Asahi Shimbun published a report on Goro Taniguchi’s (Director: One Piece Film RED, Code Geass, L’étoile de Paris en fleur) May 26 lecture at Keio University, during an event sponsored by anime production company ARCH. Taniguchi spent 90 minutes speaking to students, during which he described various problems with anime production, including a lack of director oversight that has led to “junk food” anime and a breakdown in the industry’s informal apprenticeship system.
Taniguchi said that because directors were indecisive about priorities and a course of action, various parts of the anime production process were operating independently without directorial oversight. He gave the example of directors of photography/DoPs (who operate under the anime director) posting images on social media showing scenes they were in charge of before and after their processing was applied, saying “nothing was more embarrassing.“
Taniguchi says it would be fine if the processing featured in these videos were per the anime director’s instructions, but feels that many instances are because the director has not provided any instructions. Instead, the DoPs’ before-and-afters are actually necessary fixes due to unworkable defects in the raw materials they receive.
“The proper way of doing it is for the director to map it out from the outset and instruct the DoP to do it in that way.“
Taniguchi adds that it’s unclear whether these examples of processing are in line with what the director would’ve wanted. “The result of everyone doing things in a disconnected way is junk food,” Taniguchi says. “If that’s the way they intended to make it, that’s fine. But it’s not; it’s junk food made as a result of the process. That’s dangerous.“
Taniguchi discussed other changes in recent animation production, such as the boom in one-cour seasons (cour: an episode count that runs for roughly a quarter of a year; roughly 11-13 episodes).
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Taniguchi said, “Around 2005, there was an increase in anime series consisting of one cour, meaning 11 to 13 episodes. Before that, it was two cours. As a result, the apprenticeship system among staff members broke down. With one cour, one staff member can only be involved in a maximum of three episodes.“
“Three episodes aren’t enough to learn anything. The training system falls apart. This problem still hasn’t been dealt with properly. If there are any companies that have managed to do so, it’s the major studios that produce long-running series for children. Specifically, I’d say companies like Toei Animation, TMS Entertainment, and Shin-Ei Animation.“
Atsushi Ohara, Asahi Shimbun’s reporter who attended the event, interpreted the problem Taniguchi described here as studio setups where episode directors (enshutsu) rotate under the supervision of the main director (kantoku). Shorter seasons mean fewer chances for those enshutsu to receive feedback from the kantoku. Ohara also interpreted Taniguchi’s use of junk food as something “stimulating but lacking individuality and coherence.“
Said another way (similar to Ohara, but I don’t want to put words in anyone’s mouth), it may also be a reference to how various parts of production, like a DoP’s processing, look “good” when considered alone, but if they aren’t unified under an intended vision, represent multiple “good” things smooshed together that ultimately form an imperfect end product.
You can check out Ohara’s full article for Taniguchi’s full quotes, in addition to his views on the clash between one-to-one adaptations of manga and adaptations that allow for directorial freedom, where the miscommunication in this area comes from, Taniguchi’s adaptation of Planetes by Makoto Yukimura, how to balance drama and action, and more.
Taniguchi’s latest directed film is L’étoile de Paris en fleur, released in Japan on March 13, 2026. It follows Fujiko, who dreams of being a painter, and Chizuru, who is drawn to ballet. Reuniting in Paris after their first meeting in Yokohama, the film covers the pair chasing their dreams.
Source: Asahi Shimbun
© Eiichiro Oda/2022 “One Piece” production committee © L’étoile de Paris en fleur Production Committee
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