The Washer! ～Me and Aitsu in a women's bath! ～Commemorating the start of broadcasting! How is the "monk frame" anime, the outlier of the anime industry, created? We asked the ComicFesta anime production team!

Have you ever heard of an anime broadcast slot called "Monk Quota"?
(*Akiko Segawa, producer of ComicFesta Anime, and kameco, in charge of PR, from left to right)

The "Monk Frame". It is a term used to refer to the slot in which "ComicFesta Anime" based on e-comics produced by Wave Inc. is broadcast, and since the first work was titled "A night of lustful sexual desire with a monk...", it has become a category name used mainly among anime fans in the Internet community. The first work was titled "A night of lustful sexual intercourse with a monk...", and the name of the category came to be used mainly by anime fans around the Internet.

The characteristic of "monk frame" works is that they are short animations with a lot of sexual scenes. However, since "moro" depictions are prohibited on terrestrial television, there are many times when the sexually explicit scenes are passed off in a certain way each time. The unique drive and outlandish situations of this short anime have made some fans addicted to it, and every time a new episode is released, it attracts a lot of secret attention.

So far, his works for women that include sexual descriptions (so-called "teen's love" works) include "A night of lust with a monk...," "Inside my skirt was an animal," "An arranged marriage is with a student," and "A strong man is with a woman. "An arranged marriage with a student, a bossy, problematic boy." The 25-year-old high school girl," "Sweet punishment - I am the guard's pet," "After the last train, in a capsule hotel, the night when the boss feels a slight fever..." and other male-oriented works such as "Jyoshiochi! ～A girl...fell from the second floor! ～and a boys' love work, "Papa datte, itashii" (Even Papa Wants to Do It) have been broadcast, and from this April, "Washiya-san! ～Me and Aitsu in a women's bath! ～will start this April.

In addition to the standard version of the "Monks' Quota" anime, a full version, forbidden to viewers under 18 years of age, was produced and distributed for a fee on "ComicFesta Anime" at about the same time as the standard version was aired. This is also unusual in the anime industry, where it is customary for extreme scenes to be released when the anime is packaged on Blu-ray or other media.

How was the "monk slot" created, and how is it made?

We asked ComicFesta anime producer Akiko Segawa and PR manager kameco about what anime fans are somewhat curious about.

We are going to take the lead in creating an anime about teens' love and take the top spot there!

--First of all, please tell us how the "monk frame" was started.

Akiko Segawa (hereafter, Segawa): Our company was originally in the business of editing and publishing digital comics, and as we expanded from there into distribution services and the print publishing sector, we thought that anime would be a good way to develop something new.

--We thought it would be a good idea to start an anime, and we started it. Was ComicFesta Anime's policy from the beginning to specialize in the TL genre?

Segawa: We thought about various patterns, but we decided that no one else was doing TL yet, so we decided to take the lead and aim for the top.

--The first title was "A Night of Sexual Desire with a Monk.... It's suddenly a monk, isn't it? To be honest, we were surprised at first, and I think there must have been a big reaction among viewers. ......

Segawa: That's right. First of all, there was some discussion about whether we could do TL on TV in the first place, and at first we thought about developing it as an OVA, but then we thought that if we could hide the extreme scenes well, it could be broadcast. So we decided to do it on TV.

Then, when we thought that we wanted everyone to like the characters, we decided that Kujo-kun, the "monk," would be a perfect fit.

--So he was already popular in the beginning?

Segawa Yes, TL is a very popular genre in the digital world, but the book version is often not placed in such a prominent place in bookstores. In this sense, opinions about name recognition were raised, but in the case of digital comics, advertisement banners are displayed on many websites. Many people knew the "monk character" displayed there. They would say, "The monk in this cartoon is that guy on that banner! They said, "Oh, that's the monk from the anime, that guy from the banner! Before we knew it, it had slipped into a corner of everyone's memory (laughs). (laughs) The response was quite large.

--It was an unexpected subliminal effect (laughs). I don't think you can underestimate the power of advertising. Incidentally, there are two versions of the "Monk Frame Animation," the standard version shown on terrestrial TV and the full version distributed for a fee on the Internet. How did this come about?

Segawa: At first, we had the idea of making only a "last-minute version" to meet terrestrial wave standards. However, we were proud of the importance we placed on the sexually explicit scenes in the original manga, so we decided that we wanted to create those scenes as well. So we decided to make two versions of the manga.

