Oval Gear wants to help a new generation of artists learn from Katsuhiro Otomo.

As the director of Akira, one of the first Japanese animated films to win global admiration, Katsuhiro Otomo is one of the most important figures in anime history. That said, he’s not a particularly prolific anime creator. Despite his obvious talent for the artform, Otomo is first and foremost a manga creator, and to date his anime directing filmography consists of only two feature-length films, Akira and Steamboy, plus a handful of short segments within anime anthology movies.

But Otomo looks to be ready to start pouring much more of his creative energies into animation with the announcement that he’s opened his own anime studio, called Oval Gear Animation Studio.

Based in Tokyo’s Musashino district, Oval Gear isn’t intended as a place where Otomo can hand out orders for lackeys to carry out. Instead, the studio’s website describes its mission with:

“The studio was founded for two purposes: to pass on to the new generation the filmmaking methods and authorial sensibility Katsuhiro Otomo has cultivated over decades, and to produce new animated works for global release.”

Oval Gear ostensibly currently has two projects on its plate, Orbital Era, a science fiction theatrical anime that Otomo announced he would be directing in 2019, and a new Akira anime, which was announced in the same year. The Akira manga was still two years away from its completion when the anime film was released, and it’s not yet known if the new anime project is intended to be a remake of the movie, a continuation, or something else.

Speaking of the “new generation” of anime creators Oval Gear mentions, the studio is currently recruiting artists and production support staff, with help-wanted postings for inbetween artists and checkers. While industry experience will be a plus for candidates, the listing also states “no experience required.” The postings are in both Japanese and English and specify that being able to speak Japanese at a conversational level is a requirement, implying that full-fluency isn’t needed. Further details can be found on the studio’s website here.

Source: Oricon News via Jin, PR Times, Oval Gear official website
Top image: PR Times
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