Hidden Heroes of the Anime Industry
Anime Content Creators (ACC’s) on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and more have done so much for the Anime Industry — and yet they live a thankless, almost back-alley-like existence. They are the Anime Industry’s Hidden Heroes.
If this is your first time hearing about ACC’s, see my previous article to learn more about these Creators and the wide variety of content that they produce.
For those of you who are more familiar, it’s time to outline exactly what these ACC’s have done for the Anime Industry — as well as to outline what possibilities could be in store in a world where they are celebrated, encouraged, and enabled to do what they do best.
Influencer Marketing
“If people already love your products, they will speak about them with passion and knowledge, and this will, in turn, inspire others”
Influencer marketing, which focuses on key individuals rather than the entire market as a whole, is an enormously lucrative strategy in our current digital age.
To take a personal example into account, last week I watched all of Violet Evergarden (I know, I’m a recovering binge addict haha!). I didn’t watch it because of the