Akira - The Animation and Coloring Process

Have you always wanted to know how Anime was made many years ago? Here is a video about the animation and coloring process of Akira.
All rights reserved to their respective owners
©1988, 2017. Akira Committee

[@tyrozaphy4788]

Holy crap, I've been gone for ages and for some reason this particular video has blown in popularity... So many comments every day, and from barely 400 subs I now have just over a thousand! (Not that it matters since I've basically stopped being active, but still awesome to see.) Can anyone explain to me why this video does so well? That's sick and I'm happy that it reached so many people, most important that it made them happy. Many people have been asking where this footage comes from. It's a neat documentary called: "Akira: Production Report" from 1988. It's around 50 minutes long and it's your usual but very in-depth making-of process. Quite an unique piece. I'm in no way active on my channel but if the request to see it here is that high, I might upload it on my channel if I'm able to. Otherwise, I got this from a Dutch release on DVD. Released in 2001. You can get it from there or else, I'm sure it's on some other releases too. Take care, stay healthy and thanks for the interest!

[@OhmRice]

it was recommended to me bro lol i'd be interested to see more though

[@GORILLAZU]

I'd like to see the full documentary :D

[@Pinnaclesilva]

Thats KZbin algorithm for you

[@user-dq4kt8lp1p]

Recommend to me I did just watch the movie the other day

[@user-en4eo1cc4t]

KZbin's storys my german tsundere thursday's enthusiast.

[@grindhousefan80]

Should also mention they were probably all working at 2am in this video

[@sampthiago]

And here I am at 3am procrastinating my comic.

[@kyozoutenno6239]

@@sampthiago kzbin.info/www/bejne/gamqg5ualM6Kq6c

[@sampthiago]

@@kyozoutenno6239 Thank you kind stranger. I've been working harder on my drawing and writing, and I can also already notice some improvements. I totally don't plan on quitting, and everyday is being workday on my projects. 👌

[@godemperormeow8591]

Not the best idea these guys ever had.

[@joeofmacabre07]

@@sampthiago DRAW COMICS AT 3 AM (GONE WRONG, GONE SEXUAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLL!!) 😂

[@veershanbhag]

imagine being able to buy one of these scenes. they'd probably cost a fortune

[@nova3530onyt]

I thought the same thing. Man, it's so beautiful knowing it's history

[@swarajkanr]

It's crazy how much time & effort is put in! And imagine someone going meh, not that interesting

[@veershanbhag]

@@swarajkanr ikr

[@eloisanzara237]

69 likes

[@ispilloil]

I forget the website, but you can buy original Evangelion scenes for like $1500

[@RebelWvlf]

It's 2019, the year of Akira. And we still have to see something created with this level of dedication and with this movie's level of maturity. Absolute legend.

[@hoopbeast7187]

it's coming

[@rollingstairs1]

@@hoopbeast7187 what is

[@RebelWvlf]

@Maria Fernandez I forgot that I posted comment here LOL. Now fast forward - Katsuhiro Otomo announced full anime adaptation of manga coming soon, made by Sunrise Studio (one behind Cowboy Bebop anime). I'm having more trust in Otomo than in Hollywood which is hellbent on making live-action movie of this title.

[@iRemainNameless]

The full manga? 7 books iirc. Yes please

[@RebelWvlf]

@@iRemainNameless Yes, and I'm unironically happier than I humanly can. Manga is WILD and I'm sure that anime will be wild too.

[@thecrazymadbull]

my fingers start to hurt when i write the sloppiest 2 paragraphs i cant imagine how this would feel like

[@WhipMemes]

I’ve been painting animation cels myself. 35 of them have been finished over 4 months.

[@DatDude_]

Imagine painting an artwork, then painting it again but with slight changes, holy crap

[@SoulcastProductions]

@@DatDude_ I can, and i'm trying to get into practice, but i'm more focused on my hsc work for a manga

[@DatDude_]

@@SoulcastProductions i believe in you

[@SoulcastProductions]

@@DatDude_ thanks :)

[@EasyCartoonDrawingTutorials]

The amount of artistry and dedication that went into this is why it still holds up today.

[@juliusnepos6013]

Agreed

[@nighthowl1649]

Not just this one. Akira was the last one in Japan I think, but before digital animation, or digital coloring, most if not all 2d animation was done like this.

