Becoming an Animator in Japan — An Interview with Studio Director Mar Expósito

Mar Expósito was born in Barcelona, Spain, and grew up watching plenty of animation and spending a lot of time drawing. She came to Japan in 2014 with the project to work in the animation industry. The first animated short film she directed received several awards, and earlier this year, she built her own animation company in Tokyo. In this interview, Mar tells us how this allows her to create stories that reflect her personal set of values.

Could you explain to our readers what your job consists of?

I’ve been doing animation for a few years, but I just created my own animation company, “Maru Exposito,” in February 2020. I wear many hats: producer, animator, manager… When a client comes in and says, “I want an animation piece with these characteristics,” I either do it myself, or I put together a team, manage them, and deliver. For example, the last client came with a song, and they wanted an animated music video. We decided on the style and the budget, and I realized I needed a background artist, so I hired a friend, and we made it.

Before I officially created the studio in February, I was already doing a comic with a few people. So, I’m used to working this way. So far, we’ve had two projects. The first one is the music video I just told you about, for which…