Musashino Animation Welcoming Ceremony
New employees, welcome to the company.
Musani will be celebrating its 40th anniversary next year.
Our first original work, Amazon Shirobeko,
is something that I'll never forget.
Since we entered the new century, we've gotten comments like
"they're a thing of the past," "they're dwindling," and "they'll never recover,"
and I won't deny any of that.
Satou Sara Production Assistant
However, I think things are finally turning in our favor.
Andou Tsubaki Production Assistant
This year will be a crucial one for Musani.
I'd like to blow all the negative comments from the public
out of the sky with Third Aerial Girls Squad.
Well, then. Let us head toward
our 40th anniversary and take off!
The ban on fried chicken has been lifted!
It was never actually banned.
Looks yummy! Let's eat!
Come on, eat up! You, too, Rii-chan.
Aren't you hungry, Satou-san?
No... I've never been to a party as part of a welcoming ceremony...
Seeing young people starve is
what the president hates seeing the most.
Huh? Andou-san might be, but I'm not young anymore.
Plus, I switched careers.
So why did you quit JusOn?
Something like you're not a morning person?
Yes. My daily commute would take two hours one way,
and I had to get up at five.
5:00 AM is when I go to bed.
Oh, yeah. You did the "slept too late" episode of Goldfish Swaying News, didn't you, Yamada-san?
Huh?
I was wondering how sleeping too late could carry a whole episode.
Then the protagonist ends up in bed the whole time,
but everyone else gets the wrong idea or misses seeing them.
Hey, are you one of those people?
Yep, I'm one of those.
Is everyone eating?
Come on. You're young, so eat up!
Today, I'd like to start Andou-san and Satou-san's training.
Please sit in on the Third Aerial Girls Squad meeting,
learn how the work proceeds, and learn everyone's names.
Yes, ma'am.
All right, let's get crackin'!
Cut it out. This kind of harsh training isn't in anymore!
Will These Drawings Work?
All right, I'd like to start the episode five table read.
We're all ready.
What's a table read? A book club?
Scenario
Wow! There are so many people here. I'm nervous.
A table read is where they read the scenario
Oh, before we start,
Maitake-san, here are the documents on Bordeaux-Mérignac Air Base.
that's just been written and discuss it. It's also known as a scenario meeting.
Oh, thanks.
By the way, did everyone read the latest chapter this month?
Yep.
I did.
Man, it does stay exciting, and it's interesting, but...
It doesn't look like it's going to end for a while.
Right! About that.
When do you need the scenario for the last two episodes again?
In June... I'd like to finalize it in July.
Nope, that's not happening.
There's no way the current arc will finish in three months.
But the scenario you already have is really good.
I'm looking forward to it, Tatamiya Shijime.
Oh, stop. No one knows about that pen name.
I do!
Huh?
Even with Battle Spirit Collagen and Glittery Stuttgart,
the only reason they were watchable after the director ran away and the main writer quit
was because you came in as the pinch hitter, Maitake-san.
Er, wait, wait...
Wow! You know a lot. What else? What else?
Like how Jiggly Heaven episode nine was delivered five minutes before airing?
Wha— How... Huh?!
I heard the producer was let go after that.
No! That was just a rumor!
And it wasn't delivered five minutes before air. It was ten!
Man, I see we've got some very reliable reinforcements.
This means Aerial Girls will be just fine.
Hardly. What are we going to do about the end?
If we do a "but our battle has just begun" ending nowadays,
viewers will get angry.
Should I just contact the editor,
and find out what's supposed to happen next, at least?
Oh, yeah. Would you?
Actually, he still hasn't gotten back to me about the checks of the main characters.
The editor said we could start production, didn't he?
They call this a meeting, but it's a mess.
Doesn't that mean he was okay with them?
What do you mean? They're talking about work.
I would think so...
Airport Terminal
What does "loc hunt" mean?
It means location hunting!