[@mynameisforrest]

I believe this will be the pinnacle of 2d animation for a very long time to come, it's crazy expensive.

[@brianflynn5355]

@@nighthowl1649 You think? No, it's not the last one, you ignorant fool. How stupid can you get, making assumption like that?

[@The_SUN1234]

"still holds up today" today they dont even do these things, they just use computers lol

[@krono5el]

i want to hug everyone one of those people

[@NostalgiaCriticAnim1]

Maybe after the pandemic

[@aneeshprasobhan]

@@NostalgiaCriticAnim1 lmao true

[@yuomei518]

NostalgiaCriticAnim1 Trueee

[@JeromeProductions]

@@NostalgiaCriticAnim1 lmao

[@rshawn4303]

@@NostalgiaCriticAnim1 That was the Chinese' fault, not the Japanese you racist!

[@LedZeppelinHK]

there was no "undo" function at the time. how did they do it ?must be such a stressful job. if they screw up some detail they would have to do it all over again....

[@gizmonovack]

They have copy machine that transfer drawn on paper to a plastic cel paper , so if a painter ever mess up , they would have to look figure out what scene and what frame number this copy is , recopy the original drawing and start over

[@Wohodix]

they do this their whole life, its not just a hobby. With this much experience errors are very rare. Also in some case you can cover. People assume the same thing about musician and playing live, but they dont seem to realise they have to practice their part thousands times. So if they ever do a mistake its usualy very short and they catch up instantly.

[@andrewpotapenkoff7723]

I do a lot of drawing on PC at my work, and i can tell, that after couple of thousands completed works, you kinda stop making mistakes.

[@aschoo]

An accurate pre-production?

[@themollymachine]

That's what being a professional is all about

[@Gotz_the_iron_hand]

It's crazy how much work went into seconds of animation. People are saying they work so much harder at it than today's standards require (not saying this to detract from modern animation workers, some work very hard and are under a heavy burden of crunch and deadlines), but this team worked harder than the majority of animators then as well. Every cell was painstakingly poured over, and they barely used any of the corner-cutting tricks most would consider essential to animate a big production like this. Akira and the team behind it should be proud of what they achieved together. They left a major landmark on the animation scene that will stand the test of time.

[@MTHunter777]

Yeah we're spoiled when it comes to production these days. But I like being spoiled.

[@macaroll]

And Akira also paved the way for Japanese animation to hit in Western countries.

[@pipedreamer9781]

As some aspects of production have been optimized, companies have only increased the product output. Make no mistake in thinking that people now are working any less than they were then.

[@JeromeProductions]

@@MTHunter777 yup

[@jordanmartel2937]

These are actual artists who worked on Akira, todays animators are college graduates who majored in “animation”, they are NOT the same at all

[@renato.pastor]

That's why I'll always prefer 2d animation over 3d.

[@nopeno3144]

Me to. I feel like I am getting tired of 3d. Feel like it's been taking over.

[@nolovedivision3882]

RIP berserk

[@pinkpiplup7230]

@@nolovedivision3882 ;_;

[@ionknomanee347]

There’s such an intimate feel to it

[@RosebudKane41]

You mean 2D CEL animation?

[@Cupcom5]

And this movie was over an hour long. I really hate that animators like these guys in some companies are always being overwoked and under- appreciated, 2D animation is a lot of work. You get the point.

[@subtleprelude2400]

They are appriciated since they’re credited in films. I think the problem you mean to say is that overall 2D animation is not as popular as other things in the entertainment industry.

[@christophergarcia3695]

Around two hours actually

[@UKEDNHAT7]

2 hrs I believe

[@illuminatedjuxtaposition5610]

He means they were most likely underpaid as is common

[@Spaghettiboy359]

Man i could watch this all day it's a shame they didn't go into more detail also i wish i had some cels from akira

[@seventysevencats]

Exactly what I was going to say.

[@UnknownHumanoid]

Insane work. I still can't get all the geniousity behind it.

[@iRemainNameless]

Same.

[@kalakritistudios]

At first I thought... Why the movie production guys didn't go into more detail & I was like HOW MUCH MORE DETAIL DO YOU WANT?!😅

[@kentallard8852]

Its from a documentary that was 30 minutes if I remember

[@BitestheStuff]

Akira has one of the most unique productions ever I think. The sheer amount of detail is honestly quite astonishing and I'm shocked they managed to squeeze so much in for their deadlines. Maybe because it was a one-off film and weren't fighting to get it out there?

