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Anime Backtrack: The Pioneers of Phenomenal Anime Series and Movies

You might have heard the word animé uttered by most of your classmates and peers. It’s not a surprise though; animé has become a leading entertainment, not only in television but also over the Internet. The phenomenal animé industry has taken the world by storm with its cinematic storytelling, unique character designs and interesting plots. Animé series such as Naruto, Fairy Tail and Vampire Knight have become popular anime movies and series to a wide variety of audience, regardless of age and gender.

Most animé enthusiasts may wonder: When and where did animé originated? The arrival of western cartoons in the east had an impact on Japanese art. Younger generations of artists were fascinated with the styles and formats of the western cartoons that they immediately decided to create their own version.

During the 20th century, a lot of Japanese animators tried to create a new form of graphic design based on western cartoons. By this period, manga (comics) have become a popular form of literature among the Japanese. As such, animators tried to adapt and fuse their manga styles with western cartoons to create what we call as animé today.

The first generation of animators completed only a few series which were composed of short films. The first animated film was made by Shimokawa Oten, a political caricaturist and cartoonist, after which he was followed by Kouchi Junichi and Kitayama Seitaro who made their advanced animation during the 1910s. The second generation of animators were students of Kitayama Seitaro, namely Murato Yosuji, Yamamoto Sanae and Noburu Ofuji. Marketing animé during this period was difficult since there is a growing competition with Disney animated films. When pre-war period took a turn, animé were incorporated into scholastic, political and industrial use. Animé series that present educational values were highly supported by the Ministry of Education, giving animé producers to showcase their works in regular theaters.

After the WWII, Ozamu Tezuka, the father of animé, was the first one to successfully complete a series that caught the attention of millions worldwide. His work, Astroboy (Tetsuwa Atom), was first released in 1963 and became the highest rated animated show in television. Aside from Tezuka, Hayao Miyazaki also became a prominent name in the animé industry with his works such as Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirited Away and My Neighbor Totoro. Series and movies produced by Tezuka and Miyazawa are still widely acclaimed in today’s animé industry.

During the post-war period, big animé studios were also established such as Toei Animations and Mushi Productions. The most popular among all the series they released were Dragonball (1986) and Sailormoon (1992) which targeted audiences, regardless of gender and age. From 1958 up until the present, Toei and Mushi continue to produce animé series that can be comparable to western style cartoons. Many other studios such as Bandai and Clamp animation soon followed to produce different series such as Gundam Wing and XXXholic. These animation studios produce at least 50 different series and original version animation (OVA) each year.

Animé reached its peak during the 1990s, when they were introduced in different countries. A lot of animé titles dominated the primetime slots during this period with audiences from different age groups. One of the popular animé series during the 90’s was Pokemon (1996) which was based from a game released by Nintendo and created by Satoshi Tajiri. When the new millennium came, artists such as Misashi Kishimoto and Hiro Mashima captivated a lot of people with a new set of series and anime movies (Naruto and Fairy Tail) that are still gaining popularity even until today.

3D Animation is Everywhere

The talent required to create animation is a fantastic gift. Actually, the creators of animation enjoy it, just as much as the audience. Previously, the most creative ones, were created through 2D animation, but currently because of the development of 3D technology it made possible a much better quality and it is also easier to produce. 3D technology gives the realism of real live, as a contrast to the advanced technological implementation of computing technology, making it fabulous for the audience.

Similarly to a constructor who lays foundations for a house, animations begin with a base or foundation, enabling animators to create and build on concepts or ideas they previously have produced. As soon as they are pleased with the developed ideas, they can focus their efforts on using 3D rendering processes to ‘give life’ to their animations.

The 3D rendering processes used by animators is what in fact makes a big difference. They are responsible for turning something good into something marvelous.

Online 3D illustrations and 3D Flash suffered great modifications over the last five, six years or so. Previously, although the software resources were available, they had a great cost. Consequently, for the animators to create a piece would have to make a major investment for the software to be up and running. Currently, software is more affordable and more capable, offering many opportunities for both new and experienced animators.

A general false impression is that animation is only used in kids programs or in cartoons. It is in fact a huge mistake, as virtually anything that is manipulated using computer technology is considered animation. This includes creating plans made into 3D or creating a virtual car design. Animators don’t work just in cartoons, but also in numerous industries.

3D animations really took of in cartoons, where is a new use for it. Various businesses across the world are presenting their expertise and supremacy in their area by making different ‘flash’ services or products making them distinctive using 3D animation. One concluding example from this point of view would be the various marketing companies that use a lot of external help for their company, services or products to look a bit superior. Naturally, 3D animation and rendering processes are precisely what they should apply if this is what they want to obtain. When you next look at a marketing company, or to any other company that sells products, observe if their brochure or website is eye-catching, and if so, is it because of the use of 3D animation? The implementation of animation rendering techniques will allow them to offer a new and improved look of their company and to differentiate them from the others.

Where else can we found such 3D animation rendering techniques?

Are you a teacher or have you been a student? Well, we all know that there are numerous ways an individual can learn new information. Typically, most students (regardless of the topic) have a very good response to such visual resources as pictures, books or other visual resources based on computer. In fact, due to the current popularity of computers and internet, there is really no need for a teacher. As an alternative, attractive and educative courses can be created to be used through a computer and then turn into something more pleasant to the eye applying 3D animation rendering techniques.

Where is 3D animation heading to? 3D animation, just as virtually any other industry is evolving very fast. Thus, a rendering techniques prefect today could be easily useless the next day. Software is the main factor in making excellent 3D animation. Any person wanting to join the industry or are involved already, need to recognize what is hot and what not, or they will be left behind. Keep in mind that software is not doing the work for you and the final product is going to be only as good as the one at the computer using rendering techniques.

Initially, 3D animation was in fact an operating software, but currently due to the advanced technological features and techniques that can be applied, it has become much more than that. As the software operator is more artistic and creative, the chances are higher for the final product to be a stunning success. Extremely powerful animations can be created with remarkable creativity, relevant experience in the arts industry as well as the expertise to operate great 3D animation software, implementing the right rendering techniques.