Animation Seisaku Shinkou Kuromi-chan

Synopsis:

Trailer:

Characters:

• Oguro, Mikiko (Main) - Voice Actors: Ortiz, Lisa, Asou, Kaori, Doang, Geneviève
• Battobi (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Rabbai, Debora, Baumgardt, Birte, Bloc, Fanny, Ichikawa, Mieko
• Edo-era Policeman (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Daichi, Akitarou
• Fukami, Aoi (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Okamura, Akemi, Rabbai, Debora, Legrand, Sophie
• Haryuu, Seiichirou (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Ichijo, Kazuya, Green, Dan
• Hayama, Nonki (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Guitard, Thomas, Riegel, Sam, Ichijo, Kazuya
• Horaguchi, Mai (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Misawa, Mayumi, Lillis, Rachael
• Hozumi, Hassaku (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Grayson, Wayne, Matsumoto, Yoshirou, Da Silva, Damien, Aßmuteit, Dustin
• Ken (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Okamura, Akemi
• Middle-aged Surfer (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Ishii, Kouji, Schussler, Eric
• Monde III, Louis (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Yasuhara, Reiko
• Oppama, Masato (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Yabe, Masahito, Cargle, Scott
• President (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Ishii, Kouji, Gonzalez, Alvaro J.
• Shihonmatsu, Hamako (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Yasuhara, Reiko, Savoy, Suzanne
• Tanonaka, Mizuho (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Stuart, Eric, Itou, Eiji, Dawn-Claude, René, Méyère, Bruno
• Yuri (Supporting) - Voice Actors: Komatsu, Rika, Goodgold, Carolee

Staff:

• Daichi, Akitarou (Director, Storyboard)
• Tamano, Harumi (Episode Director)
• Ebina, Yasunori (Recording)
• Fudesaka, Akimi (In-Between Animation)
• Guitard, Thomas (ADR Director)
• Haneda, Kouji (In-Between Animation)
• Katagai, Shin (Production Assistant)
• Kawano, Kouichirou (In-Between Animation)
• Kawashima, Keiko (Key Animation)
• Kudou, Shinya (In-Between Animation)
• Maruyama, Shuuji (In-Between Animation)
• Masuda, Toshio (Music)
• Mayuzumi, Masaki (Background Art)
• Miyazaki, Nagisa (Key Animation)
• Mukouda, Takashi (Key Animation)
• Nishikawa, Masashi (In-Between Animation)
• Nozaki, Reiko (In-Between Animation)
• O'Donnell, John (Executive Producer)
• Ogata, Mieko (Key Animation)
• Ozawa, Tatsunori (In-Between Animation)
• Saitou, Atsushi (In-Between Animation)
• Shibata, Chikako (Art Director)
• Tachiguchi, Noritaka (In-Between Animation)
• Tejima, Noriko (In-Between Animation)
• Wada, Takaaki (Key Animation)
• Watanabe, Emi (In-Between Animation)
• Watanabe, Hajime (Character Design, Animation Director)
• Yamazaki, Kenji (Animation Director, Key Animation)
• Yamazaki, Noriyoshi (Key Animation)

Reviews:

• User Unowen (Score: 8/10):
  Before falling into relative obscurity, 2001’s OVA Animation Runner Kuromi was the definition of “anime about making anime”. In a not completely unexplored field, with other renditions made by even the tenth episode of Paranoia Agent (Satoshi Kon, 2004) the indisputable champion in this area is nowadays Shirobako (PA Works, 2014), with also the advantage of covering this topic for two whole cours. Nonetheless, as opposed to the almost methodical approach Shirobako follows throughout its run, Animation Runner Kuromi’s is much more comedy-centered. And not only because it doesn’t have much time to waste (much like the animators doing their job there) but because thewhirlwind of a pace it follows constitutes the very core of its style. nnAnd to understand the comedy we need to have a glance at the Staff that created it. This OVA was directed by Akitarou Daichi, a pretty prolific worker of the industry that had his name in numerous series from the 90s and 00s, from whom we can highlight the likes of Kodomo no Omocha, Fruits Basket, Now and Then, Here and There, Nurse Angel Ririka or Bokura ga Ita. Also important to note the work of Hajime Watanabe, character designer for some of the aforementioned as well as other well-known shows such as Kaleido Star and School Rumble. nnOut of all those, Kuromi has a look and feel that resembles Kodomo no Omocha to a breathtaking extent. Definitely the hectic rhythm and unique slapstick work wonders with the new subject matter we are presented with.nUltimately, there’s an important moral to be learned here. Coordinating projects is not an easy task, no matter the type of activity in which you’re working. Both Shirobako and Kuromi depict problems in production, yet the former prioritizes a positive message built around the profession, almost like a love letter towards animation. The latter's message is even more fundamental, aiming for human understanding, hard-work and empathy. nnEvery anime watcher needs to experience either of these to get to the bottom of production and unravel the actual human work that any project constitutes, how rarely anime is made solely by the efforts of one studio but by an extensive net of connections that goes well beyond what we first imagine. nnIn this regard there are also documentaries and articles covering the different challenges of artistic creation within the industry. An example could be the one showing the crafting of Only Yesterday, with a highlight being how an animator spent an entire year drawing anything but safflowers. Reality is sometimes stranger than fiction, so one might be better off getting their first exposure to the whole picture with this hilarious, yet definitely introspective treat.
• User Sidewinder51 (Score: 10/10):
  10 in rating english dubbed Ever have a life long job in mind? now, imagine getting it but you didn't realize the struggles that came with it. Moving on into the job the show demonstrates a compassionate female who works her butt off to not only get her job done but others. Her valiant efforts are recognized by her coworkers and little by little with their helpful aid they finish the job on time. Artwork is outstanding! sure i could say it underrated but having seen this show makes me realize what the anime could have been if there 'was no direction'. Characters are matched perfectly with their emotions.Whether it is anger or confusion.
• User spicychile (Score: 7/10):
  I came into this curious about the animation process, and seeing the overall production depicted in a visual format helps with the impression even if parts can be dramatized. Yes, I have seen this OVA after watching my beloved Shirobako, and after finishing I can say that Animation Runner Kuromi does enough to stand on its own, even leaving me with a smile on my face. The first thing I noticed was how over-the-top the show is, first in its rather dark humor depicting the harshness of the anime industry from the perspective of the production manager Kuromi. We see her coming in asa newbie, being dismayed by the comically impossible deadlines due to key animators not doing their jobs. Through learning the ins and outs of the process itself, her interactions with other strange, exaggerated personalities to get them to work is rather charming. The exaggeration serves in good effect both to convey that production managers have to cater to the artists as they are individuals, and also to just simply entertain as it is a comedy. The jokes hit where they needed to, and although I didn't laugh out loud or anything, I still enjoyed it. I'm glad the OVA didn't simply boil down to a sort of a wiki description that only happens to follow a story.nnMoving on to art and animation, I do have some comments. Animation is very wild and energetic, which helped give off that impression I got of the OVA. Characters motions are overtly exaggerated to help characterize them and get us to care, as there are only 40 minutes in the episode to work with. If I had to compare it to a certain show, I'd say I got around the same vibe as FLCL in not the fight scenes. Now on the art, it's pretty standard for a 2001 show, although it is digitally colored. The styling is also a little dated, but characters are funky looking enough for them to stand out from the hundreds of other really generic spiky hair characters out there.nnSound, I haven't got much to say. In terms of OST, it felt like there were only three tracks played throughout the thing and on repeat. However, I didn't get sick of them, so that's fine. Voice acting, as far as the dub is concerned, is well done. The VAs effectively conveyed each character's wackiness, so no complaints there.nnOverall, I didn't feel like I wasted my time on this and I even got some laughs all throughout. If you're at all curious about the animation process, I recommend that you take some time off your day and watch this thing. Even if you've already watched Shirobako.nnOverall: 7/10 -> B
• ... and 2 more reviews

Forum Topics:

• Animation Runner Kuromi Episode 1 Discussion
• Sub vs. Dub?

External Links:

• AniDB
• ANN
• Wikipedia

Related Anime/Manga:

• Animation Seisaku Shinkou Kuromi-chan 2 (anime - Sequel)