Many of the actual artists used for video material in this video are independent and satisfied animators within the industry, unrelated to much of the actual content of the video. They have been used largely for background visuals and illustrative purposes rather than as an explicit example of the many suffering artists out there. Thanks to Archipel for many of the clips I used for this video; check out their channel for a variety of incredible videos and interviews with some of Japan's most renowned and genuine artists. ruclips.net/user/ArchipelDocks
Where can I find these animators? I'm expanding my media business and would love to hire some of these animators at a higher rate. Been searching but can't find where to look.
People think art isn’t worth money, the thing is artists are highly skilled workers. It’s not a hobby, it’s not a talent. It’s gruesome, tiresome work, and we treat the artists like absolute SH*T while being all to happy to consume their creations
Kyoto Animation paid their talent a living wage and trained them up with a good work life balance. They were having a great impact on the industry. It's very sad an evil person did the unthinkable. I hope the spirit of Kyoto Animation will live on forever.
As a fellow artist who went to school to become an animator, I have the utmost respect for them all! My professor told me to change my major from animation to something else. Anything else. I planned on working for Disney/Pixar, but they fired a ton of employees and lowered wages when I was one year away from graduation. I'm grateful that he warned me and I listened. I could have never lived that kind of life while burnout was consuming my passion! To all those that are animators, thank you and better times are to come!!
@@deedee-lg9zo I ended up becoming a design generalist. I ended up designing 3D point of purchase stands and 3D trade show booth designs. I also do graphic design as well. So I ended up being a jack of all trades so to speak. 🙂
why it's hard to get into Disney/Pixar if what you say is true, and I've friend who work with biggest studio at Tokyo and she said they got paid just enough, the only complain from her, she said others employees doesn't talk with each other in studio, that's all. But she not complaining about money, she said just enough to survive and live in big city
I am a comic artist and graphic designer myself who was dreaming of being able to draw animation like the Japanese anime; I watched Anime since 1994; however, I never thought the life work of an animator in Japan is that miserable! I always thought of them like highly-paid professionals due to the worldwide distribution of Anime & Manga! Thanks for such an enlightening video, and the other one about Manga artists too.
@@gojosensei6501 American movies suffer also from piracy .. but that doesn't mean the American animators or actors are paid less because the movies later will suffer from piracy once they are in theater; still, I am amazed how poorly-paid the Japanese animators are, although they are very-skillful and way above the American illustrators and comic artists .. in terms of story, lines and directing the scenes
Know, there is other underground companies around the world who are probably more patient, highly supportive, of making a animator’s dream come true, i believe there is something beautiful to have hands we’ve worked years on and why shouldn’t we deserve a wonderful thing? Like Ghibli Studios... there’s an artist who made all those backgrounds and simple characters, look so darn good! It really takes a lot of energy in this lifetime to burn, but we have choice to do it or not and we sure as well can make it become real!!!!!!
Quite frankly if the Japanese government is aware of this problem of unfair wages and poor work hours in the studios. Then they need to take action without having workers ask for it. Anime and Manga are some of the biggest economic resources for the nation of Japan. The world loves it and are willing to pay to get it. So pay the artists what they deserve for their wonderful art!
Hmm!...animators need to all be on one page, form a union....then threaten a work stoppage/strike if reasonable demands aren't met. Animators union in the the states did just that!
@@fairymairahit often is not on the capitals interest to benefit the workers. in a capitalist society the bare minimum we can do is rely/put pressure on the government to create worker laws
I'm an animation student who aspires to be an animator but because of this reason, I am now leaning more into just becoming an illustrator. The hardwork from every staffs of an anime is what makes me feel really mad against people who just complains about everything. Even the tiniest mistakes, they will complain not knowing or just straight up ignoring how hard it is to even make a 24 minute animation.
you will definitely have it easier in other countries than japan, but being able to do multiple thing will definitely help, don't abandon animation tho !
"You get what you pay for" is what i've always belive for the longest time. But with anime & manga, i got way more than i can ever give back. Honestly, can't thank this amazing people enough
I'm worry for Japan animator. Their passion is why they willing to overwork for a trash pay just to create something they love. And their work inspire more people, give them the passion to continue this cycle. The only people who benefit from this are their boss who don't feel the need to pay them more because their Passion pay themselves. Passion in japan is like a trap now.
Hope they get better laboral conditions and even a higher pay if it's possible. They deserve more knowing how popular and succesful anime is, inside and outside Japan.
My brother is aiming to become an animator and he even wants to go to Japan to work there. But after watching this, I'm scared for his health and future. I totally don't want to ruin his mental image and dream of being an animator, but I want him to be aware of this cruel reality.
@@tiongxuchuah7497 Well he's joining the course to learn animating. And he's devoted to do this job. So we will support him. Thanks for your concern though.😊
Watching this made me think of Demon Slayer and how the Mangaka (Koyoharu Gotouge) did not get paid well. The movie broke records in Japan and even the anime has had a lot of viewership in Japan and worldwide via Netflix and Crunchyroll. But her pay was low. The animators working on that probably didn't get paid as much from the movie. I just wonder where is all the money going? Is it being used for next projects or to fund current ones? With Disney or any American/European studio, every person gets paid well for any animated series, and there is still enough money for new projects. The situation in Japan needs to change because they give the best art and animation out of every country in the world and they don't get the recognition or money for their work.
This was my dream job for a long time until I found out about the harsh conditions. I hope it gets better for all the Japanese animators out there, they deserve so much more since there job is incredibly hard.
The sad thing I see is that when people love an anime, most of the time, they praise the animation (Violet Evergarden, Mushoku Tensei, Link Click, etc.), but when a series is bad with their story and characters, even if the animation is "good" or "great", it is never really appreciated (Examples: Darling in the Franx, SAO, I could go on). I remember people complaining about the filler episode in MHA season 5, and the animation being "bad", and while I have noticed a shot of one of the characters being a little off-model, there were still many shots of smooth animation, (the shot of the dragon flying being one of them). Granted, story and animation are separate and I understand that whatever happened behind the scenes, that should not, in cases, affect how the consumer views the product. People are allowed to have opinions. A bad anime in their eyes will still remain bad to some people even if they know what happened behind the production. But I feel as if animation with sakuga is now expected to be the bare minimum or that people will call an animation bad and leave it like that without giving a reason. I am a beginner at animation, so I know how hard it is. You have to storyboard, layout, do in between frames, line art, and on top of that, make sure it's consistent. So if you want to support animators, I recommend checking out the Animator Dormitory Project. Also, anime are made by youtubers as well so I recommend checking out Sempai Club Hikari~be my light and Super Clockwork Hero. Both are short and won't take your time. (Sry this was long, I just really like animation)
I fell in love with anime only just recently. This video and the one about mangakas just broke my heart. Seeing the fruits of their labour, just how much energy and life and soul they put into their craft, yet they make less than a McDonald's worker, who requires no extraordinary skill. This video has been released a year ago, and I sincerely hope at least something is changing.
Hi, this is the second time you are using some of our footage in your videos, after the one on "The Sad truth of Being A Manga Artist". While we didn't say anything the first time, we find it regrettable that: - You haven't asked for authorization to use our footage. - The footage you are using does not depict your subject. In the mangaka video, you have used footage from our portrait of Shinichi Sakamoto, who is nowhere near being in a struggling situation with his work. Likewise, in this video you are using footage from our portrait of Koji Yamamura, who is in a similar case, non-struggling and proud of his independent status. We won't be doing any claim as what has been done is done, but please ask us for authorization for any use of our footage in your future videos, and please add a credit mention in this video and a mention that the footage you are using is simply for illustration purposes & that it does not reflect of the actual situation of these creators. Thank you.
Deepest apologies. It was unprofessional on my part to use video content of yours, especially in a manner that have been misleading when describing the message of the video which was unrelated to the actual video content. I will add this to the description to the video, include your channel as video credits during the appropriate scenes, and add a pinned comment mentioning as a form of apology/credit; likewise, going forward I will try not to use your content. And if I do, I will only do so after a) asking permission, and b) making sure it pertains to the video content and is completely appropriate. Once again, I am sorry. I didn't intend to use your content in any misleading shape nor disrespect the artists you interviewed. Thank you for being so considerate, and I will certainly be more cautious going forward with both your channel and my other peers on RUclips.
When ever I watch anime or any type of animation. I always think about the artist and their craft that they put so much effort too. Every details, lines, shadows and lights are made with passion, sweat and hard works. Seeing this video makes me appreciate the artist animation more than ever. Even if it's not perfect.
