About the studio
Studio Hibari was founded in July 1979 by Sachiko Mitsunobu, a former cel-colorist at Tsuchida Production, along with her husband, director Hiroyoshi Mitsunobu. It started out based in Ōizumi, Gunma Prefecture, before relocating to Nerima, Tokyo in 1998. *A husband-and-wife team building a studio together, which is a nicer origin story than most of the corporate mergers on this list.* Studio Hibari is also notable today as the parent company behind Lerche, the animation brand responsible for shows like Assassination Classroom. Its own direct filmography is less extensively documented in accessible English sources, but its ongoing role as Lerche's institutional home keeps it actively connected to current anime production. Nearly 45 years since its founding, Studio Hibari's legacy runs through both its own original work and the newer creative brand it now houses.