Speaking of TRIGGER, I'm afraid that many anime viewers will not be unfamiliar. Since the launch of "Hell Police" in 2011, the company has successively brought popular titles such as "Slashing Girl" and "Abnormal Battles in Everyday Life". Recently, with the hit of "Ninja Killer", some Japanese media have revealed the company's secrets.

★ The animation industry is changing, so should the company!

Masahiko Otsuka, the head of TRIGGER, said in an interview that the reason for the establishment of TRIGGER was to be at the forefront of the times: "I think the business model of buying discs has come to an end. ”

Here, if I want to briefly explain the animation industry, it is that the dividing line of the times is in the mid-90s. In the early days, animation was basically produced within the framework of a budget provided by a TV sponsor. And after the broadcast of "Neon Genesis Evangelion" began in 1995, the situation began to change. The works that aired began to be released in the form of discs, and the producers worked hard to increase sales. However, in recent years, sales have been declining.

"When it comes to the disc purchase type, it is basically a group of enthusiastic customers who support the structure of the animation. In recent years, some works that are more cheerful and relaxed, and do not drag the mud and water, have sold better. From the perspective of the production side, of course, I hope to make the best-selling works. However, if I evaluate a work purely from the perspective of sales, then I am a little worried: Is it a loss of diversity? That's one of the reasons I started my company. (Otsuka, the same below)

There are a lot of high-quality works, and even if there are no characters that make otaku want to marry home, they can still win praise. However, the purchasing power of non-deep homes is declining. And the company's driving force is to get more people to pay attention to animation.

"I don't think the number of people watching the anime has changed compared to before. However, with so much entertainment available to mobile games today, there are fewer viewers who just spend money on animation. If you want to buy expensive discs, then you can only squeeze the pockets of a few fans. In this way, I think our approach should be changed from 'asking a few for a lot of money' to 'asking for a small amount of money from the many'. ”

★ The times have shifted to a model of small fees

Of course, a best-selling work naturally has many advantages that deserve to be praised. However, in the current government-led "COOLJAPAN" project, we are still looking for a variety of animation "groups". And companies that value sales can easily lose this diversity. Otsuka sees this as a loss for the Japanese animation industry.

"The work is for the audience to save zài. However, the frenetic and challenging nature of the work will bring excitement to the animation makers. Immediately, the stimulated individual will bring new inspiration to the work. I think this kind of cycle can improve the industry as a whole. ”

Whether it's "Ninja Slayer" or "Kill the Girl", it is full of new attempts by the production staff. And the company wants to support this willingness to take on the challenge behind the scenes.

For this reason, in the new model, a small amount of tuition is inevitable. For example, "Ninja Killer" is now broadcast on platforms such as the Niconico anime pay channel for a fee, and this is one way.

The broadcast of works is developing in the direction of "network broadcasting". This also coincides with Otsuka's thoughts. Since the communication system of animation has changed, so will the work itself.

"Viewers often criticize TV series...... But it's also hard to do with works that have to be delivered every week. After all, I create works without seeing the results and only groping, so I will directly reflect the results of all kinds of distress on the scene. But if you don't use TV broadcasting, then you won't have to submit a finished film every week, and you can ** goods at once. And there's no need to make 1 episode 30 minutes, it can be 45 minutes or 1 hour, it's all free. Of course, the animation scene can't be turned upside down all at once. Let's take your time. ”

★ Crowdfunding to reach the target amount in just 6 hours

One way to get a small amount of money from the majority is through crowdfunding. The "Little Witch School Park Theater Version", which is scheduled to be released in October this year, has raised part of the budget through guò's method.

This work is one of the entries in the "Future of Animation 2013", a young animator training program launched by the Agency for Cultural Affairs. After that, it was broadcast on websites such as Niconico Anime and received a good response. For this reason, many fans asked for a sequel, so it was made in the form of a theatrical version. And this work has also received the attention of many overseas fans.

"Using crowdfunding is not really a strategic issue. At the end of the day, I just want to meet the needs of overseas audiences. So I feel like this work is just 'done well by chance.'" It is still unclear whether new business models will be opened up in this regard. And it doesn't necessarily mean that all works work in the same way. A work like "Little Witch Academy" that can be watched by a family may be suitable for crowdfunding. ”

The response to the crowdfunding was overwhelming, with the target amount of $150,000 achieved in less than 6 hours from the start. At the end of the one-month crowdfunding period, a total of about $630,000 (about 74 million yen) was raised. It seems that not only Japanese but also foreigners buy works that value quality and care for details.

★ Have the persistence of "improving the work until the last moment"!

When it comes to how delicate TRIGGER's works are, we can speak with numbers. In less than 30 minutes, Ninja Killer has more than 17,000 shots. For this reason, the industry also commented: "This is by no means unusual. ”

"Our staff are working hard. After all, they did this job to make zuò animations, so they not only paid attention to the quality of each one, but also 'gradually piled up the quantity', so it was very hard...... However, the young people of recent times have been very persistent until the last moment. For this reason, at the time of "Cutting the Girl", the quality of the production was really not enough to keep up with the time and budget, and in the end, the TV station only took away the "last-minute work" (laughs)"

To achieve the "perfection" of the system, then there is not enough time. For the maker, it may not be satisfying. But "Cutting the Girl" has fully convinced the audience. The strength of TRIGGER is truly amazing!

★ We are also looking forward to original works in the future!

How did TRIGGER choose when making zuò works?

"Luckily, we can find a recipient for any subject. For a work like "Ninja Killer" this time, there is an original work, because Tetsu Amamiya raised his hand and said, 'I'm going to do it!' So leave it to him. In the case of original works, it takes a lot of time to make zuò, so it is impossible to make too many of them. ”

In Japan, there are many animation studios, but only a few of them can plan and produce original works.

"Even if the original adaptation animation is popular, the results belong to the original. And the original work is grown from the premise that there is no fan base at all, so the stakes are high. However, in addition to improving the diversity of my work, I would like to work on original works in order to improve the treatment of animators. ”

In fact, they discussed the idea of "ULTRASUPERPICTURES" with the president of Sanyuan Corporation, Matsuura, which was unveiled as a group company at the beginning of its establishment. SO WHAT EXACTLY IS THE PURPOSE OF ULTRASUPERPICTURES?

"Although we are a group company, each studio has its own autonomy, so it is a relationship of mutual support at each other's work sites...... But! Because we jointly own the logistics management department, it is also a great help. When it comes to animation companies, there are also manager, human resources and other positions, and they are operated by an organizational system just like ordinary companies. However, people who come from other industries will always be overwhelmed. After all, 9 percent of animators are free men. Due to the scale of the work, there are many people who sign the agreement. However, when I came back to my senses, I found that there had been no orders for a long time...... In short, you need to deal with people with personalities. It's not easy to develop the people who support an organization's operations. And being able to share the logistics management department is really helpful. ”

So, when building a large organization, is it possible to prepare a foolproof system?

Tetsu Amamiya, the director of the "Ninja Killer" series, Yoyuki Imaishi, the director of "Cutting the Girl", Kazuki Nakajima, and Ji Chengyao, the director of "Little Witch Gakuen". In addition, there is also Toshio Ishizaki, who made the animation of the promotional film of "Momoiro Clover Z", and so on. In TRIGGER, there are many talents who can not only attract the attention of anime audiences, but also ordinary people can become fans of their works. In the future, we will not miss every move of this company!