The Global Anime Challenge is a project to support the development of anime creators. With the Japan Research Institute as a partner, and utilizing the Japan Arts Council's Fund for Strengthening the Foundation for Cultural and Artistic Activities, the approximately three-year program aims to cultivate the next generation of creators capable of working on the world stage. A total of 11 talented young animators, producers, directors, and stage directors from Japan are participating as candidates, undergoing one-on-one English training, workshops on overseas expansion, internships at overseas studios, the production of pilot films, and exhibiting at overseas anime events. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End"GAC candidates" include Keiichiro Saito Saito, director of the anime series " Bocchi the Rock! " and "Funeral of Freiren," and Takashi Nakame, who has worked on " Your Name.," "Mirai," "The Dragon and the Freckled Princess," and "Frieren: Beyond Journey's End." We spoke to Saito and Nakame about the challenges of this project.
◇A sense of stagnation in the anime industry
Why did you want to participate in the project?
Nakame: I have a vague idea, but I feel a sense of stagnation in the Japanese anime production environment, and I wanted to try something different. When I heard that I would be able to learn about overseas production sites, I became interested. I don't know if it will directly solve the problems I'm currently facing, but I decided to participate because I thought it might be a trigger for something.
I was thinking about studying abroad to learn a language with Saito- san, and Nakame-san invited me. Like Nakame-san, I feel a sense of stagnation in the current anime industry, and when I thought about what I wanted to do in the industry in the future, I was interested in things other than what I had done up until then, so I decided to participate.
-Have you not been to any overseas studios yet?
Mr. Saito has not yet been there and is currently in the process of learning about overseas markets and the reality of competitions through lectures.
Nakame : There are also lectures by people I don't usually have a chance to hear. There are lectures on economics, too, which gives me a bird's-eye view of our environment, and it's been very educational. Other candidates besides Saito and me have also been selected, and we have had opportunities to talk together. It's interesting to see how each of us has a different awareness of the issues and ways of thinking. I don't usually have many opportunities to talk like that.
-Are you going to make a pilot film now?
Nakame: That's right.
Saito: I haven't yet decided what exactly I'm going to create, but since I've been given this opportunity, I feel like I want to take on the challenge. Since I can manage the IP myself, I might be able to create something big. I'd like to think about the direction I want to take in the future.
Nakame: There are some things about creativity that you can't know until you actually get it going, but having your own IP is a special thing, so I'm vaguely thinking about doing something other than just making anime.
As Saito-san mentioned in his lecture, should we aim for something like the American Academy Awards and be widely accepted? Or should we go deeper? That's something we need to think about. With Japanese anime playing a major role in the overseas market, I'm thinking about what to do. Even before participating, I had vaguely thought about using my work to create connections with overseas countries, so I would like to study communication as well.
◇ Communicating the diverse charms of anime to the world
--What is important when promoting Japanese anime to the world?
Saito: I've been invited to conventions overseas and have had the opportunity to interact with overseas fans, and I've had a vague feeling that the Japanese anime that overseas fans are crazy about may tend to be a bit biased. I feel that what's popular is popular, and there's a big trend. I think it's also a situation that could lead to a divide with the creators. Because the trend is so big, if we focus too much on it, that will become the dominant aspect of anime. Before that happens, I think it's important to communicate the diverse appeal of anime to the world. I want to create works that will attract the world's attention using a variety of approaches.
Nakame: I feel the same way. Japanese anime tends to be made freely, but that can lead to bias. It would be more interesting if there was more variety. It's inevitable that we get swept up in big trends, and while that's necessary for a work, it would be good to think about a variety of things.
-What would you like to do in a studio overseas?
Nakame-san: I haven't decided where I'm going yet, but I plan to go for about three months. It may seem long but it's actually short. I'm sure the manufacturing methods there are different to those in Japan, and I'm looking forward to this opportunity to learn about the working style and other aspects of the environment.
Saito: I personally have problems, issues, and future challenges, and my personal goal is to find ways to solve them and bring new perspectives to the table. I'm interested in the differences between post-production and pre-production between Japanese and overseas artists, and I'd like to combine the best of both worlds to explore something different from the way things have been done in Japan up until now. Rather than creating something unknown as a work, for example, even if I create a work that's similar to what I've done before, the content might end up being completely different.
Nakame: It's an extension of what we've done up until now, but we want to create it while thinking about it, rather than just going by inertia. In that sense, there should be something new we can do.
Saito: In the end, it may be best to keep things the same, but I think it's important to have a new perspective.
Nakame: That's right. Broadening our perspective will surely lead to some changes. Up until now, we weren't even at the stage where we could think about such things, so it's interesting that we can now think about them ourselves.
