KADOKAWA opens Studio One Base, its new anime studio in Ikebukuro

KADOKAWA launched Studio One Base, its new anime production center in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, on November 1. The company merged five of its animation studios into a new company with the same name, which will operate from Sunshine City.

The studios now part of Studio One Base are ENGI, Studio KADAN, Chip Tune, Bernox Films, and Raging Bull. Each will keep its brand and identity, but they will share one roof to make communication between creators easier and encourage the exchange of techniques and knowledge.

Studio One Base, KADOKAWA's new anime production center in Ikebukuro.group.kadokawa.co.jp

The full facility spans about 1,400 tsubo and will employ around 400 people. The heart of the building is the main studio, a space of roughly 1,000 tsubo on a single floor that KADOKAWA describes as one of the largest of its kind in Japan.

A space designed around the production flow

Instead of dividing offices by department, the main studio organizes its areas following the actual animation process. There are three connected zones: "immersion", for creators to focus on their work; "refinement", for sharing information and consultations; and "resonance", designed to generate new ideas through contact with people inside and outside the company.

The space's design took input from the creators themselves. The desks, for example, are custom-made flexible partitions, with shelves and heights that adjust according to the amount of material and the type of work at each studio. Ergonomic chairs for long workdays and lighting with less glare were also installed.

The main studio at Studio One Base, designed around the animation process.group.kadokawa.co.jp

In the same building, KADOKAWA Creators will operate, a company that hires young talent as employees and trains them within real productions. The idea is for new animators to learn by working on actual titles, with the support of the neighboring studios.

KADOKAWA frames this move as part of its production system reform plan "Create people who create. Create places to create." The strategy aims to strengthen anime and live-action production capacity, expand support for creators, and boost intellectual property generation.

Facilities at Studio One Base, KADOKAWA's new production center.group.kadokawa.co.jp

The company also plans to build closer ties with the Toshima ward, where Ikebukuro is located, to turn the studio into a meeting point for creators, ideas, and new projects. The end goal is to produce more varied works and bring them to fans around the world.

KADOKAWA has not yet announced which titles will come out of Studio One Base first. With five studios under one roof, the bet is clear: more internal collaboration and a pipeline of animators learning in real productions.

What do you think of KADOKAWA's move? Tell us in the comments if you think these giant studios help improve working conditions for animators.