Yasuo Otsuka, Influential Japanese Animator And Mentor, Dies At 89 Yasuo Otsuka, a towering figure in anime history, died on Monday aged 89. The cause was a heart attack, his family have told Japanese media. Coming of age at the same time as Japan’s animation industry, Otsuka lent his prodigious talents to famous and groundbreaking productions in the postwar era, starting with Hakujaden (a.k.a. Yasuo Otsuka Along the way, he mentored many future luminaries of anime. His most famous protégés were Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata, who would go on to co-found Studio Ghibli. Otsuka collaborated with them on projects including Takahata’s feature directorial debut