Toei Animation gathered this week to honor Tatsuya Nagamine, the acclaimed director behind One Piece Film Z and Dragon Ball Super Broly. Composer Kohei Tanaka and writer Osamu Suzuki confirmed he passed away this summer at age fifty three.
Why he mattered
Nagamine shaped modern shonen on television and film. He steered One Piece from episode 892 through 1122, covering the Wano Kuni arc and the first part of Egghead Island. He led One Piece Log Fish Man Island Saga during the main anime hiatus, and directed One Piece Film Z and the Heart of Gold special, after serving as assistant director on the Alabasta movie.
Across franchises
In Dragon Ball, he directed Dragon Ball Super Broly and served as series director on Dragon Ball Super episodes 77 to 131. Earlier credits include assistant director on The Path to Power, assistant animation director on Dragon Ball GT, and animator on Dragon Ball Z Kai.
He also directed the Digimon Savers movie Burst Mode Invoke and assisted on Digimon Adventure 02 Hurricane Touchdown.
In Precure, he directed HappinessCharge Precure and was series director on Heartcatch Precure, alongside multiple episode and film credits across the franchise. Additional work included Ojamajo Doremi, Saint Seiya Omega, and The Hades Chapter Sanctuary.
A colleague remembers
Writer Osamu Suzuki recalled their work on One Piece Film Z. After a tough script reset, Nagamine bowed deeply and thanked him for his effort. Suzuki said that moment captured a creator who poured heart and soul into his work.
For tributes and archival highlights from Wano and Broly, follow Anime Insider on Instagram.
