and often shortened to , is a Japanese animation company. The studio's name has a double meaning in Japanese: "Tatsu's child" (Tatsu is a nickname for Tatsuo) and "sea dragon", the inspiration for its seahorse logo. Tatsunoko's headquarters are in Musashino, Tokyo. History The studio was founded in October 1962 by mangaka and anime pioneer Tatsuo Yoshida and his brothers Kenji and Toyoharu (better known by his pen name "Ippei Kuri"). The studio's first production was the 1965 TV series Space Ace. Since then many figures in the anime industry have worked with Tatsunoko, including Mizuho Nishikubo, Hiroshi Sasagawa, Koichi Mashimo, Katsuhisa Yamada, Hideaki Anno (Tatsunoko provided animation work on the Neon Genesis Evangelion TV series), and Kazuo Yamazaki. Sasagawa is notable for bringing his fondness for comedy animation to the forefront in Tatsunoko series such as the Time Bokan (1975) franchise. The company later licensed Macross to Harmony Gold, who then produced Robotech. Takara acquired Tatsunoko on June 3, 2005 after purchasing an 88 percent stake and made the company a subsidiary. Production I.G was established in 1987 as I.G. Tatsunoko, a branch for the production of Zillion led by Mitsuhisa Ishikawa. In 2009, Tatsunoko announced that it would collaborate with Marvel Comics on a joint television project and other ventures. IG Port announced on June 2, 2010 that its subsidiary, Production I.G, had purchased an 11.2 percent stake in Tatsunoko. Production I.G president Mitsuhisa Ishikawa became a part-time director of the studio. Talent agency Horipro announced on February 23, 2013 that it had acquired a 13.5 percent stake in Tatsunoko. At Anime Expo 2013, Sentai Filmworks announced a deal to license and release some of Tatsunoko's titles, including Gatchaman and Casshan. Nippon TV announced on January 29, 2014 that it had purchased a 54.3 percent stake in Tatsunoko and adopted the company as its subsidiary. In 2017, two short films titled Pandora to Akubi were released. These were the first works produced under Tatsunoko's "Bakken Record" label, which was officially established in April 2019. Main productions 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars (Nintendo Wii) (January 26, 2010) Hutch the Honeybee: Yuki no Melody (2010; co-production with Group TAC) Yozakura Quartet: Hoshi no Umi (2010; co-production with KMMJ Studios) Princess Resurrection (2010; remake of original TV series) [C]: The Money of Soul and Possibility Control (Fuji TV) (2011) Sket Dance (TV Tokyo) (2011–2012) Pretty