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Drawing Anime Swordplay Is Difficult

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Future animators out there, take note.

Making hand-drawn animation is not easy. But in a video that made the rounds online in Japan, famed Japanese animator, Yasuo Otsuka, who has worked at Toei Animation and Studio Ghibli, explained his method to add some clarity to the process.

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Taking the swordsman character, Goemon, from the Lupin the Third animation series, Otsuka explained how he would animate the character drawing and swinging his sword. It's a single instant that would appear for maybe a second, if that, during an episode, but Otsuka broke it down in depth, drawing from scratch – something one rarely gets to see.

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It's all pretty fascinating and definitely worth checking out if you're a fan of animation at all.

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(subtitles by Toshi Nakamura)


Kotaku East is your slice of Asian internet culture, bringing you the latest talking points from Japan, Korea, China and beyond. Tune in every morning from 4am to 8am.

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To contact the author of this post, write to cogitoergonihilATgmail.com or find him on Twitter @tnakamura8.