Yoshimi Yamagata Aoyagi

June Dormitory Diary Entry - Kim

Hello, Kim here.

This is my dormitory diary entry for June.

I can feel Summer rolling in fast as the temperature rises.

We have an air conditioner at the studio that they keep on which I’m thankful for, but sometimes it gets too cold in there so I bring a long sleeve with me to use at work.

I’ve been doing a lot of pen-and-paper animation recently and I don’t think it’s going too well.

Hands are often used as a way to show a character's emotions and I’v...

Early Access - Episode 27: Two Years as a Japanese Animator

Early Access - Episode 26: Breaking the 1,000 Dollar Barrier as a Japanese Animator！

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Shimai

Sorry for the late update! As always, thank you for your support. This is Shimai.

Here is my dormitory diary entry for May.

I’ve been feeling sick, so I’m trying to be extra careful about my health this month…

I’ve gotten some in-between assignments for training doing water effects and dynamic fabric movement.

Both present difficult issues because there are no consistent shapes, but it’s also interesting because, even if given the same keyframes to work from,...

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Yamaguchi

Thank you for your support.

This is Tomona Yamaguchi.

I’ve so far managed to stay well and stave off any May sickness after my first Golden Week in the field.

It looks like I’ll be in training all through Summer.

Recently I’ve been practicing in-betweens for movements like walking, running, etc.

These have been very difficult and I'm getting corrections back over and over and over again despite only having a limited amount of frames to draw.

To better...

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Ura

Hello.

Ura here. I spent my Golden Week locked inside drawing and watching anime.

This is my dormitory diary entry for May.

I’m slowly getting used to Tokyo, but it’s regrettable that I still can’t go sightseeing anywhere. I wanna go to Akihabara!!

I did training on pen and paper for about two weeks, and I've since switched over to digital. My studio mainly works digitally, but I appreciated my time working traditionally, even if it was short-lived.

We’re...

Early Access - Episode 25 : Retainer Fees in the Japanese Anime Industry

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Kuroda

Hello, Kuroda here.

This is my dormitory diary entry for May.

I went back home for Golden Week, and maybe it was because I’d gotten used to my life in Tokyo, but I woke up in the morning to find that my face was all swollen like I had an extra layer of skin around my eyes. I assume it had something to do with my body being shocked by the change of environment. Maybe it was because I’d been eating out a lot with my family since they were so glad to have me back, or maybe it was...

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Aoki

Thank you for your support. Yuto Aoki here!

This is my dormitory diary entry for May.

I’ve finished training on the basics of tracing, and now I’m doing actual animation work. I’ve got a bit of a dilemma on my hands though as I spend so much time focusing on drawing neatly which means I'm not making any money. I wanna try and hit over 200 frames done this month!

This is off topic, but I got the chance to go to the aquarium over Golden Week. It’d been a while since I ...

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Yamamoto

Hello!

Yamamoto here.

The beginning of May brought with it Golden Week so I haven't been in the studio very much, but I’ve been slowly moving through my training assignments.

However, I’m only able to draw about 3 frames a day right now, I’m trying to set a daily goal of frames to complete.

That way I can get my training done quickly and start working as an actual in-between animator.

I haven’t been drawing much outside of work, but starting this May I’...

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Watanabe

Thank you very much for your support. This is Watanabe.

Here’s my dormitory diary entry for May.

I’m still smack-dab in the middle of in-between training, just as I was last month. I’ve gotten the hang of most of the software which previously confused me. I’ve learned a lot in training. My days have been challenging but rewarding. When we started clean-up training, my lines were all over the place. The points where my lines connect were messy and I was getting back a crazy...

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Nakamura

Here’s my diary entry for May!

Just when I thought it was getting cold, the temperature randomly jumped up by 30 degrees. I can’t believe this weather. Something tells me I’m gonna get sick again…

After a bit of an adjustment, I feel like I’ve gotten the hang of my work.

In-betweens are still hard. I’m not exactly good yet, but I feel like I’m getting better.

It sucks cause I wanna be super good but I know that still blow chunks.

Though, that means ...

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Kimura

Hello. Kimura here, and I injured my work hand on a metal bar.

This is my dormitory diary entry for May.

I’ve decided to start doing one drawing per day starting today. I draw all day at work, but this will be separate from that.

This all started because someone asked me to do a drawing and I couldn’t come up with any ideas or sense of composition for the life of me. I used the fact that I draw 8 hours a day for work as an excuse, but really, I just fell off the wagon wi...

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Sakamoto

Hello everyone. It’s Sakamoto.

This is my dormitory diary entry for May.

It’s been one month since I joined my studio, and my in-between/key tracing supervisor said that my drawings could be used on real projects. My speed has gotten faster too. While it took me 4 hours to draw one frame before, I can now draw that same frame in 2 hours.

After key tracing, I did blinking/mouth animation, compositing, and simple in-betweens. Now, I’m still doing simple in-betweens but o...

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Kim

Hello everyone. Kim here.

This is my dormitory diary entry for May.

I shifted out of training and into actual work in April, so it’s already been about a month since then. I’m getting the hang of in-between animation, so I’ve been working on some higher-level cuts. Stuff like turning, hands from different angles, stuff like that.

