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INTEREST: Erotic Manga Artist Who Left Company Describes Poor Pay, Rejection


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LagannImpact



Joined: 03 Apr 2009
Posts: 574
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 11:52 am Reply with quote
I know this is about erotic manga, not anime, but this is why people pirate fansubs and then turn around and give directly to artists--they believe they are paid inequitably for their work by their employers. They want to directly support the artists, not the management. Also why we millennials and the next generation need to bring about a worldwide directive that management and shareholders always get paid last after workers make a comfortable living wage--an end to "trickle down" economics, and the beginning of "rise up" economics!

Last edited by LagannImpact on Sun Aug 26, 2018 10:20 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Reibubba



Joined: 20 Sep 2015
Posts: 29
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 12:09 pm Reply with quote
I could launch into a diatribe on work-life balance but I won't. I have however been in a similar position to Canned in the past and believe me it is not a nice place to be.

It's a shame that a lot of very talented manga artists (hentai or otherwise) are on such poor pay conditions. A pity really as even though I've not seen any of Canned's art before I do really like the art style.

Maybe digital distribution is the way forward, that way the author at least gets a fair cut (seems to be working for Fakku as it stands). Then again you have to make sure the work is available across the board and that will always be an issue with ero art.
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your fly is down



Joined: 14 Jan 2018
Posts: 27
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 12:38 pm Reply with quote
It genuinely amazes me how erotic manga/anime artists have some of the most detailed artwork i have ever seen. Like this stuff is on level with ancient roman and greek sculpture accuracy of the human body (besides the whole anime face thing) like how these artists are able to draw such detailed erotica is beyond me and i think all artists with amazing skill deserve recognition, erotic and all.
So sad to see someone with so much magic in their hands be kicked down by the companies that support them.
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DigitalScratch





PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 12:39 pm Reply with quote
I recognize this artist. Or more like I’ve seen his doujins before. Erotica or not, his work is impressive and I like his anatomy and style. Which is why it saddens me to hear that he and so many other artists in the industry are being mistreated like this.

I’m not skilled enough to warrant being called an artist like these people are, but I can say without a doubt that like any job out there, illustrating can more than often feel thankless. You spend hours upon hours trying to get everything right and please the masses or your employer, but there’s no guarantee they’re going to like it. And if they don’t like it, you have to repeat the process again, and you won’t get paid until you get it right.

Once drawing becomes a job, it feels like you’re taking a risk with everything you produce. At least that’s how it is for me. Some work better under the pressure or have the speed to work with it. But most aren’t equipped like that. And the solution isn’t as easy as “get better,” art isn’t something where you can just suck it up and improve on the spot. .

Point is, I know Japan has a very strict working culture but this treatment is just awful. It isn’t just enough that his editorial company isn’t paying him properly but they also pretty much insulted him by not allowing him to work with other companies. I wouldn’t be surprised if stuff like this are the reason some Japanese artists are turning to freelance and hubs like Patreon for money because I couldn’t put up with conditions either without falling deeper into clinical depression.
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DigitalScratch





PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 12:45 pm Reply with quote
your fly is down wrote:
Like this stuff is on level with ancient roman and greek sculpture accuracy of the human body (besides the whole anime face thing) like how these artists are able to draw such detailed erotica is beyond me and i think all artists with amazing skill deserve recognition, erotic and all.


This! This right here! You have no idea how much this is true. In my opinion, it takes a lot more skill to be a successful erotic artist than any other, in the word of fan content. Because not only do you have to be good at anatomy, you have to be good at making it look appealing. Even the most skilled artists can suck at drawing something erotic because they lack the proper knowledge in how flesh and muscle looks under clothes.

So it really annoys me when people use “they draw porn” to denounce an artists’ skill. Is drawing porn professional? Depending on their job, it may not be. But does that make them less of an artist? Absolutely not. Especially when said erotica is actually really good. Of course the context of what porn they draw is important too. But that’s a whole other story.
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Omu



Joined: 17 Mar 2015
Posts: 18
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 12:46 pm Reply with quote
LagannImpact wrote:
I know this is about erotic manga, not anime, but this is why people pirate fansubs and then turn around and give directly to artists--they believe they are paid inequitably for their work by their employers.

Sorry, but people pirate anime and manga because then they are free and they don't have to pay anything. Not even 1% of the people who pirate anime or manga are giving anything to the artists.
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Cutiebunny



Joined: 18 Apr 2010
Posts: 1748
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 1:03 pm Reply with quote
Omu wrote:
Sorry, but people pirate anime and manga because then they are free and they don't have to pay anything. Not even 1% of the people who pirate anime or manga are giving anything to the artists.


I pirate manga because lots of stuff isn’t going to ever be released here, and I give back to artists all the time. I’ve dropped stupid amounts on Kickstarters that support various mangaka, doujinka or eroge artists, as well as giving money directly to artists as well. While I’m sure that the majority of people don’t directly pay artists, there are some of us that do.

