Characteristics of Japanese Anime

1. Characteristics of Japanese Anime Lauren Malis David Jacobs

2. Topics • Characteristics of the Art, Animation Methods and Techniques • Focus on Toei Animation

3. Start of Animation in Japan • Began around 1960 • Osamu Tezuka • Father of manga • Astro Boy! • Creates Mushi Pro • Reason? • Turn manga stories into Animation

4. Astro Boy Sets the Stage for Anime • Tezuka’s art is highly influenced by Disney • Well rounded character designs • Large eyes • Similar to Bambi and Mickey Mouse

5. Boys Manga • Became very popular in the 1950s • Examples include Shukan shonen sande and Shukan shonen magajin • With these publications, manga became more popular with children than ever before

6. Boys Manga cont’d • Some of the most popular boys manga revolve around sports heroes • Some of the most popular about include Ashita no Jo (Tomorrow’s Joe) which is an adolescent boxer and Kyojin no hoshi (Star of the Giants) is described the story of a baseball pitcher. • The typical themes included a character who, “trained very hard, displayed unyielding tenacity, and defeated even the toughest rivals,” (http://www.tjf.or.jp/).

7. Keep the Animation Simple! • As a manga, it already had a vast number of stories • Needed to adapt them quickly for T.V. • Inexperienced staff and low budget =

8. Time and Money Saving • Cut the number of drawings or holding drawings for longer periods of time • Reuse pieces of animation • Done also to place more focus on the dramatic sense and appeal of the original story

9. More techniques later on • Scrolling or repeating backgrounds • Still shots of characters in action poses sliding across screen • Dialogue where only the lips move • In 1960, 60% of all anime were based on character driven stories from manga

10. 1970s Shift • Mostly Original Stories • Studios began taking ideas from one another • Began Giant Robot stories • More complicated stories • Youthful Emotion • Philosophical Themes

11. Shift’s Influence on the Art • Deeper story plots = • Need for deeper more believable characters • Studios favor more realistic drawing style • More Details • But to keep budget, less animation • If viewer is hooked by the story no problem if only the character’s mouth is moving • Characters stay rigid, no volumetric changes • No need to invent, just follow character model sheets

12. Stylized Character Emotion • Again less time less money • Comedic anime = “face fault” • Extremely exaggerated expression to show Shock!

13. Stylized Character Emotion • Female characters pull out weapons like hammers out of nowhere to bludgeon a nearby friend in anger • Guy getting bloody nose around an attractive girl

14. Love and Comedy • Popular in the 1970s through 1980s • “in the love-comedy manga stories, romance is invariably set against the backdrop of often-slapstick events involving the protagonists and other characters, and priority is given to a balance between the elements of serious drama and comedy,” (http://www.tjf.or.jp/). • Some popular romance mangas include Urusei yatsura (Noisy People), Miyuki, Mezon Ikkoku (Maison Ikkoku), and Tatchi (Touch)

15. It’s the 1980s and Manga Returns! • Manga has branched out to different groups: girls, boys, teenagers, adults • Anime follows suit • Manga released in weekly installments • Form larger overarching stories • Characters grow and develop

16. It’s the 1980s and Manga Returns! • Manga already has fan base • Studios want to offer same story/experience • To achieve same level of emotion from the still images….. • More Effort put in backgrounds and character drawings versus movement

17. Importance of Character • Unless viewers have been watching since beginning • All the nuances of the character might not be understood • But, creates more engaging stories to hook the audience and bring them back

18. Shinji Shimizu on Character • Producer of GeGeGe no Kitarou • (Quote not on slides…)

19. Different Perspective • Mamoru Oshii • Director of Ghost in the Shell • ‘the visuals are the most important aspect, then the story, and the characters come last

20. Current Trends • Stories and topics are much more teenager and adult themed • Many visibly show characters drinking and smoking such as in Naturo and One Piece

21. Violence, violence, violence • The content of popular animes today are filled with gratuitous violence • Today’s society is consumed with the “fight fight” mentality

22. Recent Ratings, Sept. 2008 • 1. Sazae-san • 24-year old daughter living with her family in Tokyo • Started as newspaper comics in 1946 • Turned to animation in 1969, currently running and longest running animation in history

23. Recent Ratings, Sept. 2008 • 2.Chibi Maruko-chan • Little girl named Maruko and her family in suburban late-seventies Japan • Aimed at young girls

24. Recent Ratings, Sept. 2008 • 3. Crayon Shin-chan • Young trouble making boy • 4. Doraemon • Magical cat that pulls items out of his pouch • Helps friend, Nobita, young school boy

25. Top Four Shows • Very similar art style • Simplified and child-like drawings • Comedic driven anime • Source material = manga • Number 5 also manga, but different style….