--It is quite unusual to have both the standard version and the uncut full version of a film at the same time. Normally, the uncensored version would be included in the package.

Segawa: We have always worked in the digital field, so we decided to distribute both at the same time in order to speed up the process.

(Both the regular and full versions of the "Monk Frame" anime are available on "ComicFesta Anime").

) -- Also, some works have separate casts for the regular version and the complete version.

kameco: If we were going to make two versions of a work, wouldn't it be better to have different voice actors play different roles so that the audience could enjoy the work twice as much? That is why some productions use a double cast.

In such cases, we consult with ...... so that the voices do not have to be the same for the regular version and the complete version. Some characters have totally different atmospheres and nuances in their performances, so we hope that you will enjoy both. The voice actors also enjoy it because it is rare to have someone other than themselves playing the same role.

The Teens' Love genre continues to grow

--To begin with, has the market for the TL genre been growing in recent years?

Segawa: The digital comic market has grown considerably. The main readership is said to be women in their 20s and 30s, especially those in their late 20s. It especially started to gain momentum about 12 to 13 years ago, when digital comics for mobile phones started to become popular. Before that time, there were still some published works, but it was difficult for women to pick them up and buy them at bookstores. With the advent of digital comics, these people were able to pick up the books, and the TL genre quickly gained momentum. In the past few years, the number of titles published in book form has also increased due to the popularity of the digital genre.

--I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I would like to ask you once again about the TL genre. Is it correct to think of it as slightly erotic works that lean more toward shoujo manga?

Segawa I think that is the correct interpretation. Up until now, when you think of sexually explicit comics for women, I think ladies' comics would be at the top of the list. Then there are romance comics for office workers, for example, which depict the daily lives of adults. Since it is an adult romance, of course there are "such scenes," but TL is based on the grammar of shoujo manga, so at the end of the romance, there are sexual scenes, but the partner is the true love of one's life.

--I see. So you chose "Monk" for the first anime in the series. Is a monk a major attribute in the TL world?

Segawa: It's very unorthodox (laughs). (Laughs.) We had a hard time deciding on the hairstyle until the very end, but if we wanted to maximize the sexiness and coolness of the male characters depicted by the original author, Leon Shinomi, we decided to go with a monk's hairstyle! So, Kujo-kun, the monk, was born.

--I was so excited that I decided to make him a monk! But thanks to that, he became recognized by anime fans as an original category of "monk". Especially, "A Night of Monkish Sexual Desire" was so popular that a cheering screening event was held. I heard that "wooden fish were allowed." Did anyone actually bring their own?

kameco: Probably about one-third to one-half of the people brought their own, since they could buy them on Amazon for 1,000 yen or so.

Segawa: I think the Amazon vendor must have been surprised. The most compact and cute wooden fish suddenly started selling.

kameco: At the event, people who are used to cheering screening events brought matching kigyo to liven up the event (laughs).

--They are wonderful fans! The love they have for each other is tremendous. After that, I thought that TL works would continue, but with "Jyoshiochi! suddenly shifted to male-oriented works.

Segawa: I wondered if the TV version would be worth watching since male-oriented works are more sexually explicit, but in fact, about half of our male-oriented manga are read by female readers. Therefore, we make comics that are a little different from our paper comics for men.

Because of this situation, we do not worry too much about whether the manga is for men or women, but rather take the stance that we will create manga regardless of genre, as long as the response from readers is strong and the manga will be interesting when it is made into an anime. That's why we sometimes suddenly turn to BL (laughs).

(laughs) -- "Even Daddy Wants to Do It. In that sense, "After the last train, in a capsule hotel, on a night when your boss has a slight fever. can be found at .......

kameco: "Toka-Kapu" was a work in which I tried to do the right thing in a thoroughly serious manner. It is an extension of the real thing that might happen in everyday life. I am focusing on the sense of excitement that is an extension of the real world.

Male fans are also growing!

--What kind of tension do the production staff members have in making the "monk frame" anime? It may be a misnomer to call it a bad ......, but I can feel the challenge of "Is it OK to go this far in a TV anime? I can feel the challenge of "Is it OK to go this far in a TV animation?

kameco: That depends a lot on the director. "Monk" and "End Cap" were directed by Hideki Araki, who is at the forefront of the male-oriented adult anime industry. The first "Monk" was created with the director's past know-how, but since it was his first work for women, through trial and error while consulting with the editor in charge, he seemed to think that there was more that could be done for women. For the next "End Caps," he conducted a survey of the women in the company to find out about fetishism and other topics.

