Anime
The creator of ‘Gundam’ says that the anime industry is in “a period of prosperity”, but he fears for its future
Yoshiyuki Tomino, creator of the ‘Gundam’ franchise, shared a variety of opinions about the apparent golden era of anime that Japan is currently living through.
Gundam is one of the most important brands in the entertainment industry worldwide, released in 1979 and continuing to this day with an immense legion of followers. Its creator is Yoshiyuki Tomino, who at 82 years of age continues to participate in the latest Gundam projects, and in an interview in the Weekly Toyo Keizai, a business magazine founded in 1895, he spoke about the current state of the anime industry in Japan, calling it “a new golden age.”
“It is true that the anime industry is in a period of prosperity”, declared Tomino, speaking about the current state of the animation industry, a kind of golden age in which anime has become something global, a topic of general interest. Despite this, the creator of Gundam warns that Disney and its release strategy is an example of what anime should not do, with a digitalization that, in his opinion, has had recent “boring” and “depressing” releases. Putting quality before quantity in new productions is a key point for this new golden age to continue to shine.
The world of anime according to the creator of Gundam
From praise to doubt, Yoshiyuki Tomino does not hesitate to give his opinion, and he is a figure who has the maximum respect and admiration possible in the anime industry. A work full of success, which at its premiere in 1979 did not enjoy the success that perhaps many imagine, but a few years later, when the series was turned into three films, the phenomenon exploded and what has reached us began to take shape. days. Gundam is a religion for many that goes beyond the animated series, a universe around manga, video games, modeling (Gunpla), and much more.
Tomino’s words about the state of the industry have changed dramatically, as back in 2021, during an exhibition at the Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art, he stated that “Japan is no longer a leader in animation”. Referring, of course, from a technological point of view: “As digital techniques evolve, I feel that the position of the animation industry will become precarious.”