26. Number Five • One Piece • More serious (comedic at times) adventure driven story • About Pirates • Aimed at adolescent boys • Much more detailed artwork • Still stylized, yet much more realistic characters

27. General Format of Anime • Theme song from commercial music artist (usually not written specifically for show) • First half of show • One commercial break! • Second half • Ending Theme • Scenes from Next Week’s episode

28. Focus on Toei Animation • Around 440 anime production companies in Japan • 80% in Tokyo • More than half in the Suginami Ward of west central Tokyo • Rest in Nerima Ward

29. Focus on Toei Animation • One of the largest in Japan • Established in 1956 (before Mushi Pro) • Located in Tokyo’s Higashi Oizumi district • Production began in 1957 • One year later released first feature length, White Snake

30. Toei Animation Today • Produces five to six 30 min. T.V. shows a week • One full length feature, every one to two years • Producer: Shinji Shimizu, started 1977 • Projects: GeGeGe no Kitaro, Shoot!, The File of Young Kidaichi, Galaxy Express 999, Eternal Fantasy, among others

31. Others from Toei Animation • Hayao Miyazaki • My Neighbor Totoro (1988) • Howl’s Moving Castle(2004), and more • Isao Takahata • Grave of the Fireflies (1988) • My Neighbors the Yamadas(1999), and more • Directors/Producers at Ghibli Studios • Started at Toei Animation

32. Production Process • One director takes responsibility for an episode from start to finish • Director will at times draw storyboards • Overviews process from start to final voice over and sound fx • With weekly broadcasts, series will have six to eight directors • Take turns in shifts

33. Key Animation Change • Note: not necessarily true of Toei • Productions run for long periods of time • Studios work on multiple projects at once • Sometimes key animators will change during a production • Key animators draw all poses needed for any action to be understood by those who fill in or in-between the drawings

34. Key Animation Change • At times causes some anime episodes to have a fairly dramatic change in style • Yet, not always noticed by viewers • Characters still move and speak exactly the same way as previous and forthcoming episodes • Usually only lasts an episode or two

35. Key Animation Change • Causes • New key animators wanted to try out different style/just for fun • They didn’t pay enough attention to the character model sheets • Ex: Tweeny Witches and Naruto

36. Back to the Process • Company decides on project • Scriptwriting • Storyboards • Animation divided into Keys and In-betweens • Those who in-between clean up drawings so they are ready for scanning and digital compositing

37. Back to Process continued • One of the last steps: Voice Recording • Actors all perform at the same time in the same room

38. Outsourcing • South Korea and China • Take care of process from usually from in-between phase on • Some will do all drawing, including keys • Storyboards are always done at home studio, Unless joint project

39. Toei on outsourcing • Philippines • Of more than 400 employees, 150 are in Philippines or 38% • Art direction and key animation done in Japan • Filipino animators work on coloring, background, and camera works

40. Outsourcing and wages • According to 2005 study of animators in Japan • Average Work day: 10.2 hours • Estimated: 250 hours per month • 26.8% make less than 1million yen a year (approx. $10,000) • 38.2% make from 1million to 3 million ($10,000 to $30,000)

41. More Stats • 80% of in-between animators are paid by quantity with each drawing averaging 186.9 yen, close to $2 • Wages currently being offered after much outsourcing

42. Toei Developments • 1996 • Introduction of Celsys’ RETAS, a digital ink and paint program • All productions digitally inked and painted • Currently is in the process of eliminating all paper and pencils from the studio

43. In Contrast, Studio Ghibli • Hayao Miyazaki insists on using traditional hand drawn techniques • Exceptions: Princess Mononoke • Some digital animation for the movement of the creatures etc. • For the first time some of the drawings painted digitally to keep with release deadlines

44. Miyazaki • “It’s very important for me to retain the right ratio between working by hand and computer. I have learned that balance now, how to use both and still be able to call my films 2D.”

45. More on Miyazaki • Newest film Ponyo Cliff by the Sea, went back to all hand drawn, summer 2008 • All of his work has been in house production