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The Anime Economy - Part 1: Let's Make An Anime!

In the end, it doesn't make much sense to say what level of first release DVD sales are required for a general "breakeven" for the series rights as a whole without knowing both (1) the production budget and (2) what share of costs the DVD sales have to cover. That's why isolated pieces of industry insider information can easily be misleading ~ if series "X" sold so many thousand and broke even, that does not tell us as much as we would wish it to unless we also know if its production costs were at, above or below industry averages and whether its flow of revenues other than DVD royalties were at, above or below industry averages.

A very interesting and informative article. I can't wait for the rest of the series.

One thing I have a question about is:

Quote:

Most of the grunt work is now done in third world countries across Asia

What third world countries? I know a lot of work is outsourced to South Korea. However SK is far from third world.
Thanks for the great read!

These will now be the "go to" pieces for people to prove their points and disprove another's.

Next time, we'll take a look at how DVD sales, both in Japan and abroad, can be the most important factor in a show's success.

What third world countries? I know a lot of work is outsourced to South Korea. However SK is far from third world.
Thanks for the great read!

I'm hoping this was more of an intro to basic ideas and part 2 will make a distinction between the children's and late-night markets (both within Japan and their respective overseas licensing/markets).

Wow, this is timely! I was just looking into this topic recently and was coming up short on the Japanese animation side of things, (no doubt heavily due to the language barrier. Hard to find this kinda info in English.) Very informative article, looking forward to the next two parts!

Vaguely related, I don't suppose anyone reading knows the best/most up-to-date books on animation production and the business side/process of it in the U.S.? (I have a couple of David Levy's already, but they're more anecdotal. Still, something in that vein that's up-to-date.)

Vaguely related, I don't suppose anyone reading knows the best/most up-to-date books on animation production and the business side/process of it in the U.S.? (I have a couple of David Levy's already, but they're more anecdotal. Still, something in that vein that's up-to-date.)

Justin Sevakis wrote:

Next time, we'll take a look at how DVD sales, both in Japan and abroad, can be the most important factor in a show's success.

To those who argued against that point, attempting to twist and completely distort reality: what's that nagging phrase said after a person has warned another of some possibility or potential occurrence in the past, that has actually come to pass/been substantiated?

Oh, yeah! I told you so.

::sigh::

He's saying a show--as in some--not all shows. Justin can correct me of course, but I presume he will illustrate how foreign licensing can help or even make the unprofitable now profitable. But to imply as if every show is designed for or that the production committee must target a foreign audience, is also an attempt to distort reality.

How would you explain the discrepancies of what sells and what doesn't that continuously and regularly occur between the Japanese market and the foreign market for the same titles?

Wow, this is timely! I was just looking into this topic recently and was coming up short on the Japanese animation side of things, (no doubt heavily due to the language barrier. Hard to find this kinda info in English.) Very informative article, looking forward to the next two parts!

Vaguely related, I don't suppose anyone reading knows the best/most up-to-date books on animation production and the business side/process of it in the U.S.? (I have a couple of David Levy's already, but they're more anecdotal. Still, something in that vein that's up-to-date.)

... Also while still at Universal, I heard from a Japanese company I'd actually contacted in 2002 about looking for Western writers for a new show they were developing, based off an Internet ad. The premise looked cute, but I didn't know if I could handle the comedy, but I decided to try. The result was writing not one, but FIVE scripts for the company (two with my creative partner and longtime beau, Kevin Paul Shaw Broden), to then be translated back into Japanese. The show, Midnight Horror School, began airing in October of 2003 on Hiroshima TV. This, at last, proved to be my dream of being an animation writer realized!

You've written for series such as Voltron, which was recrafted for an American audience by removing or re-editing sequences, and series such as Cowboy Bebop, for which minimal editing is done. Can you elaborate on the joys and challenges of each?

... Gargoyles began as a notion Greg explored with his development team.
... While a supervising producer on Gargoyles (see Part One) Greg began to attend the voice recording sessions. ... Greg transitioned to voice directing while on Gargoyles.
... Greg's big opportunity came when a former USC student, Jonathan Klein, asked him to voice direct a new English adaptation of the Japanese series 3x3 Eyes

But to imply as if every show is designed for or that the production committee must target a foreign audience, is also an attempt to distort reality.

Quote:

In other cases, a media company will set about creating a new original work that can potentially make money in any number of ways: a popular show can be used to sell toys and model kits, or perhaps the company is really trying to sell a card game (like with Yu-Gi-Oh!). More often, their goal is to simply sell as many DVDs as possible.

So this explains why the show FREEDOM, at times, felt like a rather expensive instant soup commercial to me.