Ask John: Do Anime and Manga Artists Work Alone?

Question:
These authors of the anime, do they actually draw and construct the storyline? In no way am I saying they are not able to do it, but isn’t it, well, quite a big thing that you can already draw and then you can actually write the story? So do these authors have their own team of people who help them or do they actually do it all themselves?

Answer:
No singular answer to your question applies to the entire manga industry. With the exception of very short fan produced animated clips, all animation is produced by multiple people. Even the short Voices of a Distant Star anime movie produced single-handedly by creator Makoto Shinkai still employed a composer, musicians, sound designer, and voice actor. In practical terms, no anime is a genuine one-man-show. Manga, on the other hand, vary a bit. It’s not uncommon for respected artists to employ assistants. For example, Hiroya Oku employs assistants to create the detailed, computer designed backgrounds in his Gantz manga, and Masamune Shirow now employs assistants to add tones and fill in minor background areas or details in his illustrations. Of course, not every manga artist can afford to maintain assistants, nor may even want assistants or apprentices.

The fact that many manga creators employ assistants shouldn’t make them any less worthy of respect as artists because even an artist that employs a team of assistants still creates the primary artwork. An artist who employs assistants is still a creative artist. And even manga artists who work alone may be influenced and have their work refined by the input of editors, publishers, or other artists. Certainly manga or anime series adaptations of earlier works, or based on earlier stories, aren’t entirely original works, but creative artists have to interpret the original works into new media.