[@forefatherofmankind3305]

No not 'maybe blah blah' It's because they are Japanese. Whatever deadline u give to a Japanese he will do it. Just dedication to their Work culture is a craft in itself.

[@CavalierHorseman91]

@@forefatherofmankind3305 "Blah blah generalisations based on race" still doesn't explain anything on how these guys manage to produce work way and above their peers.

[@IuriSigma]

@@CavalierHorseman91 Still, he's right about japanese work culture. They're insane in their dedication, not just in anime, but specially in the art department, like manga for example. Eiichiro Oda managed to produce around 25 pages per week for his manga for more than two decades with little to no delay. No easy feat and he's not even close to be the only one so dedicated to his work in his country.

[@ajasilikonreffkmimmon]

The Akira Committee pour (unusual at the time) a lot moneybto pay their animator.

[@Gworms]

The effort put into this movie is one of the many reasons why this is one of my all time favorite films.

[@nebularain3338]

Effort expended doesn't always = a quality product. In this case it did, but the misconception that a bad product had no effort put in is false.

[@jebes909090]

*looks at leonardo da vinci* "Good work leo" *looks at poor akira artists* "ok i need 500 000 paintings of the same quality but slightly different and i need it in 1/4th the time it took leonardo to paint his paintings. Get on it!"

[@TheComiKen]

I can hear Bill Burr's voice right now! 😂😂😂

[@juantsu2000]

I know this is probably a joke but I doubt they had to paint these multiple times since these appear to be backgrounds and are therefore not normally animated

[@jebes909090]

@@juantsu2000 " No other film has ever looked like Akira, before or since. It’s stunningly fluid and detailed animation often required as many as nine separate cel layers. The 125 minute feature was comprised of over 160,000 cels and almost as many backgrounds, each one completely hand-drawn and hand-painted. Purists recognize Akira as the last completely hand-created animated feature, as cel animation quickly gave way to cheaper digital production and CGI technology."

[@jebes909090]

@@TheComiKen the director was definitely eating a pear ;)

[@juantsu2000]

@@jebes909090 Again, I doubt they had to paint as many backgrounds. It just seems impractical. Were there A LOT of background paintings? Of course. But not as many as the animation itself.

[@samuelkibunda6960]

The scary part is that non of these people will ever be given credit or known for their amazing work

[@wexenhex]

doesnt the movie have...yknow...credits?

[@killingfields6599]

wexenhex lol

[@katzea.a7880]

@@wexenhex xD

[@samuelkibunda6960]

@@wexenhex Well yes but I highly doubt 99% of the people who watch this even know who worked on this especially people like inkers, in-betweeners e.t.c

[@anartismal]

@@samuelkibunda6960 those who care will look into it.

[@jimmea6317]

traditional animation is becoming a lost art

[@subtleprelude2400]

Overall, Traditional animation is still largely popular in Japan and Asia/Europe. Like 99% of anime are still hand drawn via cel sheets but just produced digitally. There’s not much of a difference. The media nowadays are packed with a lot 2D webgen and 3D freelance animators for personal or small businesses, marketing, advertising or even for big entertainment companies.

[@dersuchende732]

I know Steven Universe and Adventure Time (which they are relatively recent) are made with traditional animation (hand-drawn frames)

[@dersuchende732]

I hope traditional animation never dies

[@subtleprelude2400]

@HeC S It’s obvious it’s not accurately statistical, of course I meant it to be exaggerated just to show how the large majority of the animation industry in Japan still tackles the old application of cel sheet production. Only a very few amount of studios move on from that classic era, that’s why most freelancers right now are going 2D digital or come from the web-gen era. Even large well known studios like Toei and Mappa still work under cel sheets because the production format is more efficient for in-house staff. I’d say the opposite is going on overseas right now where western companies are even straying away from the very concept of traditional hand drawing regardless if it’s digital but that’s a whole different topic.

[@IAm-zo1bo]

@@subtleprelude2400 uh no they aren't most of them are digitally hand drawn you know you do hand drawn in digital too right? It's not like they use mouse to draw

[@WeedShaggy]

I miss the old school animations.