We look for places where the story would take place and get information.
You seem really happy, Andou-san.
Well, we're on a loc hunt! Don't you feel like a real pro?
Well, we are actually pros...
That's a Dornier 228.
Apparently, some places use it as a military aircraft.
Rii-chan, when did you become such an expert?
The more you learn about planes, the more interesting they are. It's fun!
Then do you know what an MRJ is?
Along with the Honda Jet, it's the first aircraft made domestically in a long time.
And how would you rate it, Diesel?
There are differences between jets and propeller planes,
but I'd like it to carry on the tradition of the YS-11.
I really hope they succeed. I'm actually rather excited about it.
Endou, you're a sky ota?
I dabble, yes.
Then we'll be throwing a ton of mecha key frames at you.
I'd be glad to do them.
Atsumi-san, do these help?
Chofu, Ukrainka, Lance, and Ohio...
I'd like to see how they all look against the sky.
Director.
Yes?
Is this the blue color we'll use in aerial fights?
Or the blue when the sky is normal?
Huh? Uh...
I think this is when it's just normal.
It feels rather peaceful.
Understood. In the meantime, I'll draw out some art boards.
Director, are the clouds going to be moving?
Oh, if possible.
Clouds being pushed away by wind pressure,
vapor stretching from airplane wings,
an aerial battle unfolding among violently swirling air currents...
Clouds that swell, entangle, coil, and then get torn to shreds!
So great.
Yeah, that sounds great... Though it may be a pain to make.
Director, did you go all the way to Hamamatsu to see an F-11?
This is work?
There are limits to what you can find on the Internet and in books.
Aww, no fair. Did you eat some eel?
I did! Though it was just a train station bento lunch.
So actually going out to look and listen gives you a much better idea.
Eel is eel. What are you talking about?
You say that, but the parties at the overnight
loc hunts end up being the main event sometimes.
The party is just extra! They're doing research, too.
Here we go, everyone!
Right!
To Be Continued
Whoa! You scared me.
Diesel-san!
Yes?
Diesel-san!
Yes?!
Rii-chan?!
Miyamori! Congrats! No, congrats to me!
So the episode one storyboard actually got done.
Now it's finally the super production assistant Takanashi Tarou's turn!
Newbies! Watch me work!
Um... These drawings look nothing like the characters.
Will these drawings work?
Sorry!
Oh, it's fine that they look like this.
The animator will draw them the way they're meant to look.
It sort of hurts my feelings if you say it like that.
Anyway, the director's storyboards for the first episode
of Aerial Girls will become the blueprint for this whole series.
Er, it's more of a chopping block than a blueprint.
I wonder who this is... Aria? Cathy?
There are limits to chopping blocks.
This time, we're not going to move the camera so much.
Just following pans.
Oh, so basically like Exodus.
And the dialog should have good tempo,
and be lively.
Are we holding back on the acting more than on Exodus?
I think I want variety.
I want to differentiate between the daily life and the fighting scenes.
They're now having a meeting to draw the storyboards for the other episodes.
Why do they need a meeting to draw storyboards?
If everyone just drew what they wanted, there'd be trouble.
They have to discuss settings for each of the characters
and create parameters for how the acting should be.
What a pain. Let them draw what they want.
But the scenario is 92 pages...
Usually, it's right around 80, so this is a lot.
I don't understand a word they're saying...
It's fine. It'll fit. I've cut the unneeded parts. Also, the dialog should be continuous,
The only one I understand is "pan." It's when you move the camera, right?
even to the point of them talking over each other.
But man, Tatiana's strike scene is going to take up a chunk.
Isn't that scene great? I wanted to draw it.
Despite the hopeless situation,
Tatiana decides that she's going to survive, no matter what.
That's why she doesn't turn back once during her strike.
Do you get it?
I do! Tatiana's usually so cocky and childish,
and there she shows such a mature expression.
Yes! That! Exactly!
