The origins of Japanese animation, often referred to as anime, began in the early 20th century, with the first known anime dating from 1917. Original pioneers of this highly popular art form include Seitaro Kitayama, Shimokawa Oten and Jun'ichi Kouchi, who developed techniques being employed by filmmakers in the United States, Germany and France.
Seitaro Kitayama produced both chalkboard and paper animation, founding the “Kitayama Eiga Seisakujo”, his own animation studio. However, unlike Shimokawa Oten and Jun'ichi Kouchi, a large corporation did not back Kitayama. The animation studio that he founded sadly closed due to the lack of financial success.
Shimokawa Oten was hired to produce animation by Tenkatsu. Originally working for the magazine Tokyo Puck as a cartoonist and political caricaturist, Oten only produced five movies due to ill health, before returning to his previous career. Of the work that he produced, “Imokawa Mukuzo Genkanban no Maki” is the most notable, dating from 1917.
Jun'ichi Kouchi was also a caricaturist, as well as a painter of watercolours. In 1916 Kobayashi Shokai engaged his services as an animator, producing some fifteen movies. Of all the Japanese animators of the 1910's, Jun'ichi Kouchi is considered the most advanced and technically proficient.
Other important early animators include Sanae Yamamoto, Hakuzan Kimura, Noburo Ofuji and Yasuji Murata. All were students of Seitaro Kitayama and until the 1923 great Kanto earthquake, worked at the Kitayama Eiga Seisakujo studio. Most of the studio was destroyed by the earthquake, leading to the young animators beginning their own studios.
Pre-war Japanese animation studios faced major difficulties, with competition from Disney and other foreign studios flooding the domestic market. These imports had already turned a profit turned a profit abroad, so by the time they were screened in Japan, they could be reduced in price undercutting the local studios.
Japanese animators were, therefore, forced to work to very small budgets. This meant that studios were very small, with only a handful of employees. As profits flowed back to the larger foreign studios, the difficulties were then compounded, as quality became an issue.
Foreign studios began to include both sound and colour. They also employed new techniques including the use of multi-plane cameras and cell animation. By contrast, Japanese animators were unable to use cell animation because celluloid was cost prohibitive.
However, the difficulties faced by the domestic studios became a very powerful creative force. Animators such as Noburo Ofuji and Yasuji Murata produced some masterpieces of cut out animation.
In an attempt to bring anime up to the standard of the foreign studios, artists such as Mitsuyo Seo and Kenzo Masaoka eventually introduced cell animation and sound. In 1933, Masaoka released “Chikara To Onna No Yono Naka”, the first anime with speech, followed by “The Dance of the Chagamas”, produced entirely using cell animation. In 1941, Seo used the multi-plane camera for the first time, during the production of “Ari-chan”.
These innovations, however, were hard to support commercially, forcing animators to search for sponsorship from both the government and private companies. Animators, therefore, often concentrated on producing educational and public relations films. This eventually lead to the production of propaganda animations for the Japanese military.
The industry received a further boost, as the government enforced cultural nationalism during the 1930's. By the time of the film law of 1939, which promoted educational films and documentaries, live action studios began to produce animation. The industry had found a niche in industrial, political and educational use.
At the outbreak of the Second World War, the military commissioned more animated films. With the help and support of the Navy, Mitsuyo Seo animated “Momotaro's Sea Eagles”, produced by Geijutsu Eigasha. “Momotaro's Divine Sea Warriors” followed this up again with the help of the Navy, in 1945. Animated by Seo and produced by Shokiku, it is considered to be the first full length Japanese Anime.
JT Wilson writes articles and content for anime websites including: Watch Code Geass, Watch Death Note and Mobile Suit Gundam 00
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