Yoshimi Yamagata Aoyagi

September Dormitory Diary Entry - Watanabe

Greetings, and thank you for your continued support. This is Watanabe.

I'm posting the dormitory diary for September.

With colds and the like circulating in the community, I hope you're doing well. Speaking of which, I caught a cold during the Obon holidays, and it took a while for me to recover, which was tough. I need to be more attentive to my health.

Lately, outside of work, I haven't been able to draw much. Although I feel it's not a good sign, by the time I return home...

Early Access: Key Animator Training Program ③ Using Rotoscope!

August Dormitory Diary Entry - Kuroda

Greetings everyone, Kuroda here.

My apologies for the delay.

Here’s my August dorm diary entry.

Recently, I had the chance to work on a project I've always wanted to do.

My fondness for the piece made me a bit more nervous than usual, so it took slightly more time for me to animate what I saw in my head.

I've heard of animators who deliberately avoid reading source material, and I think I now understand why they might choose to do that.

I'm eagerly lookin...

August Dormitory Diary Entry - Sakamoto

Hello, everyone.

Sakamoto here with my August dorm diary entry.

It came a bit earlier than expected, but I've finished moving!

My old place had construction on most mornings, often waking me up.

So having that noise gone now is fantastic.

An added bonus? The station, office, supermarket, and convenience store are all closer now than before. Makes both work and daily life so much easier.

Lately, "Jujutsu Kaisen" has been mind-blowingly awesome. The sheer bri...

August Dormitory Diary Entry - Ura

Hello everyone, Lately, I've been freezing at my desk thanks to the direct blast from the AC. Well, I'm Ura, and I'm glad to report I finally got a seat change.

Here's my August dorm diary entry.

There were times I found myself bundled up in a hoodie and hat just to work.

So, shifting seats? Best move ever. Now, I'm all comfy and cozy. At the end of last month, I saw "Summer Wars" in the cinema. It's my all-time favorite anime, and I'd been eagerly awaiting its re-screening....

August Dormitory Diary Entry - Yamamoto

Hey there, it's Yamamoto. Time for my August dorm diary update! August is here, and I'm genuinely thrilled that our in-house projects are picking up steam.

Also, the key animation study group is kicking off this month, and I'm raring to go.

I'm eager to dive deep, soak up as much knowledge as I can, and hopefully transition to a key animator role soon.

Setting a goal for myself: aiming to tackle 400 pages this month! Yamamoto,

August 7, 2023.

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August Dormitory Diary Entry - Okabe

Greetings, Okabe here.

I've got a mock test for a key animation exam coming up, and boy, am I nervous. Before that, I'm heading back to my hometown for about five days. Even though I'll be on break, I intend to put in some solid practice while at home.

The other day, when I was compiling some scenes, my colleagues and I divided amongst ourselves to check out work. I couldn't help but notice that my movements were a tad more jittery compared to my peers. It was one of those slow, g...

August Dormitory Diary Entry - Kimura

Hello, it's Kimura from the dormitory.

Here's my dorm diary entry for August. The heat's been pretty relentless lately. I hope everyone's keeping cool.

At my office, they finally fixed the broken air conditioner. It's made working so much more comfortable. But stepping out can be brutal when you're inside enjoying the cool air for too long. I've tried to counteract this by going for light jogs, but keeping up the habit is tough. I stumbled upon a local stand selling summer veggies...

August Dormitory Diary Entry - Ichikawa

Good evening!

Lately, the weather has been all over the place, flipping like a coin. Seems like a summer cold is making its rounds; a few of my colleagues are feeling under the weather. Right now, I'm diving deep into animation practice, tackling a range of challenges. I'm working on everything from running and walking sequences to more intricate scenes involving flags and explosions. The difficulty level keeps ramping up! In the studio, some colleagues and I, along with a few veterans,...

August Dormitory Diary Entry - Watanabe

Hello everyone, it's Watanabe here.

This is my dormitory diary entry for August.

With the students enjoying their summer vacations, my younger sister took the chance to swing by Tokyo. We explored spots I don't usually frequent, and man, were they some eye-opening experiences!

Last month, I caught "How Do You Live?" on the big screen. Not gonna lie, parts of it were a bit over my head. But the more I thought about it, the more intrigued I became. These days, its themes often...