I also have been a paid premium Crunchyroll member for years, but like buying manga, there’s no way to know how much of that purchase makes it’s way to the creators, and how much of it is absorbed by the company to pay its costs and as profit.
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Redbeard 101
Oscar the Grouch
Forums Superstar


Joined: 14 Aug 2006
Posts: 16939
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 1:05 pm Reply with quote
This is not going to turn into a debate on pirating. So let's keep it on topic please.
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Levitz9



Joined: 06 Feb 2007
Posts: 1022
Location: Puerto Rico
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 1:23 pm Reply with quote
I really do feel for this guy. So yeah, I'm gonna agree with some of the previous posters: erotic mangaka really don't get enough credit for the art they can pull off. I've been reading the stuff for eleven years, and a lot of these artists do some amazing stuff. Yamatogawa has amazing anatomy, Carnelian can make some incredibly appealing characters, Jouji Manabe has a knack for pulpy sci-fi worlds. And every so often, one of these artists will cross over into non-erotic work, like Koume Keito with the Spice and Wolf manga or Tosh (or rather, Shun Saeki) with Food Wars.

Sure, it can get annoying when these artists either get pigeonholed or pigeonhole themselves. ShindoL does good work, but can barely make anything that isn't mindbreak, like. And Kisarai Gunma can only draw two faces (one for men, one for women). But they do good work. And they don't deserve to live off of freaking $700 per month.

A few months ago, that one artist Gujira was despairing over how [mods said not to talk about this, so I won't]. Fakku did the guy a solid and brought his volume stateside. I hope this artist gets something similar.
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vision33r



Joined: 27 Oct 2008
Posts: 90
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 1:29 pm Reply with quote
You make more money if you create an App then publish on the app and get paid that way.
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MetalEmolga



Joined: 12 Jan 2017
Posts: 14
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 1:56 pm Reply with quote
your fly is down wrote:
It genuinely amazes me how erotic manga/anime artists have some of the most detailed artwork i have ever seen. Like this stuff is on level with ancient roman and greek sculpture accuracy of the human body (besides the whole anime face thing) like how these artists are able to draw such detailed erotica is beyond me and i think all artists with amazing skill deserve recognition, erotic and all.
So sad to see someone with so much magic in their hands be kicked down by the companies that support them.


It's ridiculous that someone that talented can have their work just dismissed while vastly inferior artists get published every day. I feel this is a case of cronyism.

Quote:
This! This right here! You have no idea how much this is true. In my opinion, it takes a lot more skill to be a successful erotic artist than any other, in the word of fan content. Because not only do you have to be good at anatomy, you have to be good at making it look appealing. Even the most skilled artists can suck at drawing something erotic because they lack the proper knowledge in how flesh and muscle looks under clothes.


Being an artist my self. One of the popular ideas held by a lot of artists. Is that it is easier drawing someone ugly than someone beautiful in part because it's harder to balance out the amount of detail for attractive characters without them looking fake.
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LvlfiveShipper





PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 2:02 pm Reply with quote
You can tell with the tweets and the editors' words that they wanted to keep him/her (this might as well apply to many artist anyway) with low self-esteem in order to keep him in check, this is a sick tactic "You're not good enough to survive elsewhere" "you're not popular to reach more people" "We will accept some of your work... you should be thankful" so I bet that even when their work is good enough, they will be declined once in a while randomly just to make them feel that they're barely worth to the company and that they can be replaced easily.

These artist deserve to know how much talent they really have, how good they really are and how can they shine on their own, I already tweeted my support (using translator), thanks to Yaraon and ANNs for shinning some light in these events, just to think how many great artist out there are crying in silence considering ending their life for choosing to become an artist in a wrong environment breaks my heart, as an artist myself, seeing someone with more talent being treated like this is awful.

If this becomes viral, more artist over there will gain some confidence to try and reach their fans directly, but is not easy, not with these shady companies keeping them in check.
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Shaterri



Joined: 03 Jan 2008
Posts: 173
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 2:33 pm Reply with quote
It's also not directly related to the story, but I wanted to emphasize how much I appreciate ANN posting both the warning and the suicide hotline number on articles like this - it may seem like a small gesture but I've seen what a difference it can make for some people. A big thank you to all the staff who pushed for this and those who take the time to do it.
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Furuzaki



Joined: 11 Jan 2016
Posts: 105
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 2:47 pm Reply with quote
Cutiebunny wrote:
I’ve dropped stupid amounts on Kickstarters that support various mangaka, doujinka or eroge artists, as well as giving money directly to artists as well.


Kickstarter doesn't really support Japanese creators. It's western people doing the projects. Not to mention most "manga" on Kickstarter is non-japanese, just Comics. The only serious doujinshi project on kickstarter were by DMP (Project H).

Would be better to simply use Fakku. Since they do support Japanese creators.
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Kruszer



Joined: 19 Nov 2004
Posts: 7985
Location: Minnesota, USA
PostPosted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 4:01 pm Reply with quote
If I were him/her I would quit that company and work for another magazine, preferably one of it's biggest rivals. No need to stay where you're not appreciated and properly compensated.

Last edited by Kruszer on Sun Aug 26, 2018 4:06 pm; edited 1 time in total
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