Nothing but respect for anyone in the animation industry, for Japan especially where the work culture is a crazy, intense, and exhausting grind. The passion that animators have for their work is a truly beautiful thing. Great vid as always man.🤝
Thanks for shedding light to this subject, anime was an escape for me when i was depressed, and the people who helped me get through hard times are going through tougher times themselves, i hope this video gets more views so people can spread this heartbreaking video
If I can remember correctly, Hayao Miyazaki worked too hard on the job that later caused a wound between him and his son Goro. He admitted he was wrong and can be seen in a documentary him trying to subtly bond with his son by trying to give some jelly beans (I don't remember if it was Jelly beans). Like in your previous video on Mangakas, these animators need to work hard to deliver as fast as possible. Once they stop and take a rest, people immediately forget the anime and move to the next dopamine inducing media they can find. We people today are considered subliterate; we don't leisurely take the time to appreciate and empathize art, and art becomes debased. Like great Mangaka Naoki Urasawa said, "If we take the time to read longer, wouldn't reading Manga be more fun?" I felt bad for Kentaro Miura when people made fun of him for releasing a Berserk Chapter for too long in between chapters as people accused him of having an Anime Loli addiction. Well that's horse pucky of course, the man was tired and sick at the time, yet he delivered one of the greatest artwork no one can do but him. I got to tell you man, people just want to feel good all the time and look down upon artists, yet they seek artwork to please themselves.
This just makes me appreciate the mangakas and animators more because they will literally work themselves to death just to create something amazing for their fans to love and enjoy
Japan animation has been around for over 70 years & is still going strong. The people who make this really deserve some respect and support just like the manga artists, creators & authors do. But even this kind of work couldn't be rushed. Plus they should get 8 hours of sleep, higher payment & vacations. Even they deserve to take care of their health & must never be taken for granted. They give us great entertainment all around the world in any global language. Remember the anime movie "Spirited Away" that won an Oscar for best Animated Feature Film. So to all of you Japan animators of legends & of today, thank you, try not to work so hard & let's keep anime alive, even for the next generation.
Just discovered your channel a while ago and great video man! Hopefully the animators get their due as you can really see the effort they put in day in and day out.
I used to work as a traditional animator more than 20 years ago, after so many years of work and working hard making cool animations i couldn't make enough savings for retirement, i still love traditional animation but if i had the choice, i would have choosed another career, being young blind you from calculating what it will be when you are above 50s and unable to do the same things you used to do, and you have a family that still needs you, my advice to young animators is look around you and see how many over 40s are still doing traditional animation, you won't find, if you are for example a football player, at the age of 35 you will mostly had made it enough to retire
I worked in the middle east in some major animation companies, with close to100 artists in a company, now all the animation industry in my country moved to 2d bone based digital animation and less than 10 artists in a company
Very few still doing traditional animation as a freelancers just for commercials now and then but the work is few most of the traditional animators moved to another type of work
Animators, comic artist, illustrators, fine artist etc, are the most skilled, disciplined, creative individuals I have ever seen and they would all be millionaires if the world made any sense.
The journey is no doubt hard to be an animator. Inelastic supply aside, they deserve better for their service. They give a good part of their life away and in turn enhance the lives of anime fans across the globe with their work. More money needs to flow into the industry. Unfortunately there's a lot of piracy. With less of that maybe then Animators could get more money coming their way.
Its not that companies aren't getting the money they need, its that the companies have all the leverage, and can thus pay the animators as close to a starvation wage as is possible. The solution is either more unionization, worker control or a overhaul of the IP system so animators don't need to work with these big studio's.
It's really sad to think that many great works, that changed many lifes and give us a spark of happiness in each episode, are made of so much inhuman and unfair ways. I know that this is, in some cases, a choose of them. But I hope, deeply in my heart, that all of the artists in the world have good labor conditions to keep doing what they love.
am just a 15y old highschool student who wanted to be an animator and manga artist in the future and after many people and many vids say "being an artist isnt going to give u that much money" YES IK! IK IT WONT GIVE ME HAPPINESS THAT I WANT sometimes i even worry bout my own career but still drawing is my passion and ill keep aiming to reach my dream even tho its a path of thorns
I’ve always heard about this and I feel so bad for these guys man it’s bull sh*t that anyone should put up with that nonsense over here in America we have a lot going on they would have a better opportunity to be a animator over here Japan is so controversial with these types of things that’s why as an animator myself I will always appreciate and understand these guys here because I know what it’s like to work so hard for someone or something to entertain others but behind your stressed out that should. Be a lesson to all man it’s crazy
Exactly, can’t wait for Netflix to slowly steal the anime monopoly from Japan and hopefully fund and pay thier team of artists and animators what they deserve.. cause if Japan isn’t careful they will lose what makes them great as even anime will become westernized by 2040 or even earlier
This topic always breaks my heart. Anime have brought me so much joy and inspiration since I was a kid, and it still do now. I only wish those who create them could have a life full of joy too.
These animators need justice and need to be under someone who cares about them. It is so sad that their company takes advantage of them. drawing is never easy and it's worse when you have to draw the same pictures billion times just to make them move. As someone who is terrible at drawing and loves watching anime, I respect all animators. Bless their souls and hope their company is kind to them.
According to Marc Elliot biography od Walt Disney : Walt was an Inventor of cheap, mostly Slave work, because he hired mostly students of Art, and every tallented animator when asked for a better salary, was kicked out from Animation Studio. And Disney was one of the first Studio, which outsourced in 80's works in other countries : Korea, Japan, Australia because there was cheap workforce (when we compare it to US salaries). It's enough to check credits list when movie comes to an end. Sad, but true. But as was mentioned in your material : this ist their choice. Thank you.
It’s so sad that for something that brings so much hope and joy in this life, the people that make it possible have such extreme violations. They definitely deserve more
It is up to the fans to pressure animation studios to stop abusing their animators. In the end, it is because of them that animators work under extreme pressure.
On one side they realize their dream everyday, on the other hand they are exhausted by the amount of work they have to produce. It's tough, but I would gladly overwork myself for my dream as well, that's all I can say. (Being a full-time writer I mean)
$38/day?!? I’ve always wanted to be an Japanese Animator going on 20+ years now & I always knew pay and labor was bad but not to this extreme. I do draw for a living and honestly there has been times I’ve made $38 (sometimes not even that) but on a consistent basis that’s no way to live. Im so blessed and this video has humbled me so much
If I had some wishes, I would certainly wish for all animators to be paid slightly more than other jobs, expanding anime culture further and likely even outside of Japan way more than today
I think after watching this I think it makes me appreciate art even more on how much hard work they put in to adding the frames, the background, the characters etc im just proud that I came this far as an Otaku but I don't think that burning passion of watching anime is within me anymore idk why which is kinda sad honestly...
The work behind each episode is insane, and these people are worked to the bone and barely earn enough to survive. The anime industry is like a ticking bomb, one day it'll explode because the conditions these people work in are awful. You really have to appreciate any kind of animation when you know what happens behind the scenes
Bruh anime really inspire me a lot and after seeing behind the anime i mostly watch inspire me more and makes me more DETERMINED to join them even thoe it's hellish job. Even thoe I'm not a japanese....
My dream was always to become an animator in Japan but now I'm rethinking of it that barely get paid and they deserve more than they get paid art is a skill it's so hard hopefully thinks will get better later
I'm not nearly as talented/skilled as these anime-artists, but I am passionate and I realized it isn't really a choice to work in animation if that's the only work you have a drive for and everything else makes you horribly depressed. If it truly was a choice, nobody would choose it, because of the horrible working-conditions alone. Anime is a highly-valuable artform and it is beyond messed up that the masterful artists making them get shit-pay for it. Greatness should be encouraged and financed, and there's plenty of greatness in anime.
For more senior animators things are not much like what the video said. First most animators want to work on different projects so they rather not to be fully employed to keep the right to choose what they want to participate. Second, usually production companied pay a certain amont of money usually no less than 100000 jpy ( if you are more experience you get more sometimes 300000 to 600000) to make sure the animator will fully or at least make time for their projects. It's called "kousoku". Third, the population of youn animators are declining because of lack of passion and not payed enough or low birth rate ,etc, so the japanese aniamtion industry is suffering not only finacially. For young animators The first 3 years for them are more like educational years. Most of the Know Hows can not been obtained from school so they have to catch up a lot of informations during working on real projects. I do agree there need to be a healthier system to support young animators to fit in the industry quickly but the production company is not making most of the money so they couldn't provide more otherwise the company will be in danger of not making enough money. So where does the money goes? Ask the publishers.
And also I don't understand how the artists draw erotic content in animes. I mean I wouldn't be able to draw all that. I wonder if they are paid high for such portions in anime.
@@An_ony_mous From what I know, animators here in japan have their expertise, some are specialized in action, some in recreate the characters, and some are focuse on hand drawing FXs. Erotic anime has it's own market as adult videos.If the animator's skill is focused on erotic scenes or human nudity (you know what I mean), the producor from that genre will keep them frequently in the erotic production line. Most of the normal animators hates their name to be exposed as stuff on that kind of anime, so fewer animator paticipates, fewer manpower, higher price. But still its anime industry so the price could be higher than normal but not like a life changing price. If you dig deep enough, I suppose you can find out that animation studios makes erotics makes almost only erotics.
