Akira Watanabe

Akira Watanabe Born May 13, 1908 Died 1999 Occupation Art director, special effects director First work The War at Sea from Hawaii to Malaya (1942)

Akira Watanabe (渡辺明,   Watanabe Akira), nicknamed Mr. Nabe (ナベさん,   Nabe-san), was a Japanese artist and art director who worked frequently on Toho's tokusatsu films during the Showa era. He is notable for finalizing the designs of popular monsters such as King Ghidorah, Baragon, and Godzilla himself. Away from Toho, Watanabe directed the special effects in Nikkatsu's sole Showa kaiju movie, Gappa.

Selected Filmography

Art Director

• Godzilla (1954) - Assistant art director
• The Legend of the White Serpent (1956) - Assistant art director
• The Mysterians (1957) - Assistant art director
• The Last War (1961) - Assistant art director
• Gorath (1962) - Assistant art director
• King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) - Assistant art director
• Atragon (1963) - Assistant art director
• Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964) - Assistant art director
• Frankenstein vs. Baragon (1965) - Assistant art director
• The War of the Gargantuas (1966) - Art director
• Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966) - Art director
• King Kong Escapes (1967) - Art director
• Son of Godzilla (1967) - Art director
• Destroy All Monsters (1968) - Art director
• Latitude Zero (1969) - Art director
• Space Amoeba (1969) - Art director
• Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971) - Art director
• Submersion of Japan (1973) - Art director
• Prophecies of Nostradamus (1974) - Art director
• The War in Space (1977) - Art director
• The Return of Godzilla (1984) - Art director

Other

• Gappa (1967) - Planning, Director of Special Effects
• Gamera 2: Attack of the Legion (1996) - Miniatures

External Links

• Akira Watanabe on Toho Official Website.