Anime studios widen CG, digital workflow use
Plus: Kadokawa raises key publishing target; CyberAgent recruits veteran producer for first studio hire; GKIDS acquisition price tag; and more
This is your weekly Animenomics briefing, covering the business of anime and manga. Today is Wednesday, January 15, 2025.
In case you missed it: Los Angeles is singularly “driving the global growth of anime”, says anime industry consultant Rob Pereyda.
Pereyda, who previously led the anime business at Crunchyroll and Netflix, says devastating wildfires in Los Angeles have put a spotlight on the region’s vital role in anime and the broader entertainment industry.
Sony debuts modeling software to aid 3D CG production
Sony said at the annual Consumer Electronics Show that it’s developing software that can convert real-world objects and environments into highly detailed 3D computer graphics models using a 2D camera, aiding film, anime, and video game development.
Why it matters: Sony’s investments in “spatial content” comes amid rapidly growing demand for 3D CG work in the anime industry as studios accelerate the introduction of digital workflows in anime production.
Catch up quick: Surveys conducted by the Association of Japanese Animations for its annual anime industry report found that anime studios are investing in digital tools even as some animators continue to draw on paper.
Whereas training for drawing on paper can take five years, animators using CG animation can often be trained in one to two years.
Zoom in: Layouts, blueprint drawings that serve as the bridge between storyboards and key animation frames, are one area where studios are using more 3D CG models.
“3D CG’s disadvantage is that it takes a long time to create, but once it’s created, you can mass-produce images taken from various angles, so it’s effective for backgrounds that appear multiple times,” former OLM Digital background artist Katsumi Takao, who worked on The Apothecary Diaries, told CGWORLD magazine last year.
OLM Digital CG production manager Noboru Murakami told the magazine that out of the 250 cuts that make up an average episode of The Apothecary Diaries, roughly 200 use 3D models in their layouts.
The bigger picture: As previously reported by Animenomics, some manga artists are also embracing Blender and other 3D CG tools like Unreal Engine to create detailed environments and prop designs.
Yes, but: 3D CG production involves large capital investments by studios for software and hardware upgrades, and the cost of those investments have increased in recent years because of the yen’s weak exchange rate against the United States dollar.
This makes Blender popular among CG studios because the open-source software is free to use, lowering production expenses in the cost-conscious anime industry, the AJA said in the anime industry report.
Kadokawa accelerates publishing after Sony investment
Publishing giant Kadokawa will raise its 2027–2028 target of 7,000 volumes of content published annually to 9,000 volumes, chief executive officer Takeshi Natsuno told the Nikkei financial newspaper this week.
Why it matters: Kadokawa’s move to raise its publishing target reflects new optimism in the company’s business following a ¥50 billion (US$320 million) investment by Sony that was completed last week.
What’s happening: Natsuno told the Nikkei that Kadokawa expects to achieve its old target in the 2025–2026 fiscal year, two years earlier than expected.
The company’s publishing division also plans to increase the number of editors to 1,000, about 40 percent more than today’s headcount, to meet the new target.
Kadokawa’s most recent earnings results presentation in November reported that manga publishing is up 47 percent since the 2020–2021 fiscal year.
Rewind: Kadokawa set the original 7,000-volume target in late 2023, at the same time when it announced ambitious investments in anime production.
What we’re watching: Content originating from outside Japan make up 1 percent of Kadokawa’s published works today, but Natsuno wants to increase that ratio to 2–3 percent over the next decade.
As previously reported by Animenomics, Kadokawa’s recent expansion into places like Southeast Asia, Europe, and Taiwan is expected to create a need for more content translated between languages in the company.
Clippings: CyberAgent recruits Bandai anime producer
CyberAgent has recruited Masakazu Ogawa, a veteran anime producer of studios Sunrise and Bandai Namco Filmworks, to lead the digital advertising group’s new anime studio subsidiary CA Soa. (Anime! Anime!)
Why it matters: Creation of the studio, along with the acquisition of visual novel developer Nitroplus last year, brings CyberAgent closer to achieving its vision of diversifying to anime IP creation.
Tokushima’s popular Machi Asobi anime festival will hold its first event since 2023 in May after being reorganized under new management and shifting to primarily private sponsorship. (NHK Tokushima)
Rewind: As previously reported by Animenomics, Machi Asobi’s future had come into question after Tokushima Prefecture’s newly-elected governor balked at the event’s ¥80 million (US$510,000) price tag in government subsidies.
China's consumer market of toys and collectibles tied to the anime, comics, games, and novels sector grew 41 percent last year to CN¥169 billion (US$23 billion) as young consumers splurge amid an economic downturn. (South China Morning Post)
Streaming service Bilibili announced last month a slate of 43 new works of Chinese animation funded by the company, more than a quarter of them original titles not adapted from any existing property. (Xinhua)
South Korea’s webtoon market climbed 20 percent to a record ₩2.2 trillion (US$1.5 billion) in 2023, but the Korea Creative Content Agency also estimates that damages from piracy reached ₩446 billion (US$305 million). (The Korea Herald)
Dallas-based Heritage Auctions will appraise animation cels and manga manuscripts owned by Japanese collectors this weekend in preparation for the sixth edition of its anime art auction in March. (Press release)
1 number to go: GKIDS price tag in acquisition by Toho
Toho paid an estimated US$140 million to acquire New York-based animation film distributor GKIDS in October, according to the film production giant’s third quarter consolidated financial results reported yesterday.
Why it matters: It makes the GKIDS acquisition the latest nine-figure deal involving a major North American anime distribution business.
Rewind: Sony paid US$143 million for a 95 percent stake in anime distributor Funimation Productions in 2017, then US$1.175 billion for Crunchyroll in 2021.
No price was revealed for the 2022 acquisition of Sentai Filmworks and streaming provider HIDIVE by AMC Networks.
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Woah! If the GKIDS acquisition price is true I’ve got to say it is a staggering accomplishment for the company’s founders and owners. Wow! Congratulations GKIDS team. Well deserved and well earned.
Thanks for the mention and great find in the Toho GKIDS filing!