how much does it cost to make an anime series

by Coty O'Conner 3 min read
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Anime production needs as many as 2,000 people for the production of a single episode with the price ranging from US$100,000-300,000 per episode. In most cases, the studios cannot afford to produce a whole season before airing it because even a 12 to 13 episode series takes as much as US$2-4 million.

According to Masamune Sakaki , a CG creator in the anime industry, an average 13-episode anime season costs around 250 million yen (or $2 million). He also made it clear that most anime can't recoup this expense, and the industry rests on the windfall of a few big hits.Aug 13, 2015

Full Answer

How much does it cost to make an anime?

And while that may be true it still isn´t cheap to make an Anime. So how much does one Anime Episode cost to make? The average cost of a simple 60-second 2D Animation is around 6000 $. A whole Episode can cost between 100.000 $ to 300.000 $. So a 12 Episode long Season can cost up to 3.6 million US Dollars.

How much does it cost to make an animated TV show?

A whole episode will more or less cost between $100,000 to $300,000. A 12 episode long Season can cost up to $3.6 million. Remember, this is only the production and does not factor in the marketing costs. While these production costs tend to seem pretty incredible, they don’t come anywhere near the cost of other animated shows.

How can I make a 12 episode anime with 70000 dollars?

There are many production companies out there that can help you make an 12 episode anime with 7,000,000 or even less if you can arrange a cheaper background artist. Get your own Script with original idea (this is all you need). You can buy original character drawings online without any problem.

What are some of the most expensive anime series?

One Piece, Naruto ( successor anime Boruto ), Dragon Ball series are some of the most expensive series till date and still have helluva sponsors. They all started as popular Manga.

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How much does it cost to make 1 episode of anime?

An anime episode can cost between US$100,000 and US$300,000 to produce. That maximum is around 6 times bigger than what I thought an anime episode could cost at most (considering that what's animated is a top series, with top animators, top animation programs, top voice actors and so on).

How much does it cost to make a 24 episode of anime?

In a July interview, Takayuki Nagatani, producer of Shirobako (itself an anime about anime production), claimed that his show cost 500 million yen (or $4 million) for 24 episodes.

How much does a Naruto episode cost?

Naruto Shippuden – $90,000-$100,000 Per Episode As a general rule of thumb, an acclaimed and widely followed anime costs 100,000 to 300,000 dollars per episode. Naruto Shippuden is one of the greatest anime series ever made. Experts speculate the anime costs north of 90,000 dollars per episode.

Is making anime expensive?

Making anime is cheap, sometimes. If you have animation skill, scriptwriting, and voice acting, you can make one for free. However, since I doubt you can animate, write, and voice ten characters, you can hire animators for quite a lot. Three-minute long animations can already cost anywhere between 10 and 60 dollars.

How long does it take to make an anime?

These are the works that go into creating every minute of Anime and depending on the studio, creating only 60 seconds of Animation can take anywhere between three weeks and up to two months. And even though Anime is not as expensive as other Animations like 3D rendered Animations or very detailed as other 2D Animations, it still is not cheap to make.

How much does it cost to make a 2D animation?

According to industry reports, the average cost of a simple 60 – second 2D Animation is around $6,000. A whole episode will more or less cost between $100,000 to $300,000. A 12 episode long Season can cost up to $3.6 million. Remember, this is only the production and does not factor in the marketing costs. While these production costs tend ...

Why was anime invented?

According to reports, Anime was invented because of the high Animation costs and was specially developed to cost less . If you think anime can only be made in Japan then you will need to have a quick rethink. Animes are made in America too.

Why are anime studios closed?

Many studios have closed because they can’t find animators. Some envisage that animators could start leaving Japan for foreign animation studios.

Why is animation so expensive?

Anime already is one of the cheaper variations of Animation, maybe because it is comparably simple in style.

What is the first phase of animation?