Great video ! It does make a good point on a very touchy topic that's been going on for waaay too long. You probably are aware of the Animator's dormitory project, who's trying to make rent more accessible to young animators who just got started in Tokyo. They're doing a great job, and also have a youtube channel to raise awareness on the topic. Also noteworthy is the anime series ShiroBako, which is an anime... about the making of an anime. A little similar on how Bakuman is a manga about the life of being a mangaka, but in the anime industry, with its specific challenges. Now, I wonder how great it would be to have one day an anime docufiction à la Shirobako, but of several different animation industries from all over the world (or at least the big 3, Japan, America, and France), like, having an animator or an animation producer who's going all around the world and tries to work in all the different animation industries, each with their own specificities, so that the audience could compare all the conditions. If such a show existed, it might open the eyes of a lot of Japanese young animators who would see just how screwed they are compared to the rest of world, and start raising their voices as a whole. Another thing that might help is to try and have some open discussions and lectures between professionals and highschool students who want to enter the industry who are not shying away from the financial and hardwork realities of teh industry, and how to avoid falling into these pitfalls right from the get-go, instead of mindlessly falling into the classic trap of "but I'm doing it for my passion", which not only undercuts themselves, but the entire industry as a whole as well.
This is one of Japan's darkest sides in the Japanese entertainment industry. It's now 2022 and covid has been delaying, restricting, and cancelling animes. In the other part of animes, one of my favourite female seiyuus, Maaya Uchida got harmed by the covid and now she's fully recovered! This is a sad life of Japanese animators working in many animation production studios in Japan like: J.C. STAFF, TMS Entertainment, and LIDEN FILMS just to name a few. I just saw an article published by Comicbook yesterday and it says this about Ken Akamatsu: Last year, Akamatsu joined voice actor Atsuko Enomoto to discuss problems that the industry is currently facing, with the actor having this to say about the current state of the industry that needs to repaired: "The fees for animation work are too low. We can raise prices, but the reality is that there is dumping going on. Most companies cannot raise prices. Only those who have been performing for a long time and are confident can afford it. We have been asking for an improvement in the working environment, but we know that there is no money for production, so we have been saying for a long time that there might not be any improvement, and we have been wondering what to do."
*As a manga artist, I understand both the 'artist side' and the 'business side'. Although it's true that these amazing Japanese artists should receive higher salaries, we have to remember that a large portion of companies budget goes towards marketing/advertising the manga/anime they produce, which is why the salaries for these artists are lower than expected. Without spending vast amounts of money on advertising, the manga/anime won't sell, and the artists won't have a job. Even if they increase the cost of the manga/anime for the customer, maybe many people won't buy at the higher cost. We have to remember that at the end of the day, it's all business, and the owners of the manga/anime companies can pay lower salaries if the government allows it. This world is not fair (especially in business), and there is much injustice. Just my 2 cents* 🙏😊💖
I know there is another similar video from Asian Boss made 3 years ago, but this also dives into a top animator role salary, work ethic, obligations, and deriving systemic issues revolving around karoshi culture & zealous passion from animators! Thanks for providing further insight on this... TnT
I think the reason why these animators get the short end of the stick is there is always an abundance in supply for young people with the passion to get into this industry. From the company's perspective Profit & Loss will always, always take priority over employee welfare. If there are people who are willing to do the job, it doesn't make sense to just increase the wages of the existing employees. Bosses can afford the "If you don't like the job, then get the F out" attitude To get companies to treat animators more like humans, I think the only way is to create a sudden shortfall of these roles to the point it will cripple the entire anime industry. E.g. animators just quit en-masse. Look at China now, the concept of Lying Flat is getting popular among the younger generation and industries that rely heavily on manpower are not getting enough people to run the factories to the point that the bosses have to go out into the streets to recruit people. If this can happen to the anime industry I believe the wages and benefits of animators will significantly improve
I came across this channel thanks to "The Sad Truth of Being A Manga Artist" video which I really loved. Now, this is another thorough and insightful video. I feel the hard work behind it. Thanks for making such a video.
I am inbetweener/animator at japan branch studios, everyday we got task with one or two days due date depends on how hard the genga(keyframe) is. If the task is hard, we usually finish our task around next morning. Despite the overwork, the unhealthy our lifestyle is, we always try to be positive in our studios. I think one of the reason we dont quit because our colleague always help each other with their task and the studios is always have the positive vibe. atleast that somethin that keep us motivate to stay working there. we always bring joke when our staff got to animated a spoiler scene like Ace got killed in front Luffy scene etc. yes its tiring, but to me its fun to get to animate ur favorite anime. Those who want to achive ur dream to work in these industry dont just give up yet. if ur still young gather as much experience as u can. Try go it first n u will find wat u really want. regret or grateful it all comes later. this is all just based on my opinion n experience workin at japanese studios.
There's no such thing as Evil Corporations. Just small studios fighting each other for a small market. Remember how many shows are shown each season, each one vying for that small TV Ad revenue in the market. Not all studios are like Ghibli, Kyoani or Sunrise. Most of these shows are made by smaller studios run by small production houses with little budget. Most of their earning comes from Ad revenue and Blu-ray sales, hardly any from Merchandise unlike shows in the US (where revenue at TV is always at a lost but gets big merch money).
This is a common catch 22. No one wants to report the abuse cause they'll never get another job in the industry again. Governments can't wait for complaints to come in, in order to do something about this. If there is a violation against labor laws, those must be addressed without the need for someone to stick their neck out. Anything less is just compliance. It's a good thing you're posting this as I'm sure most people have no idea what's going on.
As one of the millions who love Japanese anime, I'm sorry to see such wonderful gifts and talent being shamelessly exploited. Someone should do an expose documentary on the elites who profit most from the billions being made off the sweat equity and creativity of these artists. Include footage and images of the most unethical exploiters coming and going from their ultra-expensive mansions, automobiles and exclusive venues. Or an anime parody of the industry could be effective while keeping production costs lower. Just an idea.
Japanese artist need a reality check, making a proper living is just as important as passionate work. No one will give a sht if you get sick and can't afford to pay healthcare. If you don't have enough for rent/food and many other realities. I know passion for art. I'm an illustrator myself, but this is inhuman. We are human beings not worker ants. I'm not saying the work should change because regardless art will always be hard. But the reward for such hard labor should be fair and worth all the health risks and life sacrifices artists do to create art for others. This systematic issue in japan seems to come from people thinking that an art career is lazy, non-essential, and easy work. ITS BULLSHIT, its hard, time consuming, life fkn consuming. No less competitive, no less hard. It's work, its a career, it is a fkn legit pursuit and should be treated like all others are because at the end of the god dam day its work done for the benefit of everyone and the people who do it shouldn't receive any less than those don't.
im a "douga man" currently on a break watching this. before this i was thinking if i get unalived, this will probably be my personal hell. drawing the same thing again and again as if its never ending. spending hours of my time for one frame. i know im not the best thats why i take so long. and that mindset precisely will be the end of me. we have this thing that if you want to earn more then do better (naturally). but im already in the belly of the beast. i literally have no time anymore to do personal art to improve my skillset. the option i have to improve right now is to keep being a douga man in hopes that i will be better over time. it does work to a degree dont get me wrong. but im also losing time. "passion" is always the thing i keep hearing in this industry. but i also need to eat, provide and spend time with my family. as we grow older, responsibilities start to pile up in our life. now we are conflicted to choose what our priority should be. if i want to start prioritizing other areas of my life, then i'll come off as "not passionate enough" to the industry and will be stuck doing in-between. one moment i focused on work, and my relationships to family and friends and even to myself started to deteriorate immediately. but that issue is present every where i suppose. there was a time when the company i work for was offered to work on a big anime title at a very low cost. most of my co workers were eager to do it just for the prestige of being part of it. maybe i just have a different priority now. what use of my name being in the credits? can i use that to pay hospital bills? i hope so. when i was younger , my dream is to be excellent in this industry, (even now) but life mostly gets in the way. im just giving a little light to show people how its like on the inside. if this is really your passion and you mostly have no other distractions in your life, then it will be smooth sailing for you. one problem i see here is the way people see artists. this has been going on since the beginning of time. everyone is amazed by art and want to see high quality animated shows, but refuse to pay its worth saying "it's easy". even friends ask you to draw something for them but when you name the price, there's the perpetual confused look on their faces as if you demanded to pay for a house. i love being an artist ,it's all i've ever known but holy hell. listen to your parents kids. you cannot eat passion
As an otaku and weeb at the same time, being an Animator in japan is like my big motivation to continue and pursue art. Drawing surely is my passion and no one can explain how happy I am to talk about it. But then after watching this, my whole dream crashed. I gaved up. I don't even know what career job I'll pick beside animation. And till now my motivation keeps going down.. I can say watching anime is the only thing that keeps me goin'.
