Anime, a brief history of Japanese animation 1945-1970
Following the success of Disney’s 1937 film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the Japanese domestic anime market faced heavy pressure from foreign filmmakers. Early pioneers such as Yasuji Murata and Noburo Ofuji, while masters of cut-out animation, found it difficult to compete with the quality of imported foreign animation. With huge profits invested in new techniques, Disney took the lead, using cellular animation and introducing sound.
However, animators, with increasing help from the Japanese government, through the production of pre-war propaganda films, animators such as Mitsuyo Seo and Kenzo Masaoka, began to improve the quality and techniques employed. Local entertainers received a new boost after the introduction of the 1939 film law. This law placed an emphasis on cultural nationalism and promoted documentary and educational films.
Government sponsorship and support from the Navy led to the production of Japan’s first live-action animated feature film. Produced by Shochiku Studios and animated by Mitsuyo Seo, Momotaro’s Divine Sea Warriors was released in 1945. However, it took Toei Animation thirteen more years to release the first full-length color anime, the 1958 film Hakujaden, The Tale of the White. Serpent. . While Hakujaden’s general tone is more Disney than modern anime, with animal companions and musical numbers, it is widely cited as the first “real” anime.
Following the film’s release in the United States, under the title Panda and the Magic Serpent, Toei continued to develop and produce Disney-style films, as well as dabble in animated series such as Dragon Ball, Sailor Moon, and Digimon. Toei’s contribution to modern anime was to emphasize the animators’ own ideas during the production process. This style of production led to Isao Takahata’s 1968 film Hols: Prince of the Sun, which demonstrates a change in style from what is considered “normal” anime.
Toei’s other major contribution was the introduction of “money shot” animation. This style of animation was developed to reduce production costs, while placing an emphasis on the important frames of the film. The main body of the anime was produced with limited animation, with more detail being used in major sections of the cels. Toei animator Yasuo Otsuka further developed this style of production.
During the 1960s, Osamu Tezuka created Mushi Productions as a rival studio to Toei Animation. He released Mighty Atom in 1963, which became both the first studio hit and the first popular anime series in Japan. Atom’s great success opened up foreign markets. The fledgling American television, in search of content and programming, adapted the Atom for the American market in 1964 and renamed it Astro Boy. Others soon followed, including Mitsuteru Yokoyama’s super robot anime Tetsujin 28-go, released as Gigantor in the United States.
