EXCLUSIVE: Osamu Tezuka’s Unknown Storyboards Discovered

Tokyo, Oct. 5 (Jiji Press)–Three unknown storyboards apparently by Osamu Tezuka, dubbed the “god of manga,” have been discovered in the original artwork repository of Tezuka Productions Co. in the city of Niiza, Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo, Jiji Press learned Sunday. The storyboards are pencil sketches containing panel layouts, characters and dialogue. They are believed to have been written by Tezuka around 1973, when he was experiencing hardship due to the bankruptcy of his animation studio. According to Tezuka Productions, this is the first time such a large volume of storyboards for unpublished works has been discovered. Two of the storyboards, found inside two cardboard boxes in June, are for previously unknown works: a 27-page story about a boy raised by a high-performance computer who transforms into a leopard-like wild child and a 28-page story about a young man investigating his brother’s death on the Eiger in Switzerland. Both are unfinished and untitled. The reason they were never published remains unknown. The other draft is believed to be a 44-page prototype for the 1975 one-shot short story in which the main character cares for a young girl. Osamu Takeuchi, a professor emeritus at Doshisha University and an expert on Tezuka’s manga, said that the three storyboards are apparently Tezuka’s work. “They are detailed storyboards that would become finished works once inked, and are invaluable materials,” Takeuchi said. “They suggest that even Tezuka, currently known as the god of manga, struggled to survive.” The storyboards are “arguably the biggest discovery” since Tezuka’s death in 1989, said Hajime Tanaka, head of materials management at Tezuka Productions. “It’s unlikely anything greater will emerge.” The three storyboards will be included in a book to be published by Rittosha on Nov. 14. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]