As these cuts are harder they take more time to draw, and once completed, almost all of them had to be corrected. It’s been a good learning...

Early Access - Episode 24: Why I Continue to Work as a Japanese Animator

Early Access : Episode 23・Thinking About Quitting My Job as a Japanese Animator

Early Access : How to Make Anime: Part 3 - Staff Meetings (English Dub)

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Watanabe

Hello. Watanabe here.

This is my dormitory diary entry for April.

I recently had my initiation ceremony where I got to meet my co-workers. I was a bit anxious as I thought I might've been the only new person at the studio this year, and I was relieved to see that wasn’t the case. Everyone at the studio seems very kind which I'm thankful for.

My studio primarily deals in digital animation so there are a lot of tools and software that I’ll have to learn. I’m not sure if ...

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Yamamoto

Hello!

Konoka Yamamoto here!

My first day of work started on April 1st!

We had new hire orientation and I even got a tour of the studio!

It was really fun to meet all of my peers!

It was also cool to see all the senior staff too. We caught them in the middle of work during the tour.

I'm both excited and anxious to know that I will be working amongst them.

I wanna learn all of the equipment, software, and other stuff as fast as I can so I can get comfo...

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Yamaguchi

Thank you for your support.

This is Tomona Yamaguchi.

I finally started my animation career in April.

I’m still in my apprenticeship though, so my days are basically the same as they were in March. That is, studying in-between animation all day every day.

Due to COVID restrictions, my studio didn’t hold a new hire ceremony this year so all of this change doesn't feel as…real? 

I feel like that'll change once my apprenticeship is over though and I get m...

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Kuroda

Hello, Kuroda here.

This is my dormitory diary entry for April.

April 1st marked my first day of work! I was so excited…or should I say nervous. It felt like my heart was gonna beat out of my chest the whole day.

I asked my friend who’s heading into the fashion industry to design my outfit for the day which I wore to my orientation.

My desire to quickly get an outfit together superseded my anxiety about going to work, and I made it through the day without issue. 2022-04-10 04:01:03 +0000 UTC View Post

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Kimura

Hello. I'm now a second-year in-between animator. Kimura here. This is my dormitory diary entry for April.

The other day, some junior animators joined our studio. Their first day consisted of half in-between animation training and half etiquette lectures. Seeing them reminded me of myself at their stage and how hard I had to struggle.

I was among the in my studio to graduate and become an in-between animator, so I had no seniors that I could consult. I was super worried because I ...

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Shimai

Hello. It’s Shimai. This is my dormitory diary entry for April.

It’s been a week since I started living alone. I've gotten in the habit of cleaning or doing laundry, but I can't cook at all. I'm pretty much relying on frozen foods and instant meals... Yesterday, I cooked some frozen gyoza from Ajinomoto for the first time. They were easy to cook and tasted as good as I'd always heard. I recommend them to anyone who, like me, hates to cook!

On April 1st, training for new employ...

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Ura Takazumi

Hello. Ura here.

This is my dormitory diary entry for April.

On April 1st, I started new-hire training at my new studio.

I was nervous because I interviewed online, so this was my first time actually going to the studio in person. Everyone at the studio was kind enough to welcome me though. I was especially glad because many of the senior animators around my age were cheerful and spoke to me in a friendly manner.

My training regimen seems to be the following: Tracing, ...

Early Access : Episode 22 : Those I've Met at the Animator Dormitory

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Sakamoto

Hi everyone, Sakamoto here.

This is my dormitory diary entry for April.

I joined a  new studio this month, so I’ve only been with them a few days, but already I’ve gotten a low-down of the company and mingled a bit with my seniors before starting training.

We're doing keyframe tracing first. I’m having trouble drawing cleanly. My brush density is either too high or my lines are too thick, but it’s getting easier as I continue to study. I’ve only just started a...

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Aoki

Thank you for your support! Aoki Yuto here.

This is my dormitory diary entry for April.

Training started on April 1st, I got my equipment and a rundown of the job, then we went straight into keyframe tracing practice!

My first day lasted about 6 hours and my fingers are already stinging with pain (laugh).

I can't wait to be able to draw cleaner lines!

Inside the studio, we have a lot of reference material from our own projects as well as those from other studios....

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Nakamura

Hello! Nakamura here!

I’m done moving!! I love my new room and the layout is amazing!!!

I’m still unorganized so the room is a bit messy.

My bed will be here on the 10th, so I have to clean up before then.

Tokyo isn't so different from Osaka, it's so cozy!

I haven't had a chance to walk around the area much yet, but it's really nice! Since I can get everything I need in one area, I haven’t traveled very far since I’m trying to cut down on my travel expens...

April Dormitory Diary Entry - Kim

Hello, Kim here.

This is my dormitory diary entry for April.

After doing pre-employment training in March, I'll officially be joining my new studio on April 1st.

I’ll still be in training during April, but I hear that if I improve fast enough then I can get to work faster, so I’m tackling it with all the energy I have.

Before COVID, I guess the studio held a welcoming party for new hires, but that’s understandably not happening this year. It feels a bit sad. (I r...