LeSean Thomas facts for kids

LeSean Thomas (born 1975) is an American artist who creates animated TV shows. He is a producer, director, animator, and comic book artist. He lives in Meguro, Tokyo, Japan.

He has worked on many famous shows. These include Black Dynamite and The Legend of Korra. He also worked on The Boondocks. More recently, he created Children of Ether for Crunchyroll. He also made the Netflix anime series Cannon Busters and Yasuke.

LeSean Thomas's Animation Journey

Early Animation Work

LeSean Thomas helped create the animated series The Boondocks. He was a supervising character designer and co-director for the first two seasons. His work helped the show win a special Peabody Award. It was also nominated for an NAACP Image Award.

He also worked on many other shows early in his career. He was an assistant animator for Lizzie McGuire. He drew storyboards for Kim Possible and Ben 10: Alien Force. He also worked on The Batman and Batman: The Brave and the Bold. He helped design characters for Superman/Batman: Public Enemies.

Thomas also created his own online animated series called BattleSeed. He wrote, produced, and directed this show. It was shown at the New York Anime Film Festival in 2000. A trailer for BattleSeed even aired in movie theaters.

Comic Books and Art

Besides animation, LeSean Thomas is also a talented comic book artist. He has worked on comics like Arkanium and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

He has also released artbooks. These include Nervous Breakdowns: The Art of LeSean Thomas Vol. 1. He also made Midnight Marauder: The Art of LeSean Thomas Vol. 2. He created his own graphic novel called Cannon Busters.

Working in South Korea

In 2009, LeSean Thomas moved to Seoul, South Korea. He was hired by a Korean animation studio called JM Animation. This was a big step for him.

Later, he worked at Studio Mir as a storyboard and animation artist. There, he helped create The Legend of Korra for Nickelodeon. He was one of the first American animators to work full-time at animation studios in South Korea.

He even made a web-documentary called Seoul Sessions. It showed his experiences working in the Korean animation industry. He also gave a TEDx talk in Incheon, South Korea. He spoke about his journey and how "successful failures" can be important.

In 2011, Thomas started working on Black Dynamite. He was a creative producer and supervising director for the show.

Creating Original Anime Series

In 2014, LeSean Thomas started a project to fund an animated TV pilot. It was called Cannon Busters: The Animated Series. This show was based on his own comic book. Japanese anime studio Satelight helped produce it. The project was successfully funded.

In 2017, Netflix decided to make Cannon Busters into a 12-episode series. It was co-produced by Satelight and Yumeta Company. The show launched on Netflix in August 2019.

Thomas also partnered with Crunchyroll for his original anime, Children of Ether. This show was released in theaters in July 2017. It was later available on Crunchyroll's streaming platform.

Yasuke on Netflix

In 2018, Netflix announced Yasuke. This is an original anime fantasy series created and directed by LeSean Thomas. It is inspired by the true story of Yasuke, an African samurai from the 1500s.

Oscar-nominated actor Lakeith Stanfield voiced the main character, Yasuke. He was also an executive producer. Grammy Award-winning artist Flying Lotus created the music and was also an executive producer. The animation was done by the Japanese studio MAPPA. Yasuke was released on April 29, 2021.

Yasuke received nominations for its achievements. In 2021, it was nominated for Best Main Title at the 12th Hollywood Music in Media Awards. In 2022, it was nominated for Outstanding Animated Series at the 53rd NAACP Image Awards.

Honored by Japan Society

In November 2024, LeSean Thomas was honored in New York City. The Japan Society and the Japan Foundation celebrated his work. This event, called "Foreign Exchange: Anime Inspirations & Visionaries," recognized his unique role. He is one of the few Black Americans working in Japan's anime industry. He is also the first North American creator and director of original anime series like Children of Ether, Cannon Busters, and Yasuke.

A special artbook was released at the event. It is called "Foreign Exchange: The TV Anime Creations of LeSean Thomas Vol 1. - Yasuke." This book shows the behind-the-scenes process of creating Yasuke. It includes rare art and design ideas.

The event also showed famous anime films that inspired Thomas. He explained how these films and their creators influenced his career. He also met with high school and college students. He shared his story to inspire the next generation of artists and storytellers.