(Image via otaquest.com)

Business Manager: Brendan Flaherty

Email: bflaherty1@umassd.edu

While the Maruyama Animation Produce Project Association (MAPPA) has been putting out absolutely beautiful episodes for each of their shows, they don’t seem to know when to take a break.

For those who don’t know, MAPPA is a Japanese animation studio and has been the frontrunner of anime adaptations since 2011.

The studio is responsible for some of the greatest manga recreations to date, having created shows like Attack on Titan, Chainsaw Man, Jujutsu Kaisen, and many more.

However, it has recently come to light that MAPPA animators are being forced to work in poor conditions. Animators report being overworked, resulting in lesser-quality episodes and unhealthy amounts of stress. 

A recent social media post from MAPPA employee Hokuto Sadamoto acknowledges the severe drop in quality level after the premier of the latest Jujutsu Kaisen episode. 

Sadamoto elaborates on how the animators were unable to complete the episode to their satisfaction and that he was deeply sorry for his failure to provide adequate content.

It is deeply concerning to see the animators put so much pressure on their work and themselves. In a post shared on Twitter (X) translated by dailyo.in, Sadamoto claimed: 

“Everyone is not trash like me… I’ll make up for it in my future work. Until then, I will live my life as the worst animator who has ruined a masterpiece.”

It was later reported that soon after tweeting his apology, Sadamoto posted again, informing fans that he was sent to the hospital for unknown reasons. 

It’s easy to infer that the emotional and mental toll that animating for MAPPA was no help for his overall health.

Despite the animator’s harsh criticism, the latest episodes of Jujutsu Kaisen have been some of the greatest episodes of the series yet.

In fact, as of November 30th, the last 6 episodes have been the highest rated on IMDb out of the show’s second season.

Episodes 15, 16, and 17 have all received ratings above or at 9.7 out of 10 on IMDb. They have all been very well received by fans.

Overall, the animation quality on each episode is absolutely stunning and hits new levels of greatness every time, bar none.

So if the fans aren’t, then why are the animators worried?

Because MAPPA is such an up-and-coming company, they have been giving their all towards making the best possible content they can by imposing impossible standards on their animators.

This is also why they have taken on so many popular anime series like Jujutsu Kaisen.

They have constantly been working to put out weekly episodes of their shows, and because of this, their employees have been severely overworked.

Another MAPPA employee who has spoken out about the conditions is Vincent Chansard, who worked on the Jujutsu Kaisen production team. He posted on Twitter (X), delaring: 

“2 years ago I said I would never work for MAPPA again. Hakuyu Go-san was the only one who made me reconsider, but this was the last time.”

The person he refers to is his colleague, who convinced him to stay with MAPPA. The animation that he worked on is a part of the most recent episode, titled “Thunder Clap Part 2.”

As mentioned previously, this was one of the highest-rated episodes of the season – and yet, the animators say that it was only 30% complete.

Furthermore, the director, Kazuto Arai, who worked on Jujutsu Kaisen’s second season, suggested that “it’s not their failing if it becomes impossible to comply with your studio’s pathetic planning,” according to an article from MSN.

“They didn’t doom the schedule. It already was.”

MAPPA’s rush to complete their projects and their insistence on expediting production has created a hostile and unhealthy work environment– yet animators have been led to believe that they are the issue.

Following all the messages from the animators and creators regarding the harsh treatment that they have been facing, fans have grown more and more concerned.

They believed that the season should be pushed back and possibly delayed to help ease pressure on the animators.

But this has not happened yet, and if MAPPA’s track record stays true, they will continue to overwork their employees until this project finishes – only to jump immediately into the next one.

Now, we can only hope that MAPPA will see the error in their ways and allow the creators a chance to recuperate and create animations they are proud of.