Studio Trigger producer Kazuya Matsumoto outlined his goal of producing multiple films at the same time in a new interview with Dokidouki. Defining the concept of simultaneous or chain production, he said: “In the anime industry, there is a concept called chain. How many works can you create at once? One line per piece. [Growing bigger] means increasing your studio to 2 lines and 3 lines. Many startups at the same time have a large number of production lines.”
He continued: “But the current Trigger is 1 line. We are particularly interested in a style in which people work together to create a work. The reason is that by setting a single goal, everyone can stay focused. I think this is a great thing for both the job and the company. Approximately 60% of the work is performed by Trigger's internal staff. The remaining 40% is done by freelancers and people outside the company. Our first key mid-term goal is to achieve 100% production. In other words, complete in-house production. The next step is to aim for the 1.5 line.” As he explains, this entailed making a TV series and a short from a separate team. “This is another medium-term target,” he added.
Studio Trigger outlines their plans for the next 7 to 10 years
In the long term, Trigger targets 2 lines. “The idea is that the two lines will be two television series, or a theater group and a television series?” Matsumoto asked. Although he isn't sure, he said, “There are many ways to think about it, but I'm probably thinking about it as a long-term plan of about seven or 10 years.”
Trigger's 100% in-house manufacturing plan will be a rarity in the industry. Recent data from the Japan Animation Creators Association (JAniCA) revealed that 47.3% of the 425 animators surveyed identified as freelancers or self-employed, compared with 40.5% permanent employees. The discussion about how many anime a studio can produce simultaneously has resurfaced recently following multiple JCStaff productions set in 2024 and 2025. For example, 2.5 Dimensional Seduction, Delico's Nursery and Fairy Tail: 100 Years Quest will both air in July 2024.
For more interviews with Studio Trigger, readers can check out Anime Corner's chat with Hiroyuki Imaishi & Hiromi Wakabayashi.
Source: Dokidouki© Kazuki Nakashima/Kill la Kill Partenship © Cyberpunk: Edgerunners © 2022 CD PROJEKT SA