--In the regular version of "End Cap," the screen became whiter and whiter as the sex scenes progressed, and in the latter half of the film, the screen was almost completely white (laughs).

Segawa: In the full version, everything was removed (laughs). The director wanted to go as far as he could.

--I was thrilled to see that the voices were well acted and the pictures were drawn right up to the very last minute.

kameco But I had to stop drawing. In the full version, they are moving in great detail! Like up and down movements (laughs).

(laughs) -- Do you think that most of the fans of the "monk frame" are women?

Kameco: It depends on the work, but I think it is the same as a whole, since our works have mainly been for women. However, I feel that by working in a variety of genres, we have gained new users, including men.

--What do you mean by that?

kameco: "Papa Shitashi" can be seen on Nico Nico Douga and live TV broadcasts, and it can be watched in 3.5 minutes, so it seems that men are watching it quite casually. Also, we played the audio commentary of the cast on terrestrial TV, and the cast commented on it from a male perspective, so male viewers also enjoyed it, saying "Yes, yes! The male viewers seemed to enjoy it as well.

--Is the number of male fans increasing?

kameco Yes, that's right. Even when we hold events for female-oriented titles, we have quite a few male viewers. Also, many people thought that "25 Year Old High School Girl" was for men because of the title, and it seems that men also watched it.

What is the goal of the "monk frame"?

--Segawa: I would like to ask you as much as you can, but is the paid distribution of special editions a viable business model?

Segawa: Currently, it is largely for promotional purposes.

kameco: I think it is a positive thing in a broad sense, such as people becoming members of our website or reading our books through the distribution.

--For example, do you have any plans to bring your works to overseas markets?

Segawa: We have already done so in some cases. The main markets are Asia, Europe, and the United States. However, since "such depictions" are inevitably included, we are not able to release them in some countries. However, I think that the nuances of romance, which may not be understood in different cultures, have been accepted, although I am not surprised.

--Do you plan to continue the "monk frame" anime in the future?

Segawa: Yes, we do. We would like to continue it!

--For example, is there a possibility of expanding to a 30-minute slot?

Segawa: It is not possible to do a 30-minute program right away as an in-house scheme, but we would like to expand the slot, and we would also like to challenge ourselves to do more than just sexually explicit works.

--You are not particular about sexually oriented works?

Segawa: Our stance is that we don't care what genre as long as it is interesting. It doesn't matter if there are sexually explicit descriptions or not. I feel that "fun" is more important than anything else.

--In such a situation, we started a new project in April, "Mr. Wasariya! ～Me and him in a women's bath! ～will start in April. This one is about a boy who is an apprentice back-slush craftsman at a public bathhouse and ends up washing the backs of his classmate's girls. ......

kameco: I think this is a work that has the fun of the origin of harem stories that we have grown up watching. For example, ...... like the thrill of the bath scene in "Ranma 1/2". Now, for adult viewers, this work is rather like the origin of the thrill of excitement.

-Because the story takes place in a bath house, it's a bath episode from the beginning all the way through.

Segawa: The two main characters are very popular as a coupling, and many people say they are cute together. The students call each other by their surnames, which is unique to students, and it is popular among both men and women alike, so I think it is suitable for an anime.

--What would you like to do in the "monk slot" in the future, and what are your goals?

Segawa: There are restrictions on what can be shown on terrestrial television. I would like to pursue what is most interesting within those restrictions.

We are still in the early stages of becoming an animation studio, but we are gradually bringing in production and animation staff. For future productions, we would like to establish an in-house production line. We are still in the process of trial and error, but we are aiming for something that is both incredibly naughty and, moreover, the content is something that will make people think, "I was moved! We are still experimenting, but we would like to create something that is both sexually explicit and that will make people think, "I was so moved!

Also, since we are not operating under a production committee system, but rather are running everything in-house, we would like to continue to focus on speed and develop various projects in the future. Because there are no restrictions imposed by the production committee, we have been able to realize interesting projects such as screening all episodes before broadcast, holding presentations of new works, and supporting screenings. I would like to continue to do new things and develop a new fan base.

--I am looking forward to it. Thank you very much for your time today!