Honestly if I owned a company..any company...and I was the boss I would absolutely give my staff a good wage and benefits plus good health care for them and their family at the cost of me earning a little less annually is small price to pay for the wellbeing for others. I cannot fathom just how scrupulous companies have become and how little they care for their workers
the only way to solve this problem is to reduce the production rate made by each studio per year. you cut down on excess hours and lessen the feeling of being underpaid for so much work. However, decreasing production also means decreasing the number of people employed... hard decision
Behind the funny anime that makes you feel at home watching it, there is suffering behind it all. As an artist, we are not always happy with our own creations, but with support, the artist will have a purpose.
I honestly would love to travel to Japan and be an animator but to be honest I’m doing a lot of research and it seems really hard, along with being a mangaka and I really want to be an animator to be honest I love art I don’t think I’d be able to be a foreigner in Japan and an animator because it seems honestly really hard but tbh o think I’m just going to keep trying hard and working. I’m trying to look at more of the bright sides but idk. I hope I succeed.
Japanese mangas and stories have the potential to be the best dramas. Korean use it as "inspiration" to make insanely popular dramas such as boys over flowers from hana yori dango. Japanese stories need more attention
One of the most difficult aspects to deal with is that as much as we can raise awareness, it is up to the animators to raise their collective voice to challenge their system. Yet we're more accustomed to this challenging of the norms in the west, and it makes it painful to see most in the east simply keep their heads down in fear of losing their chance for success. This also makes me a bit wary of the idea of non-Japanese creators possibly having a bit more conveniences to insert themselves into certain aspects of Japanese media if they really wanted to. If an general creative professional makes about $40K ish a year, any amount of success on top of that seems like they could simply cut in front of the line of those in Japan for attention. Again, not just in animation, but about any medium of expression whether it's comics, music, etc. I'm sure it's covered in the video about manga, but one last thing to note is that animation takes much more to get something approved. Comics and manga have a much lower barrier to entry as it's not dependent on multiple people to create something from the start or maintain. One person can be the driving force behind a comic, where an animation production lives and dies by who is contributing. Comics have more of a luxury whereas animation is painfully restrictive. It's because of that I've actually shifted a lot of my dream of working in animation back to comics. I personally can have more control of that outcome than if I wanted to make an animated series that could not only fulfill my passion for the art but also pay my bills for a decent standard of living.
And just to state this, none of what I said dismisses the amount of rejection any form of expression may face. We all will face more rejection in life with little success. Though it's how we learn from both success and failure that can propel use forward in our endeavors.
Seems to me that these artists should just organize and create their own anime studio. If they ban together they can create their own RUclips channel and put money directly into their pockets. Is this not an option for them? What's preventing them from doing this?
almost all of my work experience is from japanese companies based in my country. they rly don't know when to stop working. i had a lot of health problems because of it. i was struggling both physically and mentally. after almost 8 hours of work, they'd give you a new task right at the end of the day where it's time to go home and make you work 4-9 more hours for it. they don't give incentives and rewards to their employees for successful projects too. it's like the work you've done, finishing it, is taken to be the reward itself. i can't imagine how hard it is for these people but this situation of overwork is so deeply ingrained in them already. the most an employee complains is just among themselves. they rly do hate confrontations. i'm working towards being a mangaka but the japanese work culture scares me. i hope the future of the anime industry becomes better and the artists who put the exhausting work, live comfortably and happily.
and the messed up part about 3:18 is that most american "animators"/"animation studios" dont even animate. they do preproduction and outsource the animation work. smh the game is f*cked up...
This is a common problem in many popular industries, including my own (feature film VFX). But what it really comes down to is the huge pool of young talent that drive down salaries because they are so desperate to get into the industry that they will accept even non livable wages. The studios have no reason to pay more when there are talented artists competing for the jobs, and essentially underbidding each other. Some people might call for unionizing as a solution. This could help by establishing a minimum wage. The side effect would be that many aspiring artists would no longer be able to find jobs at all, because they can no longer underbid their colleagues as a competitive strategy. But this is arguably better in the long run. If there are too many artists that fail to be attractive hires at even minimum rates, it would be better for both them and the industry if they were encouraged to look for different careers. Not everyone can have their dream job, and they shouldn't necessarily be allowed to ruin the lives of others because they are desperate to try.
i actually worked for a japanese company as a freelancer. At first it was 12 - 15 $ a week (based on projects) then it decreased to less than 6$ and I had to stay at night before it reached deadline. Each project had a time of one 5-7 days. At first I was exited on my first overseas project but after 2 months things started to change and only low budget projects started to come in. One time I asked them " can you increase the money a but" and the reply I got was " we have other freelance artist working with us aswell if you don't want to work with us anymore just tell". Later I worked on 2-3 projects and then quit. Overall it was quiet a good experience for me and I got to know how freelance artist struggle in Japan. I'm not Not saying every company is like this there maybe some studios where freelance artist like to work. Don't get me wrong I love Japan, I like to see the countryside, mountains, temples the shrines and experience everything. Even if I get a chance to work as a proper artist in one of the amazing studios in Japan I would still consider going there. And I truly and hopefully believe that something in their system changes and brings favour to Japanese artist and animators and every else who's working in the anime industry. Hope that day comes soon... (NOTE: I got this job offer when I lost my job so I had no other options but to take it)
Finding out that Japanese animators got paid so little was shocking. It seems like working as an animator is treated the same as working as a cashier or the food industry in America which is wierd considering how much more thought, effort, and creativity you have to put into it. Earnestly it kinda seems worse cause some ppl with those kinds of jobs in America actually make more then $38 dollars a day
It breaks my heart so much how such amazing people who bring manga to life for us to deeply enjoy are treated so bad by companies Makes me sad and angry 😢
Foreigners: Japan should pay more to animators ! They are much popular in abroad ! Foreigners: I watch anime on pirated website and buy illegal products at all. 🤔🤔🤔
It’s not all foreigners problems though these companies still make profits they are just greedy and want a bigger cut of the money and at the expense of there workers health
@@AngelLV2 that's not true, the animation studios are paying the animators, not companies like crunchyroll or netflix. So the animation studios themselves get not enough budget to produce an anime because so much people don't pay for anime. That's why they can't pay the animators
Many of the actual artists used for video material in this video are independent and satisfied animators within the industry, unrelated to much of the actual content of the video. They have been used largely for background visuals and illustrative purposes rather than as an explicit example of the many suffering artists out there. Thanks to Archipel for many of the clips I used for this video; check out their channel for a variety of incredible videos and interviews with some of Japan's most renowned and genuine artists. ruclips.net/user/ArchipelDocks
I respect mangaka and animators without them the anime is no longer exist
still better pay than the one I'm getting now I worked for 16 hours yet what I get is 300 USD for month lol
Beautiful written video article! I applaud you!
Where can I find these animators? I'm expanding my media business and would love to hire some of these animators at a higher rate. Been searching but can't find where to look.
u fogot to give credits to Paolo fromTokyo. I will be reporting you to his channel and i will get in contact to him as well
People think art isn’t worth money, the thing is artists are highly skilled workers. It’s not a hobby, it’s not a talent. It’s gruesome, tiresome work, and we treat the artists like absolute SH*T while being all to happy to consume their creations
I never consumed them tho, I only watch them.....😶
It is a hobby and you have to have some level of talent to be an artist.
@@ahsoka_polo lol WRONG
@@laurabythatagari8944 L
@sebas Stein no matter how many paragraphs you you type at the end of the day it takes talent to be an artist.
Kyoto Animation paid their talent a living wage and trained them up with a good work life balance. They were having a great impact on the industry. It's very sad an evil person did the unthinkable. I hope the spirit of Kyoto Animation will live on forever.
I was looking Kyoto Animation comment 🤗
@@mywifeisabugatti.2513 ❤
@@dragonsmith9012 Ohh no need to.. here take this ❤️❤️❤️❤️
It's something that needs to become a standard in Japan
@@luceromoreno9081 and from what i know, he said "one of the scenes looks similar"
Thats too "stupid"
As a fellow artist who went to school to become an animator, I have the utmost respect for them all! My professor told me to change my major from animation to something else. Anything else. I planned on working for Disney/Pixar, but they fired a ton of employees and lowered wages when I was one year away from graduation. I'm grateful that he warned me and I listened. I could have never lived that kind of life while burnout was consuming my passion! To all those that are animators, thank you and better times are to come!!
what career did you end up switching to?
@@deedee-lg9zo I ended up becoming a design generalist. I ended up designing 3D point of purchase stands and 3D trade show booth designs. I also do graphic design as well. So I ended up being a jack of all trades so to speak. 🙂
why it's hard to get into Disney/Pixar if what you say is true, and I've friend who work with biggest studio at Tokyo and she said they got paid just enough, the only complain from her, she said others employees doesn't talk with each other in studio, that's all. But she not complaining about money, she said just enough to survive and live in big city
I am a comic artist and graphic designer myself who was dreaming of being able to draw animation like the Japanese anime; I watched Anime since 1994; however, I never thought the life work of an animator in Japan is that miserable! I always thought of them like highly-paid professionals due to the worldwide distribution of Anime & Manga! Thanks for such an enlightening video, and the other one about Manga artists too.
