Making Anime (and the business of it)

[graphicnovelist]

Hello,

I was watching some animes lately that I (from my amateurish perspective) found to be masterfully made. And it inspired me to want to try to make my own story (which I began as a graphic novel/manga, but didnt post more of it to not spoiler it) into an anime, made by myself.
Probably its way too much work for a single amateur person, but I just wanted to try and see what will be the result if one just does it.

So I wanted to gather information here on Anime.

The first important things are: What software is best for making animations/films/anime? What do the real "studios" use and what could/should a private amateur person use?
Also what are the best ressources (maybe Youtube-Channels and Books) that one should look into?

The second thing I would like to get an idea about is what the business behind it is for the "professional studios". Making anime series is a "business", right? So how does the finished product bring in the money for paying the staff, the voice actors, the people who make the music tracks etc.

If an anime-studio makes an anime, how much do they have to pay for each department of their staff, how much does the finished anime bring in and how, and how do they know if it will bring in anything at all and not ruin them?
Isn't it, that most people just watch the anime for free somewhere on the internet?

If you would know some ressources about this business-side, too, that would be interesting.

[hristovdraws]

I'm not an animator , but I'm studying 2D animation in my free time. I don't expect for you to start studying everything on the list, it took me years (personally) , but my advice is Start with Chuck Williams story and Manga theory and practice, then the storyboard classes I suggested and the schoolism ones for gesture drawing, everything by Sam Nielson and Woulter Tulb.


Writting :

- Manga in Theory and Practice: The Craft of Creating Manga by Hirohiko Araki
- STORY! For Live Action & Animation with Chuck Williams
- How to Pitch your Ideas with Chuck Williams
- Story: Style, Structure, Substance, and the Principles of Screenwriting Robert McKee
- The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell
- Save the Cat by Blake Snyder

Visual development :

- Everything from Schoolism.com
- The Art of the Storyboard with Lyndon Ruddy + The Schoolism storyboard class they make a great combo


Anatomy :
Proko - Figure drawing
Proko - Anatomy
Proko - Portrait Drawing

Software - I don't know really , at the moment I'm giving Toon Boom a try because there are a lot of tutorials for it, but the ones for 2D animation are :

- TVPaint
- Toon Boom Harmony
- Adobe Flash

For Learning 2D animation :
- Aaron Blaise
- Richard Williams The Animator's Survival Kit
- The Complete Introduction to 2D Animation - Toniko Pantoja
- Lynda - Toon Boom Animate and Harmony Essential Training

Drawing software :

ClipStudio Paint

I hope this helps, good luck!

[graphicnovelist]

That's a lot of ressources, thanks!

If somebody also knows more about the business-side, that would be cool, too.

[hristovdraws]

That's a lot of ressources, thanks!

If somebody also knows more about the business-side, that would be cool, too.

Sort to "Most popular" to get the good vids

https://www.youtube.com/c/StrivingforAnimation/videos

[casabonbon]

For more anime specific resources, you should take a look at sakugabooru, it's a catalog of basically every anime shot you could think of. The Sakuga Blog run by sakugabooru also has plenty of articles that analyse the Japanese animation industry in depth as well as dissecting different animator's styles.

In terms of Youtube channels, Striving for Animation, Doki Doki Drawing, and Studio Bulldog are one of the few Youtube channels covering the anime process in depth. Definitely a must watch

As for software, most webgen animators use Clip Studio Paint to do their cuts, but there are some who use Toonboom Harmony Premium. There are still some animators who are clinging onto Adobe Animate but they're in the minority

You will have better luck finding the information you need on Twitter as most Japanese animators + foreign animators working on anime tend to post their resources there

[nicyafa]

Webgen animators typically utilize Clip Studio Paint or Toonboom Harmony Premium for their cut scenes. Adobe Animate is still used by a small subset of animators today, although its days are numbered.