As the anime industry fails to properly train new generations of creators, “convenient” technological advances (whether good or not in their own right) have accelerated the loss of technique, fundamentals, and knowledge among the workforce. This is how veterans and newcomers face an already devastating issue that only stands to get worse.
Many anime try to offer their viewers a relaxing experience, yet few can seamlessly blend that goal with their themes and visual storytelling like these two little gems: this is the story of Do It Yourself!!, Yama no Susume, and their animation leader Yusuke Matsuo.
Fall 2022 is a historically loaded season of anime, the result of concentrating essentially a year’s worth of top talent in one single burst through bold and sometimes aggressive management. It more than deserves a deep dive into many of these titles and the teams behind them—the accomplished veterans, very promising youngsters, and experimental artists leading their own projects, as well as the production circumstances behind this madness.
Nearly 15 years since the cult hit Dennou Coil, its spiritual successor The Orbital Children has just been released. This is the story of how and why they came to be, by the hand of master craftsman and visionary director Mitsuo Iso—this is how he animates the future.
Mamoru Hosoda’s theatrical career started 20 years ago with the Digimon Adventure short film, so this is a good opportunity to celebrate this unusual production and the evolution of one of anime’s most sincere storytellers. Enjoy!
At this point you might already know the drill: twice a year we take the opportunity to share some samples from books that animators, directors, background artists and production teams sell during Comiket, either individually or through more official means. These are always a good way to keep a finger on the pulse of the industry – what do anime creators like, what work are they proud of, and how do they make some always needed extra cash? We’ll see!
Back in May of 1993, Japanese audiences got to experience a curious experiment: studio Ghibli’s first and essentially last large-scale TV project, a film meant to put their younger staff under the spotlight for a change. Let’s look back at a fascinating little chapter in their story, since both its achievements and shortcomings are rarely discussed with the full context in mind.
Since people seemed to enjoy the first rundown, here’s another look at many interesting books released by individual staff members and creative teams during the last edition of Comiket. It’s not just a very direct way for them to reach fans, it also allows us access to production materials and original art that wouldn’t have been shared otherwise. Enjoy!
Comiket 92 was held last month, and as it tends to happen, many anime industry members released personal books compiling their work. And also as usual, we bought way too many of them. Our Patreon supporters were curious about the kind of material that creators put out in these events, so we’ll be showing you many samples of interesting books released this time around. This will be a more casual look at the work of anime artists than usual, so…
As an anonymous message board, 2ch is about as unpleasant as its western equivalents. But since its many discussion threads are sometimes frequented by people with ties to the anime industry, interesting rumors surface once in a while. One particular thread consistently attracts such whispers: the so-called Sakuga Thread (作画を語るスレ – Thread where we talk about animation/sakuga). Many of the comments attempting to pass as leaks turn out to be fake, but there are also plenty of instances of genuine news…