Long interview with Tetsuro Satomi, producer! (The "inside man" of anime and games No. 48)

Writer crepuscular's long-running series of interviews with top-notch professionals in the animation and game industry. In this 48th installment, we interview producer Tetsuro Satomi, president of Burnham Studios, Inc. and representative director of Raidenfilm Co. One of the hottest anime of the moment is "Tokyo Revengers" produced by Raidenfilm. Burnham Studio-produced "Honors Students at Magical High School" is also off to a good start. Past productions include "Nogizaka Haruka's Secret," "Row Kyu Bu! and "My sister's been acting a little strange lately. Terraformers," "Arslan Senki," "Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches," "Berserk," "Monster Strike the Movie: To the Place of Beginning," "Roku de nashi Majutsu Tutor to Kinbaku Kyoken" and "Ura Sekai Picnic" are just a few of the many masterpieces that have been produced. He is also active in adapting foreign original works into anime, and "Ninja Batman," produced in collaboration with Kamikaze Animation, has been highly acclaimed worldwide. In this article, we will report on Mr. Satomi's career, production theory, work techniques, treasured episodes, future challenges, and more. We also asked him to give us his honest opinion on the challenges facing the animation industry. This is an in-depth, independent interview for anyone who loves watching anime, is interested in the anime industry, or works in the industry. Please read to the end.

There are no animation producers today.

I am honored to have this opportunity to talk with you. First of all, what does an "animation producer" mean to you?

Tetsuro Satomi (Satomi): My premise is that there is no such thing as an "anime producer" today. I believe that the job of an animation producer is to plan an animation, gather money and people, produce the animation, sell and operate it, and collect the money. If this is the job of an animation producer, there is no producer who does 100% of the work. Nowadays, the range of operations has expanded, and it is no longer a job that can be done by just one person. The work is divided up into a detailed division of labor, with some specializing in making the animation, others in selling it domestically, others in selling it overseas, others in broadcasting, and others in the form of a production committee. In the old days, the only thing to do was to sell the animation. In the past, it was OK just to sell animation, but nowadays, things are expanding beyond selling animation, such as deciding on collaborations with social games, so there is no one who has all the expertise, connections, and understanding of the market. Therefore, I believe that there is no absolute producer, including myself, although I am a producer in part.

You use two different titles, "animation producer" and "producer," depending on the work. He was the animation producer for "Aiura" (2013), "Terraformers" (2014), "Berserk" (2016-17), "Roku de naku magic instructor and forbidden script" (2017), and "Ura no sekai picnic" (2021), etc. He was also the producer for "Arslan Senki" (2015-16), "Hanebado !" (2018), "Tokyo Revengers" (2021), etc., for which you served as producer.

Satomi: Basically, when I am investing in a project, I am the "producer. When I use the term "animation producer," I mean the producer of the production site. However, I also use the term "production manager" to refer to the management of the on-site producers and the production company itself, and recently I have been using that title more and more.

In the case of "Animation Producer," you seem to work alone for films, while for animated TV series, you are often in charge of several people. What is the reason for this?

Satomi: It's not so much a difference of media, but more of a result of the way things are done. With TV series, it is often impossible for a single person to see the whole picture, and this tends to happen. Films are one big picture, so they are not often split up. It's essentially trying to do the same thing, but it just doesn't work or doesn't work.

The "Roku de nai Majutsu Tutor to Shojo Kyokai" is an animated television series, and you are the sole animation producer. So this is a work that you were able to oversee the entire process.

Satomi: Yes, that's right. ....... In reality, however, there are people within Leiden Film who do the practical work, and with their support we have managed to make it work, so I think it is thanks to all of them.

I have worked on "The Secret of Haruka Nogizaka" (2008-09), "Dokyuu Koushitai Exelos" (2020), etc., "Produce" and "Campione! ～(2012) and "My sister's acting has been a little strange lately" (2014). (2014), etc., also had the notation "Animation Produce". I, My Ability is Average! (2011) and "I told you my abilities were average! (2019), the company name was written in addition to the individual's name.

Satomi: I have a private company called "Burnham Studio," and I use those credits when I am working as an individual. The "Honors Students at Magical High School" (2021), which is currently airing, is also credited under the company name "Animation Produce" and the production company is CONNECT. There are cases where my personal name and the company name are used, but there is no particular meaning in using them differently. The only reason is that if my name appears too often, people might think I am too busy. So, when I am working as an individual, I sometimes use "Producing Cooperation," and I try to refrain from using the "producer" notation as much as possible.

Three Levels of Reward, Born at the End of Suffering

-Satomi: When do you find it rewarding to be a producer?

Satomi: There are three stages: when the project is launched, when it is completed, and when it is released to the public and receives a positive response from customers. The first stage is the most enjoyable. I feel a sense of accomplishment when the work is finished, and I am also happy when the audience sees it and responds to it. Conversely, the other stages are not so much fun.

-Satomi: Some producers say that the majority of a producer's job is to deal with problems.

