It’s outrageous that the anime industry is boasting annual profits of nearly 4 trillion yen with nearly 300 series airing, while those who actually do the work can’t even afford rent. Writer and expert Kiyoshi Tane has just published a brutally honest analysis explaining why, despite anime being Japan’s golden goose, its front-line workers remain trapped in extreme poverty and labor exploitation.

The big lie of “profitable employment”

The harsh reality splits into two very different worlds. While giant studios capture talent and survive, small and medium-sized producers remain stuck in what Tane calls “profitable employment.” Basically, they’re overwhelmed with projects and suffocating deadlines, but profit margins are so ridiculous that it’s impossible to raise salaries for their staff. The figures published at the end of 2024 by the Japan Anime Film Culture Federation are heartbreaking: 13 percent of 20-something animators earn less than 100,000 yen per month. With annual incomes barely scraping 2 to 3 million yen even for veterans, it’s no wonder new generations prefer to seek opportunities in other industries, leaving studios short-staffed and creating a vicious cycle of stress.

If the system doesn’t work, let the government intervene

Although politicians like Ken Akamatsu tried to take a stand in 2022 by suggesting tax rebates so that extra money would reach the staff of successful animes, Tane claims that’s not enough, as companies could figure out ways to keep the funds. The solution proposed by this expert is much more grounded and direct: establish non-negotiable minimum wages, form real unions, and force production committees to pay fair budgets that cover the real costs of studios. Tane makes it crystal clear that corporate self-regulation failed years ago and it’s time for the Japanese government to intervene with tough national policies before the talent shortage completely collapses the medium.

About the anime industry and its budgets

To understand this financial disaster, one must look at production committees. Instead of a studio putting all the money and taking the risk of failure, a group of corporate companies (TV stations, publishers, record labels) pool the budget and keep almost all the lucrative profits from merchandise, Blu-rays, and foreign licenses. This results in the studio that literally breaks its back drawing the episodes receiving a fixed initial fee that, in the vast majority of cases, doesn’t even cover the operating costs of keeping its artists alive and energized.

Seeing that the industry generates billions but artists survive on pure passion and water, do you think the Japanese government will really dare to crack down on big corporations to save animators?