Kazu Kibuishi, born in Tokyo in 1978, is a graphic novelist and illustrator who relocated to the United States in 1982. He pursued film studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where his illustration career began through the university newspaper, the Daily Nexus. Kibuishi graduated in 2000 and initially worked in animation before dedicating himself to comics.

His career highlights include creating the webcomic Copper and the popular graphic novel series Amulet. Kibuishi also founded and edited the acclaimed comic anthology Flight, which gained significant industry attention and featured contributions from various artists. Following Flight, he launched the children's anthology series Explorer. Kibuishi has also illustrated covers for the Harry Potter series and contributed to other book projects. He is married to illustrator Amy Kim Ganter and resides in Washington State.

Born in Tokyo, Japan, on April 8, 1978, Kazu Kibuishi moved to the United States with his family at a young age. He later attended the University of California, Santa Barbara, intending to study film. While there, his artistic path took a significant turn when he began illustrating for the campus newspaper, the Daily Nexus. Despite initially aiming to move away from drawing, he served as the Art Director for the Nexus for three and a half years, developing his comic "Clive and Cabbage" during this period. He completed his film studies degree in 2000.

Kibuishi's interest in drawing began in childhood, partly inspired by the absence of certain television shows after his move to the U.S., and influenced by comics like Garfield and publications such as Mad magazine. After graduating, he worked briefly in animation before shifting his focus to comics. He created the webcomic "Copper," which ran for seven years, and later conceived "Flight," a collaborative anthology project that attracted prominent artists and was published by Image Comics, concluding after eight volumes. He also edited the children's anthology series "Explorer."

Among Kibuishi's most recognized works is the "Amulet" series of graphic novels, which debuted in 2008 and became a bestseller. He also authored the steampunk graphic novel "Daisy Kutter: The Last Train." His illustrative talents were tapped for significant projects, including creating new cover art for the 15th-anniversary edition box set of the Harry Potter novels and illustrating the story "?" for the collection "Machine of Death." Additionally, he illustrated Brandon Sanderson's children's book "The Most Boring Book Ever."

“his career all began when I started writing comics for the Nexus. I actually went to UCSB for film. I was trying to quit drawing”

“the sadness that came from no longer having cool robot TV shows like Ultraman around once we came to the States that triggered a lot of my early drawings and projects”