Satomi: I think it's true in a sense that when a producer is working, it's when the project is not going well. Maybe a good producer doesn't do anything, but just says, "Cheers," and brings in some inserts or something, and the film is completed. When the creators work well together and make a good film, and the committee members say, "It's selling well! When the creators are getting along well and making good films, and the committee members are saying, "This producer isn't doing anything. Don't you need him? They don't need him. But then, "These guys are fighting so much they won't even talk to each other! We need to do something to fix this! The producer has to solve the problem. Some producers who work very hard and seem to be excellent may not notice the trouble, or may even make the trouble worse. So it doesn't really matter how busy you are, an excellent producer is the one who prevents trouble from happening. I can't do that, though.

-Satomi: Is there a lot of work that you have not been able to release to the world?

Satomi: I think there are as many films that have been rejected as have been released to the public. If you include those that lost in competitions, the number increases even more. There are also many cases where a project was well underway, but it was halted due to various people's circumstances, or someone else snatched it away while it was being made.

What works have had the greatest influence on your production activities?

Satomi: There are many works that I like, but the work that made me want to work in the animation industry was "Shippu! Iron Leaguer" (1993-94), which I saw when I was in college. Iron Leaguer" led me to go out for karaoke and dinner with people in the industry, and I also made friends with a manga artist who drew a fanzine of "Iron Leaguer. I am from Niigata Prefecture and had no connection to the doujinshi culture until I came to Tokyo for college, so everything was new to me, and it was a big part of my life.

I heard that you were also a member of the Waseda Mystery Club while you were a student at Waseda University. Do you also like mysteries?

Satomi: I read a lot of mystery and science fiction novels. I was more interested in science fiction, though. At that time, there was an alumnus of the club, Mr. Sanzo Kusaka, who was also an editor, and he taught me a lot. Mr. Kusaka was also a big fan of anime, and I was like a direct disciple of his. Also, although this is a live-action film, Mr. Shinji Ogawa, the president of a company called Bridgehead and the producer of "Natsu e no Tobira - Kimi no iru Mirai e" by Robert A. Heinlein, is also a senior member of the club, and we had dinner together the other day.

He is also involved in the animation of "foreign original" and "puppet theater.

Do you have a favorite project?　Looking at your filmography, I see that you have animated a wide range of original works.

Satomi: Up until now, I thought it would be cooler to have a style that said, "Give us anything and we'll produce it right! But recently, I've been changing the regulations little by little. Thanks to distribution and other means, we are now able to deliver our works to customers around the world without a time lag, so I would like to change my approach a little more and start animating original works from overseas as well.

─ You already have experience in working on original works from overseas, don't you? Your American works include "Transformers: Animated" (2010) and "Ninja Batman" (2018), and your Korean works include "Arad: The Wheel of Fortune" (2020) and "Seven Knights Revolution: Heirs of Heroes" (2021).

Satomi: That's right. I am also involved in the Japanese-Taiwanese co-production of the TV puppet show "Thunderbolt Fantasy - Touri Kyouki" (2016, 2018, 2021), which was originally conceived, written, and supervised by Gen Urobuchi. It is not an animation, but it is interesting, so please watch it!

The "+ (plus) Chick Sisters" (2011-12) was a short web animation, but it was planned by Satomi and produced by Burnham Studios in collaboration with TYO Animations.

Satomi: My very first project as executive producer was the first season of "Galaxy Angel" (2001), which was a light-hearted gag comedy, but I basically like cheerful things. So "+Chick Sis" is a variation on that.

Why have there been fewer "eroge" anime adaptations?

Satomi: In the early stages of my career, there were a lot of bishojo (beautiful girl) works.

Satomi: The requests are determined by my past works, so I tend to be biased. When I received a bishojo game, bishojo games came, and when I received "Samurai Champloo" (2004), heavier ones started coming.

─ Recently, the number of anime based on bishojo games, or so-called "eroge" (erotic games), has decreased drastically. Is this because the circumstances on the production side have changed?

Satomi: I think that eroge itself is changing rather than our circumstances. Originally, TV broadcasts and 18-rated works were not compatible with each other. Even so, at the time, there was such a huge demand that they had to go to any lengths to make anime. Erotic games of that period had an overwhelming charisma among the artists and scenario writers, so much so that the title of the game was equated with it. We saw it as the relationship between the original manga or novel and the author.

Nowadays, there are several artists and scenario writers for one title, and the scale has reached a point where creators and games are separated. Of course, there will be exceptions, but the format of bishojo games in the past has changed. Perhaps it is the change in media from packages to downloads and SNS, but I feel that charisma and authorship are fading. This is true not only for bishojo games, but also for games in general and anime. And if you include anime adaptations of bishojo games in that sense, I don't think there has been much of a decrease.

I am also working with Mr. Kyobuchi and Nitroplus on "Thunderbolt Fantasy," and I believe that eroge companies have the ability to create IP, so although the form may change, I think the anime industry and the eroge industry will continue to have contact in the future. I think that the anime industry and the eroge industry will continue to be in contact with each other.

Satomi: Currently, there are a lot of "Noro" style anime, mainly otherworldly reincarnation stories.

Satomi: With the current trend, it sells well overseas as well. I don't know if "Nero-kei" is the right term, but "otherworldly reincarnation" stories and success stories where things go smoothly and smoothly are the essence of entertainment, where good people do the right thing and succeed.