No worldwide distribution, only piracy
What comic you write for I’m in need of a new comic/manga
@@gojosensei6501 American movies suffer also from piracy .. but that doesn't mean the American animators or actors are paid less because the movies later will suffer from piracy once they are in theater; still, I am amazed how poorly-paid the Japanese animators are, although they are very-skillful and way above the American illustrators and comic artists .. in terms of story, lines and directing the scenes
Know, there is other underground companies around the world who are probably more patient, highly supportive, of making a animator’s dream come true, i believe there is something beautiful to have hands we’ve worked years on and why shouldn’t we deserve a wonderful thing? Like Ghibli Studios... there’s an artist who made all those backgrounds and simple characters, look so darn good! It really takes a lot of energy in this lifetime to burn, but we have choice to do it or not and we sure as well can make it become real!!!!!!
@@gojosensei6501 please eleborate it.
Quite frankly if the Japanese government is aware of this problem of unfair wages and poor work hours in the studios. Then they need to take action without having workers ask for it. Anime and Manga are some of the biggest economic resources for the nation of Japan. The world loves it and are willing to pay to get it. So pay the artists what they deserve for their wonderful art!
Many foreigners use piracy, so it does not lead to profits. Animators and manga artists are not charities.
I not only agree. but why rely on the Government ?
this will never happen.
Hmm!...animators need to all be on one page, form a union....then threaten a work stoppage/strike if reasonable demands aren't met. Animators union in the the states did just that!
@@fairymairahit often is not on the capitals interest to benefit the workers. in a capitalist society the bare minimum we can do is rely/put pressure on the government to create worker laws
I'm an animation student who aspires to be an animator but because of this reason, I am now leaning more into just becoming an illustrator. The hardwork from every staffs of an anime is what makes me feel really mad against people who just complains about everything. Even the tiniest mistakes, they will complain not knowing or just straight up ignoring how hard it is to even make a 24 minute animation.
you will definitely have it easier in other countries than japan, but being able to do multiple thing will definitely help, don't abandon animation tho !
Don't worry, If you'll be a good animator you probably have some good set of illustration skills as well so you can flex between both jobs.
@neol ' @Tal Kuper thanks for the support guys!!
"You get what you pay for" is what i've always belive for the longest time. But with anime & manga, i got way more than i can ever give back. Honestly, can't thank this amazing people enough
This is why I love Kyoto animation. The fair pay shows in their work
I'm worry for Japan animator. Their passion is why they willing to overwork for a trash pay just to create something they love. And their work inspire more people, give them the passion to continue this cycle. The only people who benefit from this are their boss who don't feel the need to pay them more because their Passion pay themselves.
Passion in japan is like a trap now.
Agreed not worth it.
lmao the meme on ur channel was top tier. idk it was really funny
Hope they get better laboral conditions and even a higher pay if it's possible. They deserve more knowing how popular and succesful anime is, inside and outside Japan.
Nice profil picture
They need to unionise
Actually they are...
Pm giving more pay... for a start.
Many foreigners use piracy, so it does not lead to profits. Animators and manga artists are not charities.
@@ぴーなっつ-r1k Ikr. I always support the artists by purchasing the manga and legal anime services cuz Ik anime takes a lot of works.
My brother is aiming to become an animator and he even wants to go to Japan to work there. But after watching this, I'm scared for his health and future. I totally don't want to ruin his mental image and dream of being an animator, but I want him to be aware of this cruel reality.
I hope he well
@@tiongxuchuah7497 Well he's joining the course to learn animating. And he's devoted to do this job. So we will support him. Thanks for your concern though.😊
He must have been exposed to animes from childhood so that's the matter.
I would discourage him to go to japan, at least now, but you can definitely live of animation in the west
He'll do exceptional!
Watching this made me think of Demon Slayer and how the Mangaka (Koyoharu Gotouge) did not get paid well. The movie broke records in Japan and even the anime has had a lot of viewership in Japan and worldwide via Netflix and Crunchyroll. But her pay was low. The animators working on that probably didn't get paid as much from the movie. I just wonder where is all the money going? Is it being used for next projects or to fund current ones? With Disney or any American/European studio, every person gets paid well for any animated series, and there is still enough money for new projects. The situation in Japan needs to change because they give the best art and animation out of every country in the world and they don't get the recognition or money for their work.
I think too much people use free illegal streaming websites to watch their animes, so there is not enough budget for the animators
@@Hansi999 just like u use free streaming website
@Hansi99 I'd honestly pay for crunchyroll but I bet that's gonna help the animators pay...
This was my dream job for a long time until I found out about the harsh conditions. I hope it gets better for all the Japanese animators out there, they deserve so much more since there job is incredibly hard.
The sad thing I see is that when people love an anime, most of the time, they praise the animation (Violet Evergarden, Mushoku Tensei, Link Click, etc.), but when a series is bad with their story and characters, even if the animation is "good" or "great", it is never really appreciated (Examples: Darling in the Franx, SAO, I could go on).
I remember people complaining about the filler episode in MHA season 5, and the animation being "bad", and while I have noticed a shot of one of the characters being a little off-model, there were still many shots of smooth animation, (the shot of the dragon flying being one of them). Granted, story and animation are separate and I understand that whatever happened behind the scenes, that should not, in cases, affect how the consumer views the product. People are allowed to have opinions. A bad anime in their eyes will still remain bad to some people even if they know what happened behind the production. But I feel as if animation with sakuga is now expected to be the bare minimum or that people will call an animation bad and leave it like that without giving a reason. I am a beginner at animation, so I know how hard it is. You have to storyboard, layout, do in between frames, line art, and on top of that, make sure it's consistent.
So if you want to support animators, I recommend checking out the Animator Dormitory Project. Also, anime are made by youtubers as well so I recommend checking out Sempai Club Hikari~be my light and Super Clockwork Hero. Both are short and won't take your time. (Sry this was long, I just really like animation)
Looking forward to watching those anime
@@knightgamer1533 Let me know what you think.
@@notationmusical senpai club is hillarious
Most anime fans are stupid
What do we experc?
@@user-xh6ju3pg8c I'm a malayalee too
I fell in love with anime only just recently. This video and the one about mangakas just broke my heart. Seeing the fruits of their labour, just how much energy and life and soul they put into their craft, yet they make less than a McDonald's worker, who requires no extraordinary skill.
This video has been released a year ago, and I sincerely hope at least something is changing.
Absolutely brilliant video, my man. I really really hope more studios start valuing their animators more and more
my g isaiah ‼️👍
@@AnimeCultureCorner Ayyyyy!!!!!
yea
Hi, this is the second time you are using some of our footage in your videos, after the one on "The Sad truth of Being A Manga Artist". While we didn't say anything the first time, we find it regrettable that:
- You haven't asked for authorization to use our footage.
- The footage you are using does not depict your subject. In the mangaka video, you have used footage from our portrait of Shinichi Sakamoto, who is nowhere near being in a struggling situation with his work. Likewise, in this video you are using footage from our portrait of Koji Yamamura, who is in a similar case, non-struggling and proud of his independent status.
We won't be doing any claim as what has been done is done, but please ask us for authorization for any use of our footage in your future videos, and please add a credit mention in this video and a mention that the footage you are using is simply for illustration purposes & that it does not reflect of the actual situation of these creators. Thank you.
Deepest apologies. It was unprofessional on my part to use video content of yours, especially in a manner that have been misleading when describing the message of the video which was unrelated to the actual video content. I will add this to the description to the video, include your channel as video credits during the appropriate scenes, and add a pinned comment mentioning as a form of apology/credit; likewise, going forward I will try not to use your content. And if I do, I will only do so after a) asking permission, and b) making sure it pertains to the video content and is completely appropriate. Once again, I am sorry. I didn't intend to use your content in any misleading shape nor disrespect the artists you interviewed. Thank you for being so considerate, and I will certainly be more cautious going forward with both your channel and my other peers on RUclips.
@@AnimeCultureCorner Thank you for your quick action on this.
Oooooh busted!
Oof
@@AnimeCultureCorner love to see this, great job man , you owned your mistakes, well done, rare thing to see nowadays 👍👍👍
When ever I watch anime or any type of animation. I always think about the artist and their craft that they put so much effort too. Every details, lines, shadows and lights are made with passion, sweat and hard works. Seeing this video makes me appreciate the artist animation more than ever. Even if it's not perfect.
