Ghibli Studios
Ghibli studios are one of the most iconic Anime Studios of all time. Hayao Miyazaki found the studio, along with Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki in 1985. It is responsible for movies like My Neighbour Totoro, Whisper of Heart, and Spirited Away. The immense success of these movies proves the sheer size of this studio. The traditional animation techniques that the studio sticks with are the reason for this uniqueness in Ghibli Studio movies which is why Ghibli Studios is a unique studio.
These hand-drawn animation techniques give greater detail and expressive characters. Combine it with strong storytelling. The stories usually center around the themes of family, coming of age, nature, and friendship are some of the most used themes for Studio Ghibli movies. The female protagonist is strong and leads the way for other characters.
KYOTO ANIMATION
Yoko Hatta and her husband Hideaki Hatta found the studio in 1981. This studio is well-known around the world for animation due to its high-quality animation. Kyoto animation is also called ‘KyoAni’, and it produces high-quality animation with solid storytelling, which makes the anime so compelling. The unique aspect of this studio is that it emphasizes nurturing and developing young animators into experienced and skilled animators.
As the process includes placing young animators to work with experienced and leading animators in order to develop these animators into skilled animators that later on lead the industry. The studio has complete in-house production which ensures that none of the anime is outsourced from any other studio like most other big studios.
The studio suffered an arson attack in July 2019, which claimed the lives of 35 people and dozens of people injured. Since then, the studio has announced it will produce anime forever in the memory of those people.
MADHOUSE
Madhouse was started in 1972 by former Mushi-pro staff Masau Maruyama, Osama Dezaki, and Yoshiaki Kawajiri. The studio has been in action for 5 decades and produced almost 100s of anime and movies. It is responsible for creating visually stunning and well-developed anime with compelling storytelling and quality animations. Madhouse has produced some popular anime like ‘Death Note’, ‘Parasite: The Maxim’, and my favorite, “Perfect Blue”. These works are some of the well-made shows and movies in the entire anime industry.
MAPPA
Mappa is a relatively young company than the other anime studios. It was founded and started in 2011 by the co-founder and producer of Madhouse, Masao Maruyama. This studio has produced anime like ‘Terror in Resonance’, Yuri!!! On Ice, Jujutsu Kaisen, Dorohedoro. Mappa has come under heavy fire due to the ‘overwork’ culture in studios and taking on many projects at one time pushing employees to their limits with rumors that claimed that the studio pays less than the minimum to the animators. Though, the studio denied it and stressed that the employees are paid fairly.
The studio has become very popular recently with the release of some of the most anticipated anime like Jujutsu Kaisen, Attack On Titan(Final Season) was previously produced by Wit Studios, and Chainsaw man.
UFOTABLE
Ufotable is an anime studio founded in 2000 by Ex-staff of TMS Entertainment. Some of the notable works include Fate/Zero, Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works, and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. The studio is very well known for its outstanding animation in the Kimetsu no Yaiba: Red light District and out-of-the-world fighting scenes that won the hearts of the viewers. The top brass of the production company was scrutinized for tax evasion of $ 1.2 million and they later issued a public apology for their unethical actions. In the production of anime, the studio is doing good so far.
WIT STUDIOS
Wit Studios started in 2011 by former Production I.G. employee George Wada, who is now the president of the company, along with Tetsuya Nayatake. It produced the first three seasons of the hit manga series Attack on Titan and Vinland Saga. This contributed massively to a huge success that established ‘Wit Studios’ as a big player in the game. But Attack on Titan and Vinland Saga, both handed the production to Mappa Studios as ‘Wit Studios’ was unable to meet the tight schedules of the anime. Now, both of these anime are produced by Mappa Studios.
CLOVER WORKS
CloverWork is a Japanese anime production company that was ‘Shoenji Studio’, which is a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment’s Aniplex. The studio started in 2018, as a separate entity from A-1 Pictures. Some of the works by Cloverworks include Slow Start, Darling in the Franxx, and many other anime. Darling in the Franxx changed its studio credit during the production whereas ‘Slow Start’ changed it after the run ended.
A-1 Pictures
A-1 Picture is a Japan-based anime production studio in 2005 by ex-‘Sunrise’ producer Mikihiro Iwata, as a subsidiary of Aniplex. The initial goal of the studio was to oversee some anime productions but converted to a fully functional anime studio with many projects. The studio has produced some great anime like Black Butler, Anohana, Sword Art Online, and Your Lie in April. A great anime studio that focuses on developing great anime quality within the budget.
Toei Animation
This animation company is a division of Toei Company. Kenzō Masaoka and Zenjirō Yamamoto found Toei Animation in 1948 as ‘Japan Animate. The name of the studio changed after the acquisition of Toei. The studio has produced several anime series like Dragon Ball Series, Sailor Moon, and One Piece. The mascot of the company is the character ‘Pero’ in ‘Puss in Boots’.
The Studio suffered a cyber attack in March 2022, which resulted in the temporary suspension of activities on the online store of the company. Toei Animation claimed that it could also delay the episode schedule. On April 6, 2022, Toei stated that it would continue the broadcast of its series.
STUDIO BONES
Sunrise Staff members Masahiko Minami, Hiroshi Osaka, and Toshihiro Kawamoto found the Bones Studio in 1988. The studio has produced some great anime like FullMetal Alchemist, Mob Psycho 100, Ouran High School Host Club, and My Hero Academia. Unlike the other studios where the tea, handles the project, Studio bones have created sub-studios with each studio taking up two or three anime each to decrease the burden on the others.
