Kyoto Animation, often shortened to KyoAni, is a production company based in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture. Among Japan's anime studios it is distinctive for hiring animators as full-time salaried employees, training them internally, and basing production outside Tokyo's anime industrial cluster. The studio's catalogue — The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, K-On!, Hyouka, A Silent Voice, Violet Evergarden — is among the most consistent in the industry.
Founding and structure
KyoAni was founded by Yoko Hatta, who had worked as an inker at Mushi Production. The studio existed for two decades as a subcontractor — producing in-between animation for Toei, Sunrise, and others — before moving into full production in the early 2000s.
Its employment model is unusual: animators are hired full-time on salary, trained at the studio's own school, and retained across projects. Most Japanese anime production employs animators per-cut on freelance contracts. The KyoAni model produces better visual consistency at the cost of slower output.
Output and reputation
KyoAni's TV anime are widely considered the technical benchmark for character animation, facial expression, and small everyday gesture. Selected works include Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu (2003), The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (2006), Lucky Star (2007), K-On! (2009), Nichijou (2011), Hyouka (2012), Free! (2013), Sound! Euphonium (2015), Violet Evergarden (2018), and the films A Silent Voice (2016) and Liz and the Blue Bird (2018).
The 2019 arson
On 18 July 2019 the studio's First Studio building was set on fire by an attacker; 36 people died and another 33 were injured. The attack was one of the deadliest mass killings in postwar Japanese history and destroyed extensive in-progress production material. KyoAni has continued producing since, with Violet Evergarden: The Movie (2020) and several subsequent releases.