Inside the Industry

Inside the Industry

How a Manga Magazine’s Prize Card Sold for 2.5 Billion Yen: The Collecting Economy Behind Pokémon Cards

In 1998, a Japanese children’s manga magazine gave a card to the winners of an illustration contest. Twenty-eight years later, one of those cards sold for 2.5 billion yen.
Inside the Industry

When Computers Replaced Hand-Painted Cels, Japanese Anime Ended Up Short of People. What the Last Tech Shift Says About How AI Will Change Animators’ Work

In 1997, the people in Studio Ghibli’s paint department put down their brushes and picked up mice, and thousands of bottles of paint were eventually packed off to a warehouse. Nearly 30 years later, AI has arrived at the same spot. Last time, Japan’s animators didn’t lose their jobs.
Inside the Industry

Manga Sells All Over the World. So Why Are Manga Artists Still Pulling All-Nighters? The Seven-Day Clock of Weekly Serialization

The creator of One Piece, a series that has sold more than 500 million copies worldwide, has to explain to readers that he isn’t sick before taking three weeks off. Manga artists don’t stay up all night because manga doesn’t make money. They do it because of a clock set…
Inside the Industry

Why Do Bands Pay to Play? How Japan’s Tiny Live Houses Make Stars

A 250-capacity live house in Shibuya once watched a band play to fewer than 20 people. Years later, that band sold out a 1,500-capacity venue, and on the same night, the little club was packed too.

How a Manga Magazine’s Prize Card Sold for 2.5 Billion Yen: The Collecting Economy Behind Pokémon Cards