Manglobe Inc. (Japanese: 株式会社マングローブ, Hepburn: Kabushiki-gaisha Mangurōbu) was a Japanese animation studio based in Suginami, Tokyo and formed on February 7, 2002 by Sunrise producers Shinichirō Kobayashi and Takashi Kochiyama. Manglobe filed for bankruptcy in September 2015, having accumulated an estimated debt of ¥350 million.
Studio production
Manglobe made its name producing original shows such as Samurai Champloo and Ergo Proxy, rather than adaptations of existing works.[2] Since 2010, the studio had been responsible for multiple seasons of the anime adaptation of The World God Only Knows. Writer of The World God Only Knows manga Tamiki Wakaki became good friends with Manglobe's managing director Takashi Kochiyama during this period, and had stated that working closely with Manglobe's staff resulted in "a truly fortunate work."[3]
Bankruptcy
On September 29, 2015, the studio filed for bankruptcy and removed its website. The Anime! Anime! Biz website reported that the studio had been insolvent for some time, and it had considered options such as debt consolidation before deciding to file for bankruptcy.[4] According to a report by Teikoku Databank, Manglobe had an estimated debt of 350 million yen.[5] Manglobe's bankruptcy resulted in a delay of the theatrical release of the film Genocidal Organ, which had been slated to open on November 13, 2015,[6] and a 16-month long delay of the home video release of Gangsta from Volume 3 onwards in Japan.