The Concept Phase. This is always the first phase for the creation of animations. In this Phase, the Animators will draw concepts to the characters. They will also do a little test Animations and try to work out how the characters move. Then they will start to conceptualize the backgrounds, lighting, and style of Animation.

How much does a 30 minute episode of My Hero Academia cost?

Also, a report published by the Media Development Research Institute Inc in 2018 noted that a single My Hero Academia 30 minute anime episode costs 12,000,000 yen, which exchanged to $108,480.00. The report also broke down where all that money goes. Costs are set for current exchange rates:

How much does a B/B+ show cost?

A more typical show, or what the industry calls a “B/B+,” will have an MG of between $70,000 and $150,000 if it's a new (first run) show. Finally, the “Cs” will have simulcast prices in the lower five-figures – per episode, of course.

How does licensing a new franchise affect the price of a license?

This impacts the demand for the product, and higher demand (from consumers and from competing licensees) drives up the price of the license.

Do first run simulcasts have books?

First run and simulcast releases generally have limited materials available; no books have been created, the translations haven't been made yet, etc. But for catalog content, licensees are sometimes willing to pay a bit more than they otherwise would have (or might be expected to pay a bit more) if they want to pick up a pre-existing subtitle script or dub, or any other “materials” that they might want to include in their release as extras.

Do anime companies have rights to only one country?

These days, it's pretty rare for major anime companies to pick up rights for just a country or two. Typically they will have licenses that are something like “World Except Asia” or “English-Speaking World.” North American rights are almost always the most expensive, and North American companies often scoop up rights for many other countries at the same time. For a few years, Mainland China rights were sometimes higher than the North American rights, but due to a number of changes in both markets, this is not the case today.

Is every license contract unique?

Now, keep in mind, every contract is unique. There are no rules to how a licensing deal should be structured, there are just “most common practices.” There are several other less common methods of paying for licenses, and there's a number of factors (such as recoupables) that go into calculating royalties and rev share.

Is a first run license more expensive?

Secondly, is this a first-run license? This is very similar to the previous factor in that it affects demand. First run/ simulcast licenses are more in demand, and therefore they are much more expensive. Competition among simulcasters and the explosive growth of internet streaming has pushed anime licensing prices to heights that have never been seen before.

How much does an anime season cost?

According to Masamune Sakaki, a CG creator in the anime industry, an average 13-episode anime season costs around 250 million yen (or $2 million). He also made it clear that most anime can't recoup this expense, and the industry rests on the windfall of a few big hits. In a July interview, Takayuki Nagatani, producer of Shirobako (itself an anime about anime production), claimed that his show cost 500 million yen (or $4 million) for 24 episodes. In order to make it sell, he had to "advertise it, plan events, and make merchandise." Shinji Takamatsu, a veteran animator, cited a figure of 150 to

How long should an anime opening be?

The opening song helps to explain what’s being shown on screen and emphasize what the series is about. All of this must be between 30 seconds and 1 minute.

How much did Shirobako cost?

In a July interview, Takayuki Nagatani, producer of Shirobako (itself an anime about anime production), claimed that his show cost 500 million yen (or $4 million) for 24 episodes. In order to make it sell, he had to "advertise it, plan events, and make merchandise.".

How much do animators make?

As for the hard-working animators, average pay is a mere $27,689 a year.

What is localization in anime?

Localization: This is when the company lets another company (Like funamation) Distribute the show outside Japan. A lot of times most of this money is not going to go to the Anime Studio. But some of it will, and it will help some. More often they get extra money by helping fix the show for the new market.

How many seconds of footage can a senior produce?

Seniors would be able to produce 60 seconds of footage a week, Intermediates 50 and Juniors 40. There’s a little discrepancy in over capacity to help smooth over any production difficulties that may occur - somebody’s sick, there’s an extra scene that needed to be done, etc. This is not an industry standard however.

How long does it take to become an animator?

By yourself? Almost certainly. You would have to be good at animation, it might take as much as a year. But don’t worry, if you put in the work, it can happen.

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