Takahata started his career in animation at the Toei studio in 1959, where he met long-term collaborator and rival Hayao Miyazaki.
The Oscar-nominated Japanese anime director Isao Takahata, who co-founded Studio Ghibli and was best known for his masterpiece Grave of the Fireflies, has died aged 82.
“[His death] is true, but we can’t comment further as we are trying to confirm some facts around it,” a Studio Ghibli spokeswoman said.
Citing unnamed sources related to Takahata, the public broadcaster NHK said he had died at a Tokyo hospital after a recent bout of ill health.
Takahata’s latest film, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, earned him an Academy award nomination in 2014 for best animated feature.
It was also selected for a slot in the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar to the main competition at the 2014 Cannes film festival.
However, most consider the 1988 film Grave of the Fireflies, a moving tale of two orphans during the second world war, to be his best work.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Moving tale … a still from Grave of the Fireflies. Photograph: Ronald Grant Archive
Born in Mie prefecture in central Japan, Takahata started his career in animation at the Toei studio in 1959, where he met long-term collaborator and rival Hayao Miyazaki.
With Miyazaki, he co-founded in 1985 the Japanese animation house Studio Ghibli, which went on to produce several blockbusters.
The pair were often described by media as friends and rivals at the same time.
Over a long and distinguished career, Takahata produced around 20 films, including Only Yesterday (1991) and Pom Poko (1994).
He also produced the Miyazaki-directed 1984 film Kaze no Tani no Naushika (The Valley of the Wind), a science fantasy adventure that describes the relationship between nature and human beings.
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He was also well-known for animation series Alps no Shojo Heidi (Heidi, Girl of the Alps) and Lupin Sansei (Lupin the Third).
Takahata also dabbled in politics, co-signing in 2013, with around 250 other film celebrities, a petition against a controversial state-secrets law.
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Mr Takahata was awarded France's Order of Arts and Letters in 2015
Japanese anime director Isao Takahata, co-founder of the famed Studio Ghibli, has died at the age of 82.
Mr Takahata was nominated for an Oscar in 2015 for The Tale of the Princess Kaguya but is best known for his film Grave of the Fireflies.
He founded Studio Ghibli with iconic director Hayao Miyazaki in 1985.
It became a world-renowned animation studio, producing blockbusters such as Castle in the Sky, and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.
Mr Takahata started his career in animation in 1959 at Japan's Toei studio, where he met Mr Miyazaki, who is usually seen as the face of Studio Ghibli.
Image copyright Shutterstock Image caption Grave of the Fireflies told the story of two siblings trying to survive during World War Two
The duo went on to co-found Studio Ghibli, and were described by local media as both friends and rivals.
Mr Takahata's film The Tale of the Princess Kaguya earned him an Academy Award nomination in 2015 for best animated feature.
But his most loved work was the 1988 film Grave of the Fireflies, a heartbreaking tale of two orphans during World War Two.
Filmmakers and animators have been paying tribute to him on social media.
Skip Twitter post by @LWLies The maestro Isao Takahata, director of such burnished animated gems as Grave of the Fireflies, Only Yesterday, Pom Poko, The Tale of Princess Kaguya and more, has died at the age of 82. pic.twitter.com/56yuL8ejWw — Little White Lies (@LWLies) April 5, 2018 Report
Skip Twitter post by @mexopolis No animated movie has made me cry more than this tender, gorgeous, profound, soulful and landmark film. A giant of our art form has left us. RIP maestro Isao Takahata pic.twitter.com/YRR6eJBmp4 — Jorge R. Gutierrez (@mexopolis) April 5, 2018 Report
Skip Twitter post by @PuccaNoodles RIP Isao Takahata... You will live forever in our hearts through your absolutely beautiful work and legacy that you have generously left us. Thank you for all that you've done.https://t.co/HwKOfqjosd pic.twitter.com/4NfbiT0al4 — Marie Lum 林 (@PuccaNoodles) April 5, 2018 Report
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Isao Takahata, co-founder of Studio Ghibli and director of such animated films as Grave of the Fireflies, passed away today in a Tokyo hospital at the age of 82, according to various Japanese news sources.
Takahata’s distinguished career as a producer, director, and animator began in 1959 when he joined Toei Animation as an assistant. There, he met his longtime collaborator and fellow animation legend Hayao Miyazaki, with whom he later founded Studio Ghibli along with Toshio Suzuki.
A number of Studio Ghibli’s most famous anime have benefited from Takahata’s hand as a producer, director or writer. After producing 1984's Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind and 1986's Castle in the Sky, Takahata directed Grave of the Fireflies, a brilliant and devastating World War II drama that received universal acclaim.
Between 1991 and 2013, Takahata directed Only Yesterday, Pom Poko, My Neighbors the Yamadas, and The Tale of Princess Kayuga, the latter of which was nominated for an Academy Award. He continued working through 2016.
Reportedly, Takahata’s health began declining last year because of a heart condition.
Isao Takahata, the legendary anime director that co-founded Studio Ghibli alongside Hayao Miyazaki, has died. He was 82. Yahoo Japan reports that he had been suffering from a heart condition and was hospitalized last summer; Studio Ghibli has since confirmed the news of his death.
Although not as internationally well-known as Miyazaki, Takahata directed some of Studio Ghibli's most beautiful and original films, from the moving Only Yesterday to the heart-wrenching war drama Grave of the Fireflies. He also served as producer on early Miyazaki works Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind and Castle in the Sky, and his last directorial credit was for the elegaic, visually stunning Tale of the Princess Kaguya.
Takahata never drew himself, which led to his movies often serving as an outlet for Ghibli's most experimental and brilliant animation. His respectful yet sometimes adversarial relationship with Miyazaki is explored in the fascinating documentary In The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness, which also details Takahata's unorthodox, frustrating approach to work.
But no-one is in any doubt that Takahata was an essential figure for Studio Ghibli, and one of the most uniquely talented directors in the history of animation. Although it was perhaps unlikely that he'd ever direct another movie, his loss will be keenly felt.
