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Kyoto Animation's Planned 'Anime x Para' Short for NHK Canceled

The Nikkan Sports newspaper reported on Friday that Kyoto Animation has halted production on a planned episode for NHK's "Anime x Para: Who is Your Hero?" (Ani × Para: Anata no Hero wa Dare Desu ka) animated project. According to the report, the effects from the arson incident that the studio suffered from last year has left the studio unable to finish the short in time for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.

According to the report, the short was planned to be five minutes long, with an original planned air date in August last year.

"Anime x Para: Who is Your Hero?" is an animated series aiming to increase interest in parasports ahead of the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Previous shorts in the series collaborated with Captain Tsubasa for blind soccer, Baby Steps for wheelchair tennis, renowned Ashita no Joe artist Tetsuya Chiba for wheelchair rugby, and Yowamushi Pedal for para-cycling, among others.

On July 18 last year, a devastating fire broke out at Kyoto Animation's Studio 1 building. A total of 70 people were inside the building at the time. The fire killed 36 people and injured 33 others. In addition to those victims, a man in his 40s on his way to work in the area suffered minor injuries from smoke inhalation.

Kyoto Prefectural Police have apprehended a 41-year-old man who allegedly used gasoline to start the fire, and they are investigating the case as arson. The man allegedly bought 40 liters of gasoline in two canisters and used a cart to transport the gasoline to Kyoto Animation's Studio 1 building. Police have yet to arrest the man as he is still in the hospital recovering from his injuries from the fire. The man is now undergoing rehabilitation and is able to communicate.

The Kyoto Prefectural Government is currently in the process of determining the distribution of 3,314,438,000 yen (about US$30 million) in donations for the injured and the families of the victims of the attack.

Source: Nikkan Sports via Yaraon!