Key Animation: Mother's Basement and Family (In Progress)

Our good friend Geoff from Mother's Basement has played a huge part in lifting our project off the ground. Last year, he helped us raise awareness for our first music video, which near instantly propelled us over our funding goal.

Here's an in-progress layout for an animation dedicated to him and his family!

Early Access: Key Animator Training Program ② Let's Make an Eye-catch!

July Dormitory Diary Entry - Ichikawa

Good evening, it's Ichikawa here.

This week, I'm finally graduating from Sasayuri (an animation certificate program) and will be transitioning into my new role as a key animator.

I'm yet to find out the specifics of my work or whether I'll be in office/remote now, so I’ve got butterflies in my stomach about the whole thing.

I can't express enough how grateful I am for the generous guidance I received from my instructors at Sasayuri.

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July Dormitory Diary Entry - Kimura

Hello everyone, I’m Kimura, a resident of the Animator Dormitory.

This is my July dormitory diary entry.

Ever since last month, the air conditioning at work has been on the fritz, and we've been trying to get our artwork done in this unbearable heat. Luckily, since we're working digitally, we don't have to stress about our papers getting warped from sweat, but boy, by the time the day ends, I'm beat and I sleep like a baby. Here's hoping they fix it soon.

As for my workloa...

July Dormitory Diary Entry - Ura

Hey there, This is Ura, and I recently scared some nurses by getting sick during a blood test at my last health check-up.

Here's my dorm diary entry for July.

Last year, I was so nervous about the blood test that I decided to do it while lying down.

That went pretty smoothly, so I tried to take it up a notch this year by doing it the standard way (sitting up).

As the blood draw went on, I started to feel dizzy, gradually becoming nauseous until I finally had to throw i...

July Dormitory Diary Entry - Sakamoto

Hello there, it's Sakamoto.

Here's my dormitory diary entry for July.

A few months back, I had a chance to work on an animated movie.

Apparently, the studio has been handing out movie tickets to those who worked n the film, and I was lucky enough to get one. Besides being credited in the movie, this gave me a tangible sense of contribution to the project, which felt great.

My work is continuing smoothly without any changes, so I'm motivated to keep my current pace.&nbs...

July Dormitory Diary Entry - Watanabe

Thank you for your continued support.

This is Watanabe.

Here's my dormitory diary entry for July.

The summer anime season has started.

I had the opportunity to work on several shows among the many anime airing this season, so I'm really looking forward to seeing them on TV.

About a month after I started working in animation, I had to work on a challenging cut. It was such a struggle, I was on the verge of tears. That piece is going to be broadcast, so I'm super e...

July Dormitory Diary Entry - Yamamoto

Thank you for your continued support!

This is Yamamoto!

Here's my dormitory diary entry for July!

The other day, I had the opportunity to chat with some of the other animators at my studio.

I always love speaking with others, getting workflow tips, and learning more about lesser-known features of our software!

I heard there will be some animation workshops starting in August, which I'm really looking forward to!

It's hard to believe that we're already halfw...

June Dormitory Diary Entry - Yamamoto

Thank you for your continued support!

This is Yamamoto!

Here's my diary entry for June! With the recent surge of rainy days, doing laundry has become a bit of a struggle as clothes take forever to dry. On top of that, the high temperature makes everything more exhausting.

As for work, June has been a productive month, and I believe I've managed to create quite a number of animations! I'm looking forward to continuing this momentum into the coming month! 2023.07.02 Yamamoto 2023-07-11 08:24:46 +0000 UTC View Post

July Dormitory Diary Entry - Kuroda

Thank you for your support. Kuroda here.

Here’s my dormitory diary entry for July.

Can't believe it's already July! Time sure does fly, doesn't it? Each day, as I delve into my personal practice and animation work, I find myself questioning: "Have I made any progress since yesterday?" or simply battling with the feeling that I'm still not good enough.

Just the other day, I watched a movie called "Monster" and was absolutely blown away by it. Simultaneously, it stirred with...

July Dormitory Diary Entry - Okabe

I hope this message finds you in good spirits.

This is Okabe.