And Aria's backup! Their miraculous survival!
I'd be content with it ending there.
Please don't end it there!
I need you to start on the episode two storyboards next!
I haven't seen the director like this since Jiggly Heaven.
Maybe he's finally gotten over his trauma from Jiggly Heaven.
Did you just say Jiggly Heaven?
Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle.
About the character designs I sent you and the storyboards for episode one,
to be honest, if we want to maintain the quality,
we've run out of time to wait.
No, it's not a funny story, or anything else.
Well, we will be starting production, then.
Please give my regards to Nogame-sensei.
Yes, please do.
Watanabe-san. No smoking in the office.
I know. That's why I held back.
Um, Watanabe-san.
I'd like to send the character settings to various supervising animators soon.
I know. Go ahead and send them. And get the production meeting started.
Yes, sir.
About cut 192,
be sure that Cathy's physique is clear and visible here.
Her weight... Or more like,
try to express someone holding something heavy?
Right. Also, it'd be nice
if Aria's delicate femininity would show
through clumsy motions like falling down.
Understood.
This is called the production meeting. It's also called the prod-meet.
So the animators make beautiful drawings
of the unpolished storyboards that the director drew.
Don't call them unpolished.
But they are.
One of the hardest things to depict in anime
is how heavy something is when drawn with key animation.
Right.
Well, you won't be the one drawing them, though, Yasuhara-san.
Right now, you're just sitting in.
It might be a little hard, but do you think you can do it, Kunogi-san?
Kunogi Ai Key Animator
No?
She can do them... I think.
Oh, I see. Any other questions?
Kunogi-san, the director is asking if you have any other questions.
She doesn't.
Oh... Right.
Well, then, have some of the president's cupcakes.
Also, please come here by yourself next time, if you can.
Only if you can. Only if you can is fine.
More importantly, I'm counting on you for the key frames.
How did you like your first prod-meet?
Were you nervous?
B—
B?
Bug.
Bug?
There was a bug
on the director's sleeve.
Oh...
The first thing that production assistants must learn
are not faces or their work, but roads.
Right.
Accidents are strictly prohibited, as well as breaking the law.
And keep detours and breathers to a minimum.
Right.
Anyway... Why are you both in back?
Just because.
Yes.
So, where are we going?
If we're outside, it could only mean we're going to get key frames!
What? But they're being drawn in the office, right?
There are people who draw at home, too.
There's a lot to life, and there are a lot of different key animators.
And there's a lot of Takanashi Tarou to go around!
This is Musani! Your very own Takanashi Tarou speaking!
What the hell? So annoying...
Huh? Wha? What is this?
What's going on? Is this some kind of bullying?
No, of course not!
I'm showing off... No, I'm announcing... No...
I'm introducing the newbies.
My name is Satou, and I just started as a production assistant.
My name is Andou Tsubaki.
It's a pleasure to meet you.
Hi...
So, could we get what you've finished, please?
Please?
Huh... So you're a senpai now, Takanashi-kun? You've matured.
You can rely on me, too, Segawa-san.
Nope. Not happening.
I figured.
If I ever need to actually rely on Takanashi-kun, I'd rely on you two first.
Rude!
Yes, ma'am.
Way rude!
I think everyone's expressions are still a little stiff.
It's like everyone was scared when drawing them.
Iguchi-san, I'll have everyone use your edits as guidelines,
so first, could you indicate the range of the expressions?
How do you want to handle the distortions?
Please keep it close to the original.
Understood.
Another prod-meet?
This is a supervising animator meeting.
It's so the supervising animator can check everything at once.
What? They're going to have another meeting?
Those have only just begun.
Iguchi-san, I have more sub characters that need cleanups.
I'm just going to have to do them all at once.
I know it's rough, but please.
Thank you very much.
Much.
There's no job that's not rough.
That was a double negative.
I drew out a few art boards.