[@jarobano]

im sure the old school animators doesn't

[@juanfloreslorente5427]

+1

[@theblizzard8735]

@You're fake and gay the West has put lots of effort into they're current shows as well as the east but still let's not deny that there's TRASH out from the past and the current day

[@vogel2499]

Lol and it won't even take a second for you to pirate this. That's why today's studio prefer to make isekai cheat crap, because they know pieces of feces like you guys don't deserve to enjoy good anime.

[@ElvenBubblegum]

@@vogel2499 not really, this goes for absolutely every art industry. Games, films, anime, music etc. 90s 00s these years are the golden age of art because back then everything was new. Films were not really new but at the time more people got access to computers and tv's than before so it thrived as well. The problem is that creators understood that you don't need to make a masterpiece to make profit. You can make cheap shit that costs a lot less and have triple profit. Everything commercialised. They make cheap isekai shit because this way they get more profit. Simple as that.

[@great567]

When I see this beautiful process, I'm like "F*ck Dall-E and all those automated tools".

[@michaelh4227]

As much as I love traditional animation, there's a good reason why animators jumped on to digital. Makes the process a hell of alot easier for everyone now that they don't have to worry about buying cels, paints, and making sure that the frames don't have a speck of dust on them when you photograph them.

[@Adipod47]

This is such a massive artistic undertaking. It's no wonder that only a few countries produce full length animated movies.

[@lololo]

It’s kinda mindblowing to know that in the 80’s even though there wasn’t enough technology to facilitate the process they were still able to pull this off, and nowadays we do have such technology but people kinda stopped making 2D animation so we will never get to see what could be created.

[@minixlemonade2335]

True that. We’re so damn lazy now. What a waste.

[@earthphoenix7068]

Wym, 2d animation is used digitally now. Only recently have they started CGI

[@BananaPhoPhilly]

people didn't stop making 2D animations, they just got lazy honestly. Even though there's more technology than ever to make it easier to produce beautiful animations, the process is just getting worse and more cheap. I guess it's a budget problem, but it's not like budgets were insanely high back then either!!

[@Suprematista]

I quote someone below: "i want to hug everyone one of those people" Thank you so much to all of you who made it possible. ♥

[@rationalist455]

Making such animations is one of the peak indicator of human intellect,inventiveness and tenacity

[@cyberdelicxp9125]

Hand crafted. Every frame of this movie is a masterpiece. Where is the rest of this documentary?!!! I must see it!!!

[@RepellentJeff]

Just knowing that everything, every last detail in every frame and every background was done *by hand.* The sheer amount of work and dedication that went into every *fraction of a second* of this movie…it boggles the mind. “Incredible” just falls so woefully short.

[@animationcycles7109]

All that hard work, and work hours put in....only to be missed, when you blinked. Or, if you didn't blink....see tons of hours of production, in just a half second, before cutting to another half second shot. Mesmerizing.

[@ビーマニ1]

現場の映像が残っているなんて凄いな。しかしこんなに細かいセル画をアナログで15万枚以上描く現場の力とバブル期の予算は凄い。今じゃこんな企画通らないだろうし通そうとも思わないだろう。

[@forbiddencolor]

This looks like an absolute nightmare, but it resulted in a masterpiece.

[@theshizl4400]

No computer or application could ever simulate the dedication, patience, and masterfully adroit skill of these artists.

[@jabbinjay8274]

Akira will be a timeless work, like the original steamboat willy or skeleton dance. Some things are not replicable with machines, and Akira is such a kind of thing. A future AI trying to make Akira not only needs visual creativity and attention to detail but esoteric and humanistic understandings, basically the film is all about love and friendship, and how our insecurities can consume us. You just cant get that stuff from an AI meat grinder, only a kind of copy that will remind you of Akira but lack the kind of narrative focus and creative scene writing and animation that made Akira so special.

[@TheImmoralNosferatuZodd]

There should have been a ton of documentaries about the process of anime in the 90's... Unfortunately, there are relatively none.

[@TolgaBedirVideos]

Can you imagine, They drew all any frame one by one.

[@brinckau]

Except the backgrounds. But yes, it is still a lot of work.

