Akira Shigino, the director of the 1988 Osomatsu-kun anime and storyboard artist for the Crayon Shin-chan series, passed away at the age of 70 on May 30 due to bile duct cancer. The announcement of Shigino's passing was made through the Twitter/X account of the 2019 anime Dino Girl Gauko, which Shigino directed, as reported by . 【ご報告】 恐竜少女ガウ子の生みの親、しぎのあきらは、5月30日に逝去致しました。 告別式は親族と一部のご関係者様で執り行いました。 生前中はしぎのあきらが、皆様より格別なご厚情、ご愛顧頂き、またガウ子を愛して頂きまして誠にありがとうございました。故人に代わりましてお礼申し上げます。 — 恐竜少女ガウ子(公式) (@gagauukoko2020) Shigino contributed storyboards for the Crayon Shin-chan anime and directed several films in the franchise: A veteran in the anime industry, Shigino's first listed credit was for the 1977 TV anime Time Bokan Series: Yatterman.
He was also a member of the non-profit organisation The Japanese Animation Creators Association (JaniCA), established in June 2007 to improve working conditions for anime industry workers..