Founded in 2018, Maho Films is one of the younger animation studios around. In other words, they have produced 10 animations including I’m the villain, so I have to tame the final boss and Dr. Elise: The Royal Lady with the Lamp. Recently, ANN and Maho Films Founder and President Murata Junji Talk about the studio, its philosophy, and what sets it apart from many other animation studios.
Murata Junji He is an industry veteran. “I’ve been working in the animation industry for about 25 years,” he began. “As far as my career is concerned, I graduated from a regular university, got a regular job, went to art school, and then entered the industry.” His educational background allowed him to see both sides of the animation industry, or as he puts it Said: “I am a producer who understands art.”
Creation of Maho Films It was to solve a problem at the studio where he had worked before. “Everyone had to go. Since they were all people I had mentored, I took them with me and we all decided to be independent. This allowed Murata and his colleagues to solve the problems they had been forced to deal with for years. “We have been In an effort to improve the situation, provide good wages to all employees, provide a stable working environment, and organize various events [internal company] incident,” Murata boasted. “So now that we’ve become an independent company that can do those things, I’m making sure we do those things.”
Put another way, Maho Films It is Murata Productions’ attempt to create an ideal animation studio. This goal is not subtle—after all, Maho Films The English translation is “magic movie”. “A reason [for our name] We wanted to create something interesting and dreamlike – and this “magic” has another meaning. “We believe that the company belongs to all employees. So, our corporate philosophy is that we want to be a company where everyone can have fun, work hard, and continue to create.
Setting on the one hand Maho Films The difference is its animation staff. Not only were the animators employed full-time, the studio was only interested in hiring and investing in young talent. “We don’t hire mid-career employees, and the ones we do hire are veterans who said they wanted to join because of their connection to me. Others graduated from trade schools, colleges, art schools, or other regular colleges of—some of them just draw as a hobby,” Murata told me. “So we teach people who don’t know how to animate and continue to mentor them. That’s how they get better and go on to different positions [within the company]. The more employees we have, the better and more stable our production system will be.
Of course, the total number of employees is only more than sixty; Maho Films It is often necessary to cooperate with other companies to produce animations. According to Murata, many of them are outside Japan: “Now, we mainly need a lot of people to make intermediate films, not keyframe animation, so that’s why we often get help from overseas companies. In the past it was mainly South Korea, but now there are Many companies came from across Asia – including China, Vietnam and the Philippines – to help us.
Speaking of anime, Maho Films Strive to find the perfect balance between schedule and quality. Because of this, the studio puts out about two TV animated series every year. “It’s not like we only do two things course One year, we have vacations the rest of the year – it feels like we’re always moving,” Murata laughed.
“The other thing to keep in mind is that the production cycle, from starting a script to delivering it — from approval to completion — takes about three years,” Murata continued. “I think we do about 2.5 projects a year – not including live action projects [we’re involved in]. We strive to make everything just right without sacrificing quality. We also make sure to include mandatory holidays. Our current number of projects is just right for our current headcount.
Another aspect of setting Maho Films What is separate is the production plan. “Most of our company’s animations are completed before broadcast,” Murata explains. “Depending on the animation, delivery can be completed three months in advance, and for some animations, it can even be completed in advance. At the same time, while the animation is completed, they also perform dubbing and other various work to sell the animation overseas.
“We mainly make anime that we want people around the world to see,” Murata quickly pointed out on the topic of international distribution. although Maho Films If they want their anime to be popular around the world, they will not simply choose well-known overseas works to adapt. It’s more subtle than that: “I look at it from the perspective of whether it’s likely to be sold overseas or whether people overseas will watch it. Regardless. [the IP] What’s popular isn’t what matters; what matters is whether it’s interesting.
TV series are broadcast abroad and there is no fixed route. “Sometimes, foreign distribution companies join the production committee and we work together,” Murata told me. “But when we sell anime overseas, we usually sell it to distribution companies.”
“We hope to continue releasing interesting, surprising and exciting anime. I hope everyone will enjoy them. As the quality of our animation becomes more stable, we will continue to expand,” Murata said as he pondered the future of the company. The number of productions we produce will also increase. “