[@removed107]

Pensei a mesma coisa. I thoughts the same thing, this is so hard to do

[@KAZ64OST]

@@removed107 Trabalho do cacete não?por isso o filme dele é considerado a frente do seu tempo e a animação é além do extremo.

[@empress9554]

The artistry is almost heartbreaking. No scratch that the artistry is breathtaking. The hard work is what is heartbreaking. Every one of those animators deserves much praise for their dedication.

[@DietIce]

One of the coolest things on display right now at the Academy Museum in Los Angeles are concept art and actual individual cells that were used and photographed in the film! The backgrounds they painted and drew are absolutely stunning and was so cool to see in person!

[@JohannesLabusch]

"Doesn't it look real?" (showing person with green skin)

[@hazardeur]

That’s absolutely not the point you moron

[@Harrier_DuBois]

@@hazardeur What is the point then smart ass?

[@samuraivader3814]

@@hazardeur what is the point, dumbass?

[@Josuh]

@@hazardeur learn sarcasm

[@brinckau]

@@hazardeur And learn manners.

[@3DJapan]

This brings me back. In high school my hobby was painting animation cels. Later I went to school for animation where it was hand drawn. We had a device called a Lunchbox that would capture each image and transfer it to VHS tape.

[@MoonLoonie69]

That’s amazing!

[@shashankthami5055]

Akira is a masterpiece for this reason. Each frame is a wonderful art.

[@egsiio]

We are all agree that traditional process is more authentic and beautiful. But, we can't deny that all the animators today are really helped by the digital technology.

[@LordVerkins]

I appreciate fellow artists who draws.

[@Trigaming727]

So that is cell animation... AMAZING so people drew every single frame of an anime

[@djmarsone5209]

@abysmalfiend very Crazy right😓

[@flamezombie1]

Late post but not every frame - usually every other frame was drawn on '2s' (2 frames per drawing). For a few high detail scenes, '1s' were used, and it's incredibly impressive. But only very old animation used a drawing for every frame, and this led to a lot of mechanical looking animation. Even some '4s' where a single drawing is held for 4 frames are used in Akira. It doesn't make it look any worse, but it fits some scenes more than others. Slow, dialogue scenes for example don't need that many, and switching from 2s to 1s can make one scene seem that much more impactful.

[@souljastation5463]

@@flamezombie1 You're right. You reminded me that when I was a kid we used to watch a lot of anime, so when we saw He Man's extremely fluid walking animatiotion for the first time it seemed strangely unnatural, almost uncanny. I know it's stupid but while playing with friends we used to mock how He Man walks. Yet in theory He Man's walk was higher quality than most anime because it used more drawings.

[@hawshimagical]

@@souljastation5463 i think that animation was traced from a real person lol

[@gamingwithkev8208]

Asians are so patient and good with their hands taking time out to take care of small details and even minor. I can understand why they are so good with math and creating things...

[@IBigDickI]

0:43 That Underbite

[@Roguepoipoi]

This really shows their dedication towards animation. I’m a beginner at animating and watching this is just mind blowing knowing they didn’t have the digital aid we have today.

[@safe4547]

as much as I like traditional art and how animators draw everything by hand and paper back then, I'm glad our technology has evolved to help artist to work more efficiently and less tedious. Digital painting.

[@mdiaz013184]

Blows my mind...just imagine how long it would take to make a feature length anime back then

[@joshuathomas512]

The amount of dedication and work for such classic animes is unbelievable, I appreciate them even more than I already did

[@justju0rd]

Not a fan of anime but I have huge respects for Japanese animation

[@hansbrackhaus8017]

It was quite the challenge. Understatement of the century. I was impressed by this ever since I've seen it, and after a decade of not drawing anything and then deciding to do it properly this time, with construction and all that, I have been even more impressed. The craftsmanship of this piece is simply impeccable. It's not *perfect* perfect, there are errors but for all intents and purposes, this is perfect work of the highest grade. Start drawing yourself, or animating, keep a simple cubes volume intact while it spins. That is a fundamental primitive shape, and that alone can busts ones tamas quite a bit. Really puts it into perspective. So damn good.

[@doodleboi7034]

Yep. I been doing animation for almost a year and I can confirm you you will have your Head blast when you see movies like these.

[@RGMRT]

After watching this i will not complain about my free software i used to paint... These guys were the true legends....

