayake * ''One Shot'' (2 ...

''500 Kōnen no Shinwa''. Joining the '' Weekly Shōnen Jump'' staff, he mentored under

Makoto Niwano is a Japanese manga artist known for several works, including ''The Momotaroh'', ''Bomber Girl'' and ''Jinnairyū Jyūjyutsu Butouden Majimakun Suttobasu!!''.Karakurizōshi Ayatsuri Sakon'', with author Sharakumaro, became his first work to be adapted into an anime. He then created '' Hikaru no Go'' with Yumi Hotta, which received the Shogakukan Manga Award in 1999 and the

Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize Named after Osamu Tezuka, the is a yearly manga prize awarded to manga artists or their works that follow the Osamu Tezuka manga approach founded and sponsored by Asahi Shimbun. The prize has been awarded since 1997, in Tokyo, Japan. Current ...

in 2003. With 25 million collected volumes in circulation, it was adapted into an anime and became his first work to be released in North America. In 2003 he teamed up with Tsugumi Ohba to create ''

''. It became his biggest hit to date, with 30 million copies in circulation, an anime adaptation, five live-action films, two live-action TV drama and a musical. Obata served as the artist of ''

Blue Dragon Ral Grad is a Japanese manga series written by Tsuneo Takano and illustrated by Takeshi Obata. It is loosely based on the ''Blue Dragon'' video game. The story revolves around the journey of a young man named Ral from the kingdom of Sphaelite. Ral has ...

'', a manga adaptation of the fantasy video game '' Blue Dragon'', from December 2006 to July 2007. In the fall of 2007, he drew the short story "Hello Baby" with writer Masanori Morita, which appeared in '' Jump Square''. This was followed a year later by "Urōboe Uroboros!" with Nisio Isin, who authored the '' Death Note Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases'' novel. He then reunited with Tsugumi Ohba for ''

Bakuman. is a Japanese manga series written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata, the same creative team responsible for '' Death Note''. It was serialized in Shueisha's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from August ...

'', which ran from August 2008 to April 2012. It was Shueisha's first manga to be released online in multiple languages before becoming available in print outside Japan and had over 15 million copies in publication as of May 2014. In 2014, he drew a manga adaptation of '' All You Need Is Kill'' with Ryōsuke Takeuchi, basing the character designs on Yoshitoshi ABe's original cover to the novel. He reunited with Nisio Isin for the one-shot "RKD-EK9", that ran in the December 2014 issue of ''Jump Square''. Obata followed this by working with Nobuaki Enoki to relaunch Enoki's '' School Judgment: Gakkyu Hotei'' digital one-shot as a serial in the first issue of ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' for 2015. However, the magazine stopped publishing it after the year's 24th issue and the series finished in the digital '' Shōnen Jump+'' on May 27. It was serialized in English in the digital ''

Weekly Shonen Jump Weekly, The Weekly, or variations, may refer to: News media * ''Weekly'' (news magazine), an English-language national news magazine published in Mauritius *Weekly newspaper, any newspaper published on a weekly schedule *Alternative newspaper, als ...

''. From 2015 to 2021, Obata created another series with Ohba called '' Platinum End''. Starting in the December 2015 issue of ''Jump Square'' on November 4, 2015, the manga ended on January 4, 2021. The series had over 4.5 million copies in circulation by December 2020, and an anime adaptation began airing on television in October 2021. In October 2021, Obata teamed up with novelist Akinari Asakura to start the '' owarai''-themed manga series '' Show-ha Shoten!'' in the November issue of ''Jump Square''. In addition to his manga work, Obata has also done character design work for the video game '' Castlevania Judgment'', as well as illustrating several light novels. He provided character designs for Madhouse's anime adaptations of Osamu Dazai's '' No Longer Human'' and Natsume Sōseki's '' Kokoro'', which are parts of the ''

Aoi Bungaku is a twelve episode Japanese anime series featuring adaptations inspired by six short stories from Japanese literature. The six stories are adapted from classic Japanese tales. Happinet, Hakuhodo DY Media Partners, McRAY, MTI, Threelight Hold ...

'' series. He drew manga manuscripts seen in the 2015 live-action

film adaptation A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dial ...

of ''Bakuman'' that were later published in the ''Eiga Bakuman. Takeshi Obata Illustration Works'' book. He also designed a new CGI character for the 2016 '' Death Note: Light Up the New World'' live-action film. On May 3, 2016, Viz Media published Obata's 2006 art book ''Blanc et Noir'' in North America.

Personal life

On September 6, 2006, Obata was arrested for illegal possession of an 8.6 cm knife when he was pulled over in

Musashino, Tokyo is a city located in the western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 147,492 in 77,779 households, and a population density of 13,000 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Based on the 2015 Ka ...

for driving with his car's headlights off at 12:30am. The artist claimed he kept the knife in his car for when he goes camping.

Works

Manga

* (1985) * (1989) * with Susumu Sendo (1991–1992) * with Masaru Miyazaki (1992–1993) * with Sharakumaro (1995–1996) * with Yumi Hotta and supervised by Yukari Yoshihara (1998–2003) * with

Otsuichi is the pen name of , born 1978. He is a Japanese people, Japanese writer, mostly of horror fiction, horror Short story, short stories, as well as a filmmaker. He is a member of the Mystery Writers of Japan and the Honkaku Mystery Writers Club of ...

(2003) * with Tsugumi Ohba (2003–2006) * with Tsuneo Takano (2006–2007) * ''Hello Baby'' with Masanori Morita (2007) * with Nisio Isin (2008) * with Tsugumi Ohba (2008–2012) * '' All You Need Is Kill'' with Ryōsuke Takeuchi (2014) * ''RKD-EK9'' with Nisio Isin (2014) * with Nobuaki Enoki (2014–2015) * with Tsugumi Ohba (2015–2021) * with Akinari Asakura (2021–present)

Art books

* (April 2002) * ''Blanc et Noir'' (May 31, 2006) * (October 2, 2015)

Awards and nominations

* 1985

for "500 Kōnen no Shinwa" * 2000 Shogakukan Manga Award for ''Hikaru no Go'' * 2003

Creative Award for ''Hikaru no Go'' * 2007 Nominated - Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize Grand Prize for ''Death Note'' * 2008 Nominated - Angoulême International Comics Festival Official Selection for ''Death Note'' * 2008 Nominated -

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...

for Best Penciller/Inker for ''Death Note'' * 2008 Eagle Award for Favourite Manga for ''Death Note'' * 2010 Nominated - Manga Taishō for ''Bakuman.''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Obata, Takeshi 1969 births Japanese illustrators Living people Manga artists from Niigata Prefecture People from Niigata (city) Winner of Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize (Creative Award)