Shirobako is a 24 episode original anime written by Yokote Michiko who
also worked on Jungle wa Itsumo Hare nocchi Guu and Genshiken. The series
originally aired on TV in Japanese between the Fall of 2014 and Spring of 2015.
Miyamori Aoi works as a production assistant for a small animation company in Tokyo called Musashino Animation. The PA is essentially the gopher, task master and errand boy of the studio. She has to deliver various parts of the animation project to a variety of departments for them to work on in turn. She is responsible for keeping everyone on task and working to fill in production gaps. She is relatively new to the industry and is following a dream she shares with 4 other girls she went to high school with. The 5 of them formed an anime club in school and created a rudimentary anime. From that project they made a promise to each other that they would all enter the industry and work together once again as professionals. Miyamori struggles as a PA for Musashino as they work to overcome a series of problems with their anime projects. She ends up being responsible for keeping artists on their deadlines and preventing the episodes from being delayed.
The series is broken into two over all story lines. The first half focuses on her job as a PA working on an anime about magical girls. The second half puts her in a supervisor PA position as the company begins a new anime about female fighter pilots. While Miyamori is the main focus of the show a large and diverse cast of characters fill in the gaps, sometimes taking over the main focus of an episode from time to time. Miyamori has to deal with every aspect of the company and many of the companies they work with in tandem, constantly building her database of contacts in the industry. Her friends from high school work through their own professional struggles, while trying to reach their shared goal right alongside her.
Shirobako is a fantastic look at the grueling lives of those who work in the anime industry. The long hours, impossible deadlines and over all lack of individual control. When something goes wrong with a process everyone down the line can be affected and delayed. Some things they don't touch upon, which are currently issues, are the horrible wages and abuse of the workers. They also don't get unto the amount of work being sent overseas and the implications on the industry in Japan its self with the future of its work force. The series is good for general audiences but really hits home with deep otaku who want a glimpse into the world of anime production. It's akin to other cultural exposes such as Bakuman and Genshiken.
The artwork and character designs are quality and fit with current standards and trends. Some of the characters look similar and it can be confusing at times who is who, especially given how many there are. There is some noticeable and somewhat ill generated CG animation though. The character reactions and facial expressions are well done and add a good level of charm to the story telling.
It was simulcast in North America on Crunchyroll and a disc release is pending from Sentai Filmworks. On a side note the series was hit with two realistic problems. Episode 6 had copyright infringement issues after is broadcast and was edited/unavailable for a while after the first week. The final episode, which dealt with barely making broadcast deadlines, apparently didn't make its broadcast deadline and was delayed by a few hours.
Miyamori Aoi works as a production assistant for a small animation company in Tokyo called Musashino Animation. The PA is essentially the gopher, task master and errand boy of the studio. She has to deliver various parts of the animation project to a variety of departments for them to work on in turn. She is responsible for keeping everyone on task and working to fill in production gaps. She is relatively new to the industry and is following a dream she shares with 4 other girls she went to high school with. The 5 of them formed an anime club in school and created a rudimentary anime. From that project they made a promise to each other that they would all enter the industry and work together once again as professionals. Miyamori struggles as a PA for Musashino as they work to overcome a series of problems with their anime projects. She ends up being responsible for keeping artists on their deadlines and preventing the episodes from being delayed.
The series is broken into two over all story lines. The first half focuses on her job as a PA working on an anime about magical girls. The second half puts her in a supervisor PA position as the company begins a new anime about female fighter pilots. While Miyamori is the main focus of the show a large and diverse cast of characters fill in the gaps, sometimes taking over the main focus of an episode from time to time. Miyamori has to deal with every aspect of the company and many of the companies they work with in tandem, constantly building her database of contacts in the industry. Her friends from high school work through their own professional struggles, while trying to reach their shared goal right alongside her.
Shirobako is a fantastic look at the grueling lives of those who work in the anime industry. The long hours, impossible deadlines and over all lack of individual control. When something goes wrong with a process everyone down the line can be affected and delayed. Some things they don't touch upon, which are currently issues, are the horrible wages and abuse of the workers. They also don't get unto the amount of work being sent overseas and the implications on the industry in Japan its self with the future of its work force. The series is good for general audiences but really hits home with deep otaku who want a glimpse into the world of anime production. It's akin to other cultural exposes such as Bakuman and Genshiken.
The artwork and character designs are quality and fit with current standards and trends. Some of the characters look similar and it can be confusing at times who is who, especially given how many there are. There is some noticeable and somewhat ill generated CG animation though. The character reactions and facial expressions are well done and add a good level of charm to the story telling.
It was simulcast in North America on Crunchyroll and a disc release is pending from Sentai Filmworks. On a side note the series was hit with two realistic problems. Episode 6 had copyright infringement issues after is broadcast and was edited/unavailable for a while after the first week. The final episode, which dealt with barely making broadcast deadlines, apparently didn't make its broadcast deadline and was delayed by a few hours.
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