Ooh, the sky during the aerial fights definitely looks like this.
As for the buildings, I'd like to
give them more of a painting-like feel.
So not super realistic?
Yeah. And I'd like a lived-in feeling, too,
This is an art board meeting.
so make sure it's not too clean.
For example, this is where they discuss
if the backgrounds should be realistic like a picture,
talk about if they want to leave the drawings a little rough,
and talk over the entire tone of the project.
This is all getting annoying. Why doesn't someone just decide?
No, no. The art is a huge factor that
can determine the quality of this project.
For now, I've come up with four patterns.
Apparently, the trend right now is sharpness.
Right. But I don't think we have to go
with what's popular for this show.
Are they deciding what colors to use for the characters?
Yes. A coloring meeting.
Color-meet for short.
It's a meeting where they try various patterns of colors, like this,
and decide which one to use.
The closest to the original is...
Number two, but if we raise the saturation too much,
it won't go with Atsumi-san's backgrounds.
Which do you think is best?
Huh?
I like number three.
Yeah...
I think I agree.
Then let's go with number three.
What?!
Don't worry. I thought it was good, too.
It's still not at a point where it should be viewed yet...
I thought something neither too photographic nor too anime-ish,
but something in between, would look something like this.
I like it.
And this is the CG meeting.
All these meetings are so boring!
Isn't there something more flashy?
Nope. Until they finish, this is pretty much it.
Lame!
Also, I just wanted to confirm...
For the in-air refueling scene, we added a fuel filler opening to an F-1.
They don't actually have those...
Does it look okay?
Yeah, it looks good.
The problem is everyone's workload for this project...
Oh, are we over, after all?
Quite.
Studio Kanabun
This is how we do things here.
So heavy...
I'll just give you guys the things with the least movement,
so that should make it a little easier.
Just a little. Well, we'll do it anyway, but...
Nakagaki Nobuaki Studio Kanabun President
We did promise we'd eventually work together, Shimoyanagi-senpai.
Oh, you two have known each other since college, right?
Yeah. I'm two years younger.
Pardon me.
Ah, Mii-chan.
Welcome... Though that sounds weird coming from me.
Did you get the hang of things?
Somewhat. It's still hard working on soft things.
You two are from the same school, too, right?
Not to mention, an all-girls school?
Oh, President. It's best if you abandon your all-girls school dream quickly.
I can guarantee that you'll be disappointed.
Yep.
Aw, come on...
I think, overall, we should probably hold back on the flare,
like this.
I thought that,
but the characters are cute, so I think it'd be better if we had more.
This is the filming meeting.
Maybe it's called girl flare... Something like that.
It's also called the film-meet.
It's weird. You call a supervising animator meeting "supe-meet,"
an art meeting "art-meet," and a filming meeting "film-meet," right?
But does shortening them really make much difference?
Everyone's busy, so the shorter, the better.
Then you'd just be "Ro," Roro.
And "Muji" suits you just fine.
The director can be "dir"! And the producer can be "prod"!
How about motion blur?
Just very subtly, so it's not noticeable.
Like this?
I think that's a bit much.
Then maybe this amount?
And the anti-flicker is default...
What about diffusion?
I think just a little.
Like this?
Right.
Oh, also, I made a new script just for Aerial Girls.
Do you have any questions, Satou-san, Andou-san?
Um...
Aren't you actually supposed to film in "filming"?
Action! Right on! Awesome!
...is what most people would think of.
When they switched from cameras to PC,
it was a revolutionary event...
But right now, technology is making steady progress.
Seriously?
Ah, hot!
What's the matter, Miyamori-san?
I was supposed to go serve tea at the accompani-meet,
but I've been running around so much...
I'll do it. It's in Meeting Room 1, right?
All right, thank you.
Accompani-meet?
It refers to the accompaniment that plays during the dramatic scenes.
It's shortened to "accompani-meet."
Huh... So the composer's coming.