This is truly sad. They put in so much work and love into what they do and deserve to earn more
Nothing but respect for anyone in the animation industry, for Japan especially where the work culture is a crazy, intense, and exhausting grind. The passion that animators have for their work is a truly beautiful thing. Great vid as always man.🤝
my guy quach
Thanks for shedding light to this subject, anime was an escape for me when i was depressed, and the people who helped me get through hard times are going through tougher times themselves, i hope this video gets more views so people can spread this heartbreaking video
If I can remember correctly, Hayao Miyazaki worked too hard on the job that later caused a wound between him and his son Goro. He admitted he was wrong and can be seen in a documentary him trying to subtly bond with his son by trying to give some jelly beans (I don't remember if it was Jelly beans). Like in your previous video on Mangakas, these animators need to work hard to deliver as fast as possible. Once they stop and take a rest, people immediately forget the anime and move to the next dopamine inducing media they can find. We people today are considered subliterate; we don't leisurely take the time to appreciate and empathize art, and art becomes debased. Like great Mangaka Naoki Urasawa said, "If we take the time to read longer, wouldn't reading Manga be more fun?" I felt bad for Kentaro Miura when people made fun of him for releasing a Berserk Chapter for too long in between chapters as people accused him of having an Anime Loli addiction. Well that's horse pucky of course, the man was tired and sick at the time, yet he delivered one of the greatest artwork no one can do but him. I got to tell you man, people just want to feel good all the time and look down upon artists, yet they seek artwork to please themselves.
This just makes me appreciate the mangakas and animators more because they will literally work themselves to death just to create something amazing for their fans to love and enjoy
Japan animation has been around for over 70 years & is still going strong. The people who make this really deserve some respect and support just like the manga artists, creators & authors do. But even this kind of work couldn't be rushed. Plus they should get 8 hours of sleep, higher payment & vacations. Even they deserve to take care of their health & must never be taken for granted. They give us great entertainment all around the world in any global language. Remember the anime movie "Spirited Away" that won an Oscar for best Animated Feature Film. So to all of you Japan animators of legends & of today, thank you, try not to work so hard & let's keep anime alive, even for the next generation.
Just discovered your channel a while ago and great video man! Hopefully the animators get their due as you can really see the effort they put in day in and day out.
thank u bro 👍👍
I used to work as a traditional animator more than 20 years ago, after so many years of work and working hard making cool animations i couldn't make enough savings for retirement, i still love traditional animation but if i had the choice, i would have choosed another career, being young blind you from calculating what it will be when you are above 50s and unable to do the same things you used to do, and you have a family that still needs you, my advice to young animators is look around you and see how many over 40s are still doing traditional animation, you won't find, if you are for example a football player, at the age of 35 you will mostly had made it enough to retire
I worked in the middle east in some major animation companies, with close to100 artists in a company, now all the animation industry in my country moved to 2d bone based digital animation and less than 10 artists in a company
Very few still doing traditional animation as a freelancers just for commercials now and then but the work is few most of the traditional animators moved to another type of work
@@ahmadollahdash Where do I see your work? Do you have a Demoreel or portfolio?
My Respect for animators sir
Animators, comic artist, illustrators, fine artist etc, are the most skilled, disciplined, creative individuals I have ever seen and they would all be millionaires if the world made any sense.
The journey is no doubt hard to be an animator. Inelastic supply aside, they deserve better for their service. They give a good part of their life away and in turn enhance the lives of anime fans across the globe with their work. More money needs to flow into the industry. Unfortunately there's a lot of piracy. With less of that maybe then Animators could get more money coming their way.
Its not that companies aren't getting the money they need, its that the companies have all the leverage, and can thus pay the animators as close to a starvation wage as is possible. The solution is either more unionization, worker control or a overhaul of the IP system so animators don't need to work with these big studio's.
IP overhaul.
It's really sad to think that many great works, that changed many lifes and give us a spark of happiness in each episode, are made of so much inhuman and unfair ways. I know that this is, in some cases, a choose of them. But I hope, deeply in my heart, that all of the artists in the world have good labor conditions to keep doing what they love.
am just a 15y old highschool student who wanted to be an animator and manga artist in the future and after many people and many vids say "being an artist isnt going to give u that much money" YES IK! IK IT WONT GIVE ME HAPPINESS THAT I WANT sometimes i even worry bout my own career but still drawing is my passion and ill keep aiming to reach my dream even tho its a path of thorns
same bro.
Same man.
My heart still breaks whenever I hear Kyoto Animation
I’ve always heard about this and I feel so bad for these guys man it’s bull sh*t that anyone should put up with that nonsense over here in America we have a lot going on they would have a better opportunity to be a animator over here Japan is so controversial with these types of things that’s why as an animator myself I will always appreciate and understand these guys here because I know what it’s like to work so hard for someone or something to entertain others but behind your stressed out that should. Be a lesson to all man it’s crazy
Exactly, can’t wait for Netflix to slowly steal the anime monopoly from Japan and hopefully fund and pay thier team of artists and animators what they deserve.. cause if Japan isn’t careful they will lose what makes them great as even anime will become westernized by 2040 or even earlier
This topic always breaks my heart. Anime have brought me so much joy and inspiration since I was a kid, and it still do now. I only wish those who create them could have a life full of joy too.
I worked from 2015-2017 in the mobile gaming industry in Tokyo, it was a dark chapter in my life...
Can you elaborate a bit further?(if you're okay with doing so)
These animators need justice and need to be under someone who cares about them. It is so sad that their company takes advantage of them. drawing is never easy and it's worse when you have to draw the same pictures billion times just to make them move. As someone who is terrible at drawing and loves watching anime, I respect all animators. Bless their souls and hope their company is kind to them.
According to Marc Elliot biography od Walt Disney : Walt was an Inventor of cheap, mostly Slave work, because he hired mostly students of Art, and every tallented animator when asked for a better salary, was kicked out from Animation Studio. And Disney was one of the first Studio, which outsourced in 80's works in other countries : Korea, Japan, Australia because there was cheap workforce (when we compare it to US salaries). It's enough to check credits list when movie comes to an end. Sad, but true. But as was mentioned in your material : this ist their choice. Thank you.
This video is really good,It must've taken a while to make.
It’s so sad that for something that brings so much hope and joy in this life, the people that make it possible have such extreme violations. They definitely deserve more
Oh the irony.
It is up to the fans to pressure animation studios to stop abusing their animators. In the end, it is because of them that animators work under extreme pressure.
On one side they realize their dream everyday, on the other hand they are exhausted by the amount of work they have to produce. It's tough, but I would gladly overwork myself for my dream as well, that's all I can say. (Being a full-time writer I mean)
it’s all up to you at the end of the day, gl with it
Same, and hopefully both of us can become a full time writer 🤣
Would love go read your work if possible
$38/day?!? I’ve always wanted to be an Japanese Animator going on 20+ years now & I always knew pay and labor was bad but not to this extreme. I do draw for a living and honestly there has been times I’ve made $38 (sometimes not even that) but on a consistent basis that’s no way to live. Im so blessed and this video has humbled me so much
I respect mangaka and animators without them the anime is no longer exist
If I had some wishes, I would certainly wish for all animators to be paid slightly more than other jobs, expanding anime culture further and likely even outside of Japan way more than today
I think after watching this I think it makes me appreciate art even more on how much hard work they put in to adding the frames, the background, the characters etc im just proud that I came this far as an Otaku but I don't think that burning passion of watching anime is within me anymore idk why which is kinda sad honestly...
The work behind each episode is insane, and these people are worked to the bone and barely earn enough to survive. The anime industry is like a ticking bomb, one day it'll explode because the conditions these people work in are awful. You really have to appreciate any kind of animation when you know what happens behind the scenes
I like all the animes..
Bruh anime really inspire me a lot and after seeing behind the anime i mostly watch inspire me more and makes me more DETERMINED to join them even thoe it's hellish job. Even thoe I'm not a japanese....
I just want to mention that animators and mangaka usually have more than 10 years of drawing experience before they enter the profession.
another great video , keep killing it , 20 k soon
SOON
I was also studying to be an animator in Japan but after I heard about the conditions in the industry I quit and started to focus on illustration
Smart!
That's good and you have my support
you don't really have to quit thought. just make it big as a show creator they get a good pay
I was looking for videos like this yesterday and now I see this one just came out. Great timing!
That's why I have a huge respect for animators . ❤️❤️❤️
My dream was always to become an animator in Japan but now I'm rethinking of it that barely get paid and they deserve more than they get paid art is a skill it's so hard hopefully thinks will get better later
I'm not nearly as talented/skilled as these anime-artists, but I am passionate and I realized it isn't really a choice to work in animation if that's the only work you have a drive for and everything else makes you horribly depressed. If it truly was a choice, nobody would choose it, because of the horrible working-conditions alone.
Anime is a highly-valuable artform and it is beyond messed up that the masterful artists making them get shit-pay for it. Greatness should be encouraged and financed, and there's plenty of greatness in anime.
That was a good glimpse into the Japanese working style, life, and traditional values. Learned a lot from this video thanks for sharing.
For more senior animators things are not much like what the video said.
First most animators want to work on different projects so they rather not to be fully employed to keep the right to choose what they want to participate.
Second, usually production companied pay a certain amont of money usually no less than 100000 jpy ( if you are more experience you get more sometimes 300000 to 600000) to make sure the animator will fully or at least make time for their projects. It's called "kousoku".
Third, the population of youn animators are declining because of lack of passion and not payed enough or low birth rate ,etc, so the japanese aniamtion industry is suffering not only finacially.
