Nishikubo (Tokyo, 1953) is a long-time collaborator of Mamoru Oshii, serving as sequence director in Ghost in the Shell (1995), Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004) and The Sky Crawlers (2008). He began his career in 1975 at Tatsunoko, and later joined Osamu Dezaki in Lady Oscar (1979). He directed Video Girl Ai (1992, OVA), Otogi Zoshi (2004, TV), Atagoal: Cat’s Magical Forest (2006, movie), and the music clip Tsepi i kol'tsa (2003) for Russian rock star Linda. His feature film, Musashi: The Dream of the Last Samurai (2009) screened in Locarno, Warsaw and Sitges.