Kyoto Animation

About

Kyoto Animation (often abbreviated to KyoAni) is a japanese anime studio based in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, and is responsible for many popular anime series, most notably The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Lucky Star and K-On!. First founded in 1981, the company gained a significant online following among Otaku, due to the company’s moe styled shows.

History

Kyoto Animation was first founded in 1981, but did not start to produce their own shows until August 26, 2003, starting with the show Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu, a spin-off to the Full Metal Panic anime series produced by Gonzo. The studio did not reach critical acclaim, however, until the creation of their 4th show The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya on April 2, 2006. The show received widespread popularity, both in Japan and in the west, leading to the success of the studio. The show is also credited as being one of the first shows to use a moe art style, as well as being the show which popularised the style. Following this success, the studio proceeded to have continued success, producing many popular shows, most notably Lucky Star and K-On. However, after the release of their show Nichijou, the studio’s productions began to drop in popularity, with the show only being able to sell 924 DVD copies within it’s first week. Following this, the studio began to produce it’s own original shows, most notably Love, Chunibyo and Other Delusions and Free! Iwatobi Swim Club, based on works submitted to the studio via their Kyoto Animation Awards.

Online Relevance

. The company has a significant presence on anime related sites, as well as on sites such as Tumblr^[1], 4chan’s /a/ (Anime and Manga)^[2] and /c/ (Anime/Cute)boards^[3], Fanpop^[4], My Anime List^[5], DeviantART^[6]^[7]. There are numerous sites holding information of the company, such as the Kyoto Animation wiki^[8], TV Tropes^[9] and Anime News Network^[10]. The Kyoto Animation YouTube Channel also has over 50,000 subscribers^[11].

Related Subcultures

The Melancholy Of Haruhi Suzumiya

The Melancholy of Haruhi is a slice of life anime which first aired in 2006. The series follows the adventures of Kyon, a high school boy who is forced to join a club dedicated to searching for extra-terrestrial beings (known as the SOS Brigade) by his eccentric classmate Haruhi Suzumiya. The series is widely regarded as one of the most famous anime of all time, and is acknowledged as one of the pioneers of the moe genre.

Free! – Iwatobi Swim Club

*Free! Iwatobi Swim Club* is a sports/slice of life anime which first aired in 2013. First originating as a 30 second promotion for the company, the commercial received significant popularity among female anime fans, known as fujoshi, later becoming known as Swimming Anime. After the announcement of the show, there was both a large amount of praise and criticism aimed towards the company, with many Fujoshi happy at the prospect of a show catering towards them, while many Otaku claiming that the company had betrayed them.

Nichijou

Nichijou is a comedy/slice of life anime series which first aired in 2011. Despite the show garnering a significant online following among Otaku, praising the art style and comedy, the series was not a commercial success, with the DVD only selling 924 copies within it’s first week.