For young animators
The first 3 years for them are more like educational years. Most of the Know Hows can not been obtained from school so they have to catch up a lot of informations during working on real projects. I do agree there need to be a healthier system to support young animators to fit in the industry quickly but the production company is not making most of the money so they couldn't provide more otherwise the company will be in danger of not making enough money.
So where does the money goes? Ask the publishers.
And also I don't understand how the artists draw erotic content in animes. I mean I wouldn't be able to draw all that. I wonder if they are paid high for such portions in anime.
@@An_ony_mous From what I know, animators here in japan have their expertise, some are specialized in action, some in recreate the characters, and some are focuse on hand drawing FXs. Erotic anime has it's own market as adult videos.If the animator's skill is focused on erotic scenes or human nudity (you know what I mean), the producor from that genre will keep them frequently in the erotic production line. Most of the normal animators hates their name to be exposed as stuff on that kind of anime, so fewer animator paticipates, fewer manpower, higher price. But still its anime industry so the price could be higher than normal but not like a life changing price. If you dig deep enough, I suppose you can find out that animation studios makes erotics makes almost only erotics.
Great video !
It does make a good point on a very touchy topic that's been going on for waaay too long.
You probably are aware of the Animator's dormitory project, who's trying to make rent more accessible to young animators who just got started in Tokyo.
They're doing a great job, and also have a youtube channel to raise awareness on the topic.
Also noteworthy is the anime series ShiroBako, which is an anime... about the making of an anime. A little similar on how Bakuman is a manga about the life of being a mangaka, but in the anime industry, with its specific challenges.
Now, I wonder how great it would be to have one day an anime docufiction à la Shirobako, but of several different animation industries from all over the world (or at least the big 3, Japan, America, and France), like, having an animator or an animation producer who's going all around the world and tries to work in all the different animation industries, each with their own specificities, so that the audience could compare all the conditions.
If such a show existed, it might open the eyes of a lot of Japanese young animators who would see just how screwed they are compared to the rest of world, and start raising their voices as a whole.
Another thing that might help is to try and have some open discussions and lectures between professionals and highschool students who want to enter the industry who are not shying away from the financial and hardwork realities of teh industry, and how to avoid falling into these pitfalls right from the get-go, instead of mindlessly falling into the classic trap of "but I'm doing it for my passion", which not only undercuts themselves, but the entire industry as a whole as well.
This is one of Japan's darkest sides in the Japanese entertainment industry. It's now 2022 and covid has been delaying, restricting, and cancelling animes. In the other part of animes, one of my favourite female seiyuus, Maaya Uchida got harmed by the covid and now she's fully recovered! This is a sad life of Japanese animators working in many animation production studios in Japan like: J.C. STAFF, TMS Entertainment, and LIDEN FILMS just to name a few. I just saw an article published by Comicbook yesterday and it says this about Ken Akamatsu:
Last year, Akamatsu joined voice actor Atsuko Enomoto to discuss problems that the industry is currently facing, with the actor having this to say about the current state of the industry that needs to repaired:
"The fees for animation work are too low. We can raise prices, but the reality is that there is dumping going on. Most companies cannot raise prices. Only those who have been performing for a long time and are confident can afford it. We have been asking for an improvement in the working environment, but we know that there is no money for production, so we have been saying for a long time that there might not be any improvement, and we have been wondering what to do."
Really good video and really a harsh reality that hits home especially in these times.
This is a very well researched video. I can see the time it took. Great job keep it up 👍
thank ya divyam 🙌
The sad thing is instead of increasing payment for the artist, anime industry outsource their work abroad or rely on 3D animation.
I just watched the one about being a manga artist and I can already tell this one will be as harsh
Sadly we experience this at the game industry as well… lots of freelance contracts, low paid jobs and crunch
*As a manga artist, I understand both the 'artist side' and the 'business side'. Although it's true that these amazing Japanese artists should receive higher salaries, we have to remember that a large portion of companies budget goes towards marketing/advertising the manga/anime they produce, which is why the salaries for these artists are lower than expected. Without spending vast amounts of money on advertising, the manga/anime won't sell, and the artists won't have a job. Even if they increase the cost of the manga/anime for the customer, maybe many people won't buy at the higher cost. We have to remember that at the end of the day, it's all business, and the owners of the manga/anime companies can pay lower salaries if the government allows it. This world is not fair (especially in business), and there is much injustice. Just my 2 cents* 🙏😊💖
I know there is another similar video from Asian Boss made 3 years ago, but this also dives into a top animator role salary, work ethic, obligations, and deriving systemic issues revolving around karoshi culture & zealous passion from animators! Thanks for providing further insight on this... TnT
So true, I vouch for it. Thanks for the revelatory video.
When you want to become both an animator and a mangaka 💀
Lesson for this one? I must say! "Always be thankful and grateful"
I think the reason why these animators get the short end of the stick is there is always an abundance in supply for young people with the passion to get into this industry. From the company's perspective Profit & Loss will always, always take priority over employee welfare. If there are people who are willing to do the job, it doesn't make sense to just increase the wages of the existing employees. Bosses can afford the "If you don't like the job, then get the F out" attitude
To get companies to treat animators more like humans, I think the only way is to create a sudden shortfall of these roles to the point it will cripple the entire anime industry. E.g. animators just quit en-masse. Look at China now, the concept of Lying Flat is getting popular among the younger generation and industries that rely heavily on manpower are not getting enough people to run the factories to the point that the bosses have to go out into the streets to recruit people. If this can happen to the anime industry I believe the wages and benefits of animators will significantly improve
I came across this channel thanks to "The Sad Truth of Being A Manga Artist" video which I really loved. Now, this is another thorough and insightful video. I feel the hard work behind it. Thanks for making such a video.
Now this is wut I call listening to fans ur awesome mate
I am inbetweener/animator at japan branch studios, everyday we got task with one or two days due date depends on how hard the genga(keyframe) is. If the task is hard, we usually finish our task around next morning. Despite the overwork, the unhealthy our lifestyle is, we always try to be positive in our studios. I think one of the reason we dont quit because our colleague always help each other with their task and the studios is always have the positive vibe. atleast that somethin that keep us motivate to stay working there. we always bring joke when our staff got to animated a spoiler scene like Ace got killed in front Luffy scene etc. yes its tiring, but to me its fun to get to animate ur favorite anime. Those who want to achive ur dream to work in these industry dont just give up yet. if ur still young gather as much experience as u can. Try go it first n u will find wat u really want. regret or grateful it all comes later.
this is all just based on my opinion n experience workin at japanese studios.
For the Anime Industry to change Japan's whole Work Culture has to first so the Animators get get better working conditions and wages.
To all the art creators in the world , thank you so much for making our lives more beautiful .
You hardwork will always be appreaciated ❤
I don't understand. Anime industry is sooooo big. Then why don't companies pay them more? Is the case "evil corporations"?
There's no such thing as Evil Corporations. Just small studios fighting each other for a small market. Remember how many shows are shown each season, each one vying for that small TV Ad revenue in the market. Not all studios are like Ghibli, Kyoani or Sunrise. Most of these shows are made by smaller studios run by small production houses with little budget. Most of their earning comes from Ad revenue and Blu-ray sales, hardly any from Merchandise unlike shows in the US (where revenue at TV is always at a lost but gets big merch money).
@@inisipisTV yes but even big studios are not famous with good working conditions
This is a common catch 22. No one wants to report the abuse cause they'll never get another job in the industry again. Governments can't wait for complaints to come in, in order to do something about this. If there is a violation against labor laws, those must be addressed without the need for someone to stick their neck out. Anything less is just compliance. It's a good thing you're posting this as I'm sure most people have no idea what's going on.
As one of the millions who love Japanese anime, I'm sorry to see such wonderful gifts and talent being shamelessly exploited. Someone should do an expose documentary on the elites who profit most from the billions being made off the sweat equity and creativity of these artists. Include footage and images of the most unethical exploiters coming and going from their ultra-expensive mansions, automobiles and exclusive venues. Or an anime parody of the industry could be effective while keeping production costs lower. Just an idea.
I'M JUST HERE TO INTERACT SO THIS CAN BE SPREAD FURTHER ACROSS THE ALGORITHM BUT THEY DESERVE BETTER !!
Japanese artist need a reality check, making a proper living is just as important as passionate work. No one will give a sht if you get sick and can't afford to pay healthcare. If you don't have enough for rent/food and many other realities. I know passion for art. I'm an illustrator myself, but this is inhuman. We are human beings not worker ants. I'm not saying the work should change because regardless art will always be hard. But the reward for such hard labor should be fair and worth all the health risks and life sacrifices artists do to create art for others.
