Jujutsu Kaisen Exec Suggests Anime Bankruptcies Are Incoming

There are few animators in anime more concerned about the industry’s future than Terumi Nishii. The artist, who is known best these days for supervising animation on Jujutsu Kaisen, has been an animation champion for years now. Not long ago, Nishii shared their support for the NAFCA as the organization is working to train animators amidst difficult work conditions. And recently, Nishii suggested the anime industry is about to be hit with a surge of bankruptcies.

The confession came from X (Twitter) as Nishii spoke about a recent NAFCA meeting. It was there the animator detailed new guidelines the organization wants to see put into animation curriculums. And after talking about training, Nishii shed light upon the financial straits of the anime industry in some now-deleted posts.

“In the future, the capacity of each studio will be completely exhausted. We expect to see more and more bankruptcies because of the fact that a production scheduled to end three years from now will be finished in five years despite its budget going towards another production. I wonder how many animators will be able to survive when this happens. The careless ones will be cut away. Let’s all study,” Nishii shared.

Of course, this warning is hardly the first Nishii has shared when it comes to anime. The artist has been working in the industry for ages, and they have noted a troubling trend with animators as of late. As the industry booms, more and more animators are being let in with little experience, and their training is just not up to par.

“Seriously, it’s over… We need to do something about the training scheme by then,” Nishii shared on X (Twitter) last year. But hopefully, Nishii can pave a better path for animators with help from the NAFCA. Only time will tell how the industry will perform in the face of rising popularity, but fans are keeping their fingers crossed that Japan remains on top of the field. 

What do you think about Nishii’s prediction? Do you think the anime industry is in danger? Let us know what you think in the comments below as well as on Twitter and Instagram. You can also hit me up @MeganPetersCB to share your take!