It’s About Bitterness, or Yes, Gundams Don’t Kill People, Tomino Does.

Looks like I got called out? I appreciate it, actually. People looking for Gundam ranting shouldn’t be expecting it in the rest of this nonsense I’m writing. Fair warning.

But I don’t really have too much to say on this topic. I mean, companies don’t make anime, people do. Companies just make it possible. After all, a company is just a label for a type of organization, and you need a certain level of organization to accomplish a big task like making an animated TV show or full-length feature film.

But what he says here is pretty much one way to explain why that is, and it’s a good way to look at it. (Well, bitterness is a terrible motivation to withhold information if you ask me).

First thing first: if you worked at any corporate outfit (as in, far most non-mom-and-pop operations) you will sign a nondisclosure agreement. Nondisclosure agreements generally all say the same thing–that you can’t say “secret” stuff about work! What’s “secret?” For example, time-sensitive information that has value (either because fans crave (as in, you can sell it) or because withholding it gives you an economic advantage (as in, if you tell, you lose out)). Obviously that is the first and the foremost reason why anime industry people don’t give out juicy details. This little note is something people take for granted but I think some of the younger anime fans online probably wouldn’t know how pervasive this is. It’s an old-man knowledge.

Second: Anime is really marketed as a consumptive good. And for that matter, it’s disposable and almost fungible. Who made what is not exactly something marketed save for people who’ve made a name for themselves, and so naturally the viewers aren’t peppered with this information.

This is particularly true when it comes to the more grunt-y jobs like in-betweening, marketing, and producing shows. In light of that it’s sort of easy to keep tabs on directors, art directors, designers, actors, composers, and even the SFX guy. (I mean heck, that’s actually important and it’s so rare to see anyone talk about the studio/people that does sound effects for anime.)

Let alone animators.

But, yes, people make anime. The business stuff is interesting and all and it’s amusing to look at how Lawson is sort of two-faced on Bandai Visual, but that gets into TL;DR territory for me. Bottom line is, as long as people make rational decisions based on both their long term and short term needs and potentials, both fans and companies stand to profit.

And bitterness is not a rational motivation.

I guess here’s a hat off to every single fansubber and commercial distributor who bothered to translate credits, because, believe it or not, it does make a difference.