Yasuhiro Takemoto (Japanese: 武本 康弘, April 5, 1972 – July 18, 2019) was a Japanese animator and television and film director. He worked at Kyoto Animation for almost his entire animation career after joining the company in 1996. His first major job as a director came in 2003 with Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu. Two years later he directed his sequel: The Second Raid. In 2007, Takemoto replaced Lucky Star director Yutaka Yamamoto after his dismissal. He led The Melancholy of Haruhi-chan Suzumiya and N ...