This systematic issue in japan seems to come from people thinking that an art career is lazy, non-essential, and easy work. ITS BULLSHIT, its hard, time consuming, life fkn consuming. No less competitive, no less hard. It's work, its a career, it is a fkn legit pursuit and should be treated like all others are because at the end of the god dam day its work done for the benefit of everyone and the people who do it shouldn't receive any less than those don't.
im a "douga man" currently on a break watching this. before this i was thinking if i get unalived, this will probably be my personal hell. drawing the same thing again and again as if its never ending. spending hours of my time for one frame. i know im not the best thats why i take so long. and that mindset precisely will be the end of me. we have this thing that if you want to earn more then do better (naturally).
but im already in the belly of the beast. i literally have no time anymore to do personal art to improve my skillset. the option i have to improve right now is to keep being a douga man in hopes that i will be better over time. it does work to a degree dont get me wrong. but im also losing time.
"passion" is always the thing i keep hearing in this industry. but i also need to eat, provide and spend time with my family. as we grow older, responsibilities start to pile up in our life. now we are conflicted to choose what our priority should be. if i want to start prioritizing other areas of my life, then i'll come off as "not passionate enough" to the industry and will be stuck doing in-between. one moment i focused on work, and my relationships to family and friends and even to myself started to deteriorate immediately. but that issue is present every where i suppose.
there was a time when the company i work for was offered to work on a big anime title at a very low cost. most of my co workers were eager to do it just for the prestige of being part of it. maybe i just have a different priority now. what use of my name being in the credits? can i use that to pay hospital bills? i hope so.
when i was younger , my dream is to be excellent in this industry, (even now) but life mostly gets in the way. im just giving a little light to show people how its like on the inside. if this is really your passion and you mostly have no other distractions in your life, then it will be smooth sailing for you.
one problem i see here is the way people see artists. this has been going on since the beginning of time. everyone is amazed by art and want to see high quality animated shows, but refuse to pay its worth saying "it's easy". even friends ask you to draw something for them but when you name the price, there's the perpetual confused look on their faces as if you demanded to pay for a house.
i love being an artist ,it's all i've ever known but holy hell. listen to your parents kids. you cannot eat passion
As an otaku and weeb at the same time, being an Animator in japan is like my big motivation to continue and pursue art. Drawing surely is my passion and no one can explain how happy I am to talk about it. But then after watching this, my whole dream crashed. I gaved up. I don't even know what career job I'll pick beside animation. And till now my motivation keeps going down.. I can say watching anime is the only thing that keeps me goin'.
Hope you are good❤😊😊
Honestly if I owned a company..any company...and I was the boss I would absolutely give my staff a good wage and benefits plus good health care for them and their family at the cost of me earning a little less annually is small price to pay for the wellbeing for others. I cannot fathom just how scrupulous companies have become and how little they care for their workers
the only way to solve this problem is to reduce the production rate made by each studio per year. you cut down on excess hours and lessen the feeling of being underpaid for so much work. However, decreasing production also means decreasing the number of people employed... hard decision
Behind the funny anime that makes you feel at home watching it, there is suffering behind it all. As an artist, we are not always happy with our own creations, but with support, the artist will have a purpose.
I honestly would love to travel to Japan and be an animator but to be honest I’m doing a lot of research and it seems really hard, along with being a mangaka and I really want to be an animator to be honest I love art I don’t think I’d be able to be a foreigner in Japan and an animator because it seems honestly really hard but tbh o think I’m just going to keep trying hard and working. I’m trying to look at more of the bright sides but idk. I hope I succeed.
Seeing this video and seeing mappa and their workers right now with jjk s2 and other shows is undescribable
Japanese mangas and stories have the potential to be the best dramas. Korean use it as "inspiration" to make insanely popular dramas such as boys over flowers from hana yori dango. Japanese stories need more attention
This was an excellent video essay!
maynn i wanna go to japan and do animation but this is the problem
One of the most difficult aspects to deal with is that as much as we can raise awareness, it is up to the animators to raise their collective voice to challenge their system. Yet we're more accustomed to this challenging of the norms in the west, and it makes it painful to see most in the east simply keep their heads down in fear of losing their chance for success.
This also makes me a bit wary of the idea of non-Japanese creators possibly having a bit more conveniences to insert themselves into certain aspects of Japanese media if they really wanted to. If an general creative professional makes about $40K ish a year, any amount of success on top of that seems like they could simply cut in front of the line of those in Japan for attention. Again, not just in animation, but about any medium of expression whether it's comics, music, etc.
I'm sure it's covered in the video about manga, but one last thing to note is that animation takes much more to get something approved. Comics and manga have a much lower barrier to entry as it's not dependent on multiple people to create something from the start or maintain. One person can be the driving force behind a comic, where an animation production lives and dies by who is contributing. Comics have more of a luxury whereas animation is painfully restrictive. It's because of that I've actually shifted a lot of my dream of working in animation back to comics. I personally can have more control of that outcome than if I wanted to make an animated series that could not only fulfill my passion for the art but also pay my bills for a decent standard of living.
And just to state this, none of what I said dismisses the amount of rejection any form of expression may face. We all will face more rejection in life with little success. Though it's how we learn from both success and failure that can propel use forward in our endeavors.
Seems to me that these artists should just organize and create their own anime studio. If they ban together they can create their own RUclips channel and put money directly into their pockets. Is this not an option for them? What's preventing them from doing this?
A lot of them do, but that doesn't erase the problems with the industry as a whole.
@@SwarumtheForum Then the same people start hiring animators and start exploiting. Humans are always greedy.
almost all of my work experience is from japanese companies based in my country. they rly don't know when to stop working. i had a lot of health problems because of it. i was struggling both physically and mentally. after almost 8 hours of work, they'd give you a new task right at the end of the day where it's time to go home and make you work 4-9 more hours for it. they don't give incentives and rewards to their employees for successful projects too. it's like the work you've done, finishing it, is taken to be the reward itself. i can't imagine how hard it is for these people but this situation of overwork is so deeply ingrained in them already. the most an employee complains is just among themselves. they rly do hate confrontations. i'm working towards being a mangaka but the japanese work culture scares me. i hope the future of the anime industry becomes better and the artists who put the exhausting work, live comfortably and happily.
and the messed up part about 3:18 is that most american "animators"/"animation studios" dont even animate. they do preproduction and outsource the animation work. smh the game is f*cked up...
This is a common problem in many popular industries, including my own (feature film VFX). But what it really comes down to is the huge pool of young talent that drive down salaries because they are so desperate to get into the industry that they will accept even non livable wages. The studios have no reason to pay more when there are talented artists competing for the jobs, and essentially underbidding each other.
Some people might call for unionizing as a solution. This could help by establishing a minimum wage. The side effect would be that many aspiring artists would no longer be able to find jobs at all, because they can no longer underbid their colleagues as a competitive strategy. But this is arguably better in the long run. If there are too many artists that fail to be attractive hires at even minimum rates, it would be better for both them and the industry if they were encouraged to look for different careers. Not everyone can have their dream job, and they shouldn't necessarily be allowed to ruin the lives of others because they are desperate to try.
i actually worked for a japanese company as a freelancer. At first it was 12 - 15 $ a week (based on projects) then it decreased to less than 6$ and I had to stay at night before it reached deadline. Each project had a time of one 5-7 days. At first I was exited on my first overseas project but after 2 months things started to change and only low budget projects started to come in. One time I asked them " can you increase the money a but" and the reply I got was " we have other freelance artist working with us aswell if you don't want to work with us anymore just tell". Later I worked on 2-3 projects and then quit. Overall it was quiet a good experience for me and I got to know how freelance artist struggle in Japan. I'm not Not saying every company is like this there maybe some studios where freelance artist like to work.
Don't get me wrong I love Japan, I like to see the countryside, mountains, temples the shrines and experience everything. Even if I get a chance to work as a proper artist in one of the amazing studios in Japan I would still consider going there. And I truly and hopefully believe that something in their system changes and brings favour to Japanese artist and animators and every else who's working in the anime industry. Hope that day comes soon...
(NOTE: I got this job offer when I lost my job so I had no other options but to take it)
I as an anime animator....Totally Agree...Thats my dream...work for dream , had to enjoy with it
Finding out that Japanese animators got paid so little was shocking. It seems like working as an animator is treated the same as working as a cashier or the food industry in America which is wierd considering how much more thought, effort, and creativity you have to put into it. Earnestly it kinda seems worse cause some ppl with those kinds of jobs in America actually make more then $38 dollars a day
It breaks my heart so much how such amazing people who bring manga to life for us to deeply enjoy are treated so bad by companies
Makes me sad and angry 😢
I went from being an animator to being an Indie comics artist! What a colossal step sideways! _Arghh._
naoko takauchi was told by toei animatioN that she needed to simplify the sailor scouts costumes bc she was going to kill their animators
Foreigners: Japan should pay more to animators ! They are much popular in abroad !
Foreigners: I watch anime on pirated website and buy illegal products at all.
🤔🤔🤔
It’s not all foreigners problems though these companies still make profits they are just greedy and want a bigger cut of the money and at the expense of there workers health
@@AngelLV2 that's not true, the animation studios are paying the animators, not companies like crunchyroll or netflix. So the animation studios themselves get not enough budget to produce an anime because so much people don't pay for anime. That's why they can't pay the animators