We will now begin the accompani-meet.
Thank you for having us.
Sorry to keep you waiting.
Hamasaki-san, I've heard of you and your work for some time now.
We're pleased to have you.
No, this is Hamasaki.
Hamasaki Gorou Composer
Sorry.
No, no, no! I'm the one who should be sorry! I just, uh...
I wrote down things that I thought I'd like to hear,
but first, Director, please tell us your request for the overall tone.
All right.
First, the battle scenes will be like...
Ba-bang! Vrrrr!
The daily life scenes with be sofity-soft and pididdle-diddle.
The serious scenes will be haaaaaa.
He means, with this project, there are two worlds,
split between fighting and the girls' daily lives.
So powerful and heavy orchestration for the fight scenes,
and the daily life scenes will be acoustic short pieces.
The serious scenes will not be enhanced by melody,
but will use whole notes.
Right, exactly. That's what I meant.
I took a look at the scenarios up through episode five.
Overall, this series seems to lean toward serious.
So instead of keeping it playing throughout,
we're going to just use them when the time is right.
We want feelings to come through rather than situations.
Precisely.
And this is what anime production looks like until it's finally on track.
Too many meetings. Can't you cut them down more?
Not possible! They're all really important.
Fine!
Anyway, all those meetings are done for now, so I feel better.
Of course, it just doesn't end that easily.
I know that.
To Be Continued
Don—
Done!
It's a new record! A new record!
This is the least time I've ever spent on a storyboard.
I'm awesome.
I'm great.
But I'm done, too!
No, I finished first.
No, no, it was me.
It was me, wasn't it?
Well, I guess that's that.
That's what?!
The storyboard check by the director is finished.
These are episode three and four's storyboard completion sheets.
Satou-san, you're on episode three,
and Andou-san will be in charge of production for episode four.
Yes, ma'am.
And I'm sure when you hear "production,"
you're probably not sure what you're supposed to do.
Simply put, things will come your way at a very fast pace,
1: Key Frames Checklist 2: Simulation Chart 3: Program 4: Settings Distribution List 5: 3D List 6: Special Effects 2D List 7: Color Program 8: Scene Color Checklist
and all at the same time.
So I think it's best to make a list of tasks in order of importance.
From the key frames' distribution to schedules,
there are various charts, so please make sure you keep track every day.
Also, the one that shows how you want to move forward
is called the simulation chart.
Be sure to make one of those, too.
Yes, ma'am.
Miyamori-san, I've upped a simulation chart that's up to date as of yesterday.
I've made one, too, so please take a look.
Sure. Good job.
Man, you totally learned from me.
Yano-san!
Huh?! Where?!
It's been so long! Is your father all right?
Who's that?
Iron Yano. The Red of Musani.
Yes. We've been right on track.
Red?
What? The director gained weight again? That's not good.
Right now, thankfully, we're in a lull.
But he gets fevers suddenly, so I can't let my guard down.
You're not pushing yourself on your first production desk job, are you?
I'm at a point where I don't know what exactly would be pushing myself.
Yes, probably. I think it's going well.
That's amazing!
Sorry... I'll be back soon. I promise.
So just keep at it until then and hold Musani up.
You're what's holding the place together right now. Seriously.
Okay! I'll be waiting!
Huh? She's coming back? When?
It's a secret.
Huh? What the hell?
All right, let's do this!
Yeah! That's the spirit!
But a storm can disturb flowers in bloom. Don't let your guard down!
Huh? What was that, Katsuragi-san?
Could you repeat that one more time?
Yotaka Bookshop called, and...
Watanabe-san?
Miyamori, stop all production.
What?!
The author asked for retakes on the character designs.
We're starting everything over.
Hello, this is Satou at Musashino Animation.
Huh? Diesel-san?
I'm sorry, we don't deal with diesel engines here.
Next time on Shirobako: Table Flip.
Table Flip