Chiaki J. Konaka
Production of the anime was placed on hold due to director Ryūtarō Nakamura's health issues. On June 29, 2013, Nakamura passed away of pancreatic cancer, and it was unknown whether development of "Despera" would continue following his death. At Overload 2014, ABe announced that the anime would move forward with a new director. In 2018, Yoshitoshi ABe and Chiaki J. Konaka said the reason "Despera" is in development hell is not primarily due to a lack of funds, but because of the current state of the anime industry.