Just as I breathed a sigh of relief upon finishing a particularly taxing cut, I realized that my next assignment looked just as daunting. I must admit, the prospect of diving into it after the weekend is somewhat intimidating.

Recently, I got my hands on a tiny model of a leather shoe from a capsule toy machine. It's surprisingly proven to be a valuable resource for my drawings. I've heard there are also miniature...

June Dormitory Diary Entry - Ueno

Thank you for your support! This is Ueno.

Here’s my dormitory diary entry for June.

It’s been so hot recently that it’s made going outside a chore… It’s only June…How the heck is it so hot?

At the studio, I’ve been working on my in-betweens.

I’ve gotten really used to tracing – my lines are cleaner than before, even though I’m drawing faster.

It makes me happy.

It’s been really fun to draft different movements, like characters turning ...

June Dormitory Diary Entry - Aoki

Thank you very much for your support – Aoki here.

This is my June Dormitory Diary entry.

At the beginning of the month, I fell down with COVID-19 for the second time.

Being my second time with COVID, I didn’t really get much of a fever and recovered in 4 days. That said, my sense of taste and smell is still dull.

I hear there’s gonna be a company dinner towards the middle of this month, so I’m hoping I’ll be recovered enough to go outside and enjoy some good ...

May Dormitory Diary Entry - Aoki

Thank you for your support. This is Yuto Aoki.

I took my key animation test at the end of May, but sadly, I didn’t pass.

It’s been difficult to get my frame count (and thus my salary) to a place where I’m satisfied…

I’ll continue to do my best next month, regardless!

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お世話になっております青木佑人です。

5月末に二原の試験を受けたのですが落とされてしまいました。

ま�...

June Dormitory Diary Entry - Ura

Greetings from a chilly desk at the office.

This is Ura bundled in a jacket to protect against the office air conditioner (blowing directly on me). Here's my dormitory diary for June.

Not long ago, at the tail end of last month, I joined my fellow colleagues from the same hiring class and this year's new recruits for a shared meal. In contrast to last year, when we didn't begin these informal gatherings until around mid-summer, we've started much earlier this year.

Prior to ...

June Dormitory Diary Entry - Watanabe

I trust this message finds you in good health. This is Watanabe. I am submitting my dormitory diary entry for June. At my company, we are assigned monthly tasks as part of our journey to becoming key animators. Last month, I studied 3D layouts using Blender. My assignment involved adjusting the positions of the characters and camera angles to match the storyboard. I found this task challenging as someone who had barely used 3D software before. On the other hand, I was struck by the convenienc...

June Dormitory Diary Entry - Kuroda

Hello.

This is Kuroda with my dormitory diary entry for June.

Recently, I was caught in a typhoon and ended up walking home with my shoes completely soaked. They still haven't dried out, and I'm at a loss about how to speed up the process, so I've left them as is for now.

Of late, I've been primarily working as a key animation assistant. I'm a bit anxious about whether I'll be able to handle the in-between animation work adequately once it comes in, so I've been taking extra...

June Dormitory Diary Entry - Kimura

Hello. This is Kimura, a resident of the Animator Dormitory.

Here’s my dormitory diary entry for June.

Recently, I was given the opportunity to examine some past layout work from our studio’s production team. Even at the layout stage, their drawings already seemed quite impressive. but I was told that all of them received corrections and that “none of them could be used as-is.” This really highlighted for me the demanding nature of anime production. To be honest, right now...

June Dormitory Diary Entry - Ichikawa

Good evening, Ichikawa here.

I had an amazing time today at a Macross Δ LIVE concert with a friend from work.

Our workload has been increasing recently, both in terms of volume and complexity, resulting in longer hours.

I've even developed a callus on my finger from all the pen use, which strangely makes me feel like a bona fide animator.

Here’s a sketch I did while unwinding.

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こんばんは、市川です

今日�...

June Dormitory Diary Entry - Okabe

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

These days, when I think, "This job will be over in just a few more hours,” the clock doesn’t seem to move. However, I will persevere!  Lately, I've been using a non-display tablet rather than a display tablet for my work. Consequently, I find myself in a more reclined posture at the office, somewhat resembling lounging around, which can be slightly embarrassing since I'm the only one in this stance. However, this approach al...