[@Winduct]

I honestly wouldn't have had the patience of doing a film that way.

[@tinol6090]

they only did it that way, because there was no other way

[@Winduct]

@@tinol6090 Hmmm... thinking about it now 1 year later, I would.

[@eurobeatintensifies5840]

@@Winduct meh, I couldnt imagine doing it, I dont have the patience, I like getting my creations done in a day or 2, wouldn't be able to painstakingly hunch over painting 1 frame at a time with only 1 chance to draw that frame over and over with only a subtle change for hours on end. It would drive me mad

[@pdjinne65]

No AI, no tablet, n undo... just raw talent, a miracle. Something was lost when switching to digital, and now to AI.

[@marcelgowa]

anime will never be like this again, drawing on ipads is not the same as on paper....

[@Murf_Workshop]

HOLY SHIT THIS IS INTENSE!!! huge amount of effort, not to mention how tedious it might have been with a deadline attached. sucked the way things have changed, but it's good to see the amount of appreciation people have for this film now.

[@burgertim7878]

Over 30 years later and Akira still looks better and has better animation than 99.9% of all Anime produced today.

[@ti-fiter]

In the end, all that hard work sure paid off for giving us an amazing film

[@CATELlegend1]

Tradicional art is lost because of money. people kinda "discovered" that between just loving one work its nothing compared to people buying a lot more even if its an ok work. Human race is lead to mediocracy by greed. A true artist dont do it for the money. He does because its the best he can do. Imagine how much of time this was spent on... BUT, even you add every workers's hours on job it wouldnt be nearly as close as the entire world's views and reviews altogether. SO YES IT IS WORTH! People will watch this till they die. Their sons and grandsons will watch this. So, please, for any art director or producer out there reading this, make a good job. Dont ashame yourselves doing despicable artworks. You are better than this. A human being should ALWAYS do the best as possible. For anything in life. Peace.

[@doodleboi7034]

Its still there.

[@opsimathics]

actual animation work, done by true pros

[@jasonemile7163]

Man it’s 2020 and this movie is still THE greatest anime of all time. The artists behind this masterpiece are legendary!

[@Rinue618]

that's what I call insanity, we'll never have jobs at this level of complexity like this again

[@solitarycrow]

I want cel animation back.

[@ReadySetJapan]

It’s unbelievable the time and effort that went into this.

[@lordjeff6894]

I wanna draw like that

[@beelzemobabbity]

It’s amazing how they used to make them. Obviously digital allows them to make more projects with more ambitious movements, but something about the repeated care and detail of doing it by hand on papers is endearing.

[@9a3eedi]

As a colorblind person the amount of colors these people are working with stresses me out

[@julian-eu3xh]

This is why I love animation so much. The value of each frame is just different. When you watch a good anime, you can savoure each frame. Of course, it's better if the story is any good but even on it's own aesthaetic value, it holds a preciousness that a filmed movie will never be able to match.

[@BlueNovaBeats]

I would have lost my mind having to hand paint every scene one by one.

[@laylover7621]

This is batshit fucking crazy. Wayyy more complicated than what I expected making this movie would be like. How do they even do this? Speechless. Akira has got to be the greatest animation I've ever seen.

[@ArtisticCeleste]

This is how all animation was made back in the day, not just Akira-Snow White, Steamboat Willie, Sailor Moon-if its an animation done pre 2000 it is almost guaranteed to be done on cel outside of some exceptions. (Like any disney feature post little mermaid was animated by hand but colored digitally-backgrounds were still painted by hand and the tv cartoons were still cel)

[@th0r_0dinson]

2D > 3D.

[@AmineAmine-dd3eu]

Yup can't agree more my dude

[@zizaijunior5826]

@@AmineAmine-dd3eu you don't need to agree on anything, it's factual

[@bluesolace9052]

I like both, Spider Verse and Klaus are especially noteworthy of bringing out the best each has to offer

[@snesfan8935]

Nope

[@jonajo9757]

@@bluesolace9052 Klaus isn't cgi, bit sure.

[@colbystearns5238]

It's amazing that a movie like Akira was made the same way movies like Snow White were made, the old-fashioned way through hand-painted cels! Very cool video!

[@djmarsone5209]

Yep. Very Crazy 😵

[@free_spirit1]

It works when done properly. But there's a ton of really bad cel animation that runs at 1 FPS. Whether cel is superior to 3d CGI completely depends on the style and level of artistry involved in both, as both can look really good.

[@4.0.4]

Agreed when it comes to general CGI, but anime character CGI is pretty universally terrible. 3D models with the finesse of a mobile game, a toon shader that has been used since forever and still looks bad, and a reduction in frame rate to imitate anime style, that just comes off as choppy. I'm not saying 3D can't look good in anime, as it can be perfect for backgrounds and effects, but characters still look like a cheap imitation.

[@KarasawaL30]

@@4.0.4 I would advise caution in leaning too hard into that mindset, because as the technology improves, there will inevitably be little distinction between traditional 2D and CGI animation. This is especially true if you consider how streamlined the production pipeline is for shader technology and procedurally generated pre and post processing effects. Guilty Gear Xrd. Dragonball FighterZ. Granblue Fantasy Versus. Fighting games with this style that intentionally reduce frame rate to help readability from a game design perspective. Demon Slayer. Beastars. Dorohedoro. Vinland Saga. Each approach 3D CGI for their characters either partially or fully. Beastars in particular does an incredible job with their visual storytelling using only CGI characters. These are merely examples of big productions who only touch on the tech available. There’s so much out there right now in the 3D ecosystem that can perfectly replicate older styles, we’re just not seeing any of it.

[@4.0.4]

@@KarasawaL30 in the case of the fighting games you mentioned, they do it very well for being game assets, and I think that's the strongest scenario for CG anime. But in all of the anime mentioned, I don't think anyone would say "I'm glad it's CG and not drawn". Of course a good plot also makes the style look better, and in the case of Beastars, furries depart enough from normal anatomy that it helps.

[@el-karasu6070]

Like the old saying goes, the tools don't make the artist

[@listen_to_the_snail]

houseki no kuni is an amazing cgi anime as well

[@T3TomTomAwesomeYTchannel]

God bless each and every one of them for painting with such Detailed to the bone and sheer Discipline that they are AMZING human beings.

[@peteiscurious]

Damn...cant imagine how hard.the animation was when everthing had to be drawn manually without a computer

[@astriverofstrengthandknowledge]

The amount of dedication shown throughout the movie is unreal. Even a couple seconds worth of animation has so much poured into it.

[@chizusronda3917]

Es increíble el trabajo que tuvo esta película! Cuadro por cuadro, dibujando y pintando.... Impresionante!

[@georgesears6149]

this is a real masterpiece with no space to errors truly amazing, i miss that style of animation

[@fickdich2867]

It's a shame that cels are not used anymore. You just can't replicate the juicy colors digitally. It's actually a very underrated medium more artists should use, not just for animation. I love how clean, sleek and flashy good cels look.

[@ds-lm6pc]

Beyond just amazing committment and skill shown by these artists.. there was also an unprecedented amount of pressure put on them, and basically anyone that works in bigger name animations even still today, and many manga artists as well. Often subjected to 6-7 day work weeks, working anywhere from 14-18 hours a day depending on the point of production, with maybe half an hour to an hour total break for eating and rest within that day. Many will sleep in the studio, even live there. Many talanted animators and mangaka in Japan had lived to be only in there 50s to 60s. I always keep this in mind when watching animation, reading comics or manga, any sort of large scale team built piece of work. Nowadays that’s also manifested in video game production “crunches”. Bill waters on, creator of Calvin and Hobbes, fought to get a sabbatical for himself for about half a year, and took additional ones after towards the end of C&H because of the day to day non stop production quota. Not only did it drain him physically, but he was worried it would affect his mental health, the quality and integrity of his work, and cause him to focus more on producing something for the sake of having it made rather than putting quality first. And this is just one example. Akira is an amazing film, when I was younger I would’ve said the best XD. But to this day, and forever it will always stand as a monumental piece of work... the attention to detail, its place in history, the endless hours and sleepless nights that were spent in those studios.A shining piece of the talent and potential of human creativity, even under tremendous pressure. but also a prime example of how workers, no matter the occupation, can be taken advantage of by harsh and even cruel rules, deadlines, and rushes. I do not speak of Akira specifically here, just more so the industry in general. Sorry for the rant. :p

[@coolgoyim1133]

Every frame of the movie is a painting that costs a lot, I would like to put it on my wall even if it’s a uneventful frame of the movie. What a masterpiece

[@al_3j...d446]

🤯 la animación tradicional es arte puro! 😍

[@TokyoQuaSaR]

If you ever have occasion to come to Tokyo, there is the Ghibli Museum that explains pretty well how traditional 2D animation works, quite similar to this video. You have to get the ticket to the museum at least a month early by the way.

[@timtam3730]

Akira would have definitely won the oscar for fhe best animated film.

[@Nyerguds]

Myeah, Akira is from '88. The Academy Award for Best Animated Feature only started from 2002.

[@timtam3730]

@@Nyerguds Yeah I know. I also think Grave of The Fireflies and Ghost in a Shell would have had a good chance as well

[@Nyerguds]

@@timtam3730 oh gods, that movie... I still have traumas about Grave of the Fireflies. Brilliant, brilliant movie... but only once and never again :|

[@jackaubrey3037]

@@Nyerguds precisely my reaction. once was enough. then i was crazy enough to watch Nobody Knows. 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

[@ZeeZeeBun]

Speaking as a digital artist.. This stuff just blows my mind... Whenever I feel like complaining about a modern tool.. I just look back at things like this and remember how easy we have it now..

[@Tarkus-Ivalice-dweller]

Impressive. True effort went into old school films and it was worth it because we got such an incredible movie.

[@ImmaSoiFon2]

I wish traditional animation is still done today. Would love to work at a background artist/painter in the industry.

[@CIII328]

I’m 43 seconds in and already blown away.

[@marcell7406]

lmao thank god somebody recorded this back in 1988 and etc.... we need this

[@mario167100]

Hand Drawn Animation is a special type of artform that requires so much more attention and money than any other form of animation. Each frame has to be pain stakenly drawn, outlined, and painted in order for it to even be able to PASS as good. It's no wonder 3D has overtaken 2D, not say one is better than the other.

[@Holleaux]

I'm stressed out just watching this.

[@jackaubrey3037]

imagine accidentally getting a drop of sweat on a background painting. panic attack, anyone?

[@MEMEMEME-dl8ii]

It always blows my mind that 90s anime were made in paper

[@sonnic1995]

0:08 someone knows the name of that tool? (the transparent thing with a ball which seems to be to for making precision dots/points without touching the paper)

[@dr.thunder1567]

Wish I had it whatever it is!

[@KLaudiuszRaral]

Grooved rule, you may find them in amazon. Looks like the brand is Orions.

[@TONKtag]

ここにあります。 amzn.to/3j7VYTB

[@kentallard8852]

@@KLaudiuszRaral what was the glass ball sitting in the groove?

[@KLaudiuszRaral]

@@kentallard8852 it is what allows the paintbrush holder through the groove to move fluidly and so achieve straight lines or details of the same line.

[@maartenvisser64]

Ive watched this VHS in the 90s Everyday after school. Saw it 300 times

[@canman1088]

This is awesome if watching tv in the biblical era. Fast forward to present day and you can achieve this with a drawing pad on a computer and even have a much wider range of colors to choose from. Painstaking art that can take months to produce can be done in 45 min.

[@thecommenter578]

The guy with headphones at work. Some things never change :D

[@ALITHEGREAT47]

Art

[@princessjazz061]

This is so amazing. Just getting to see how much work goes into the moving of a movie like this makes you appreciate it so much more.

[@spineappletea]

I find it a little weird that they never mention Akira as the movie they're making. Just "the production" or "the film".

[@jellogecko]

That explains why it still looks better then what we have now.

[@Menaceblue3]

They don't make'em like they use to!

[@starxsoulwings9379]

There was a reason why Cel animation was no longer being used...Sorry...

[@kenny3001]

@@starxsoulwings9379 digital ink and paint is cost effective

[@starxsoulwings9379]

@@kenny3001 Oh?

[@kenny3001]

@@starxsoulwings9379 infact disney animation experimented on digtal coloring in 1989 with some scenes in the little mermaid

[@starxsoulwings9379]

@@kenny3001 Ah, Depending before when?

[@abdulqudus425]

It really makes you appreciate the hardwork that goes into making the old style of animation.

[@stevphiericardo2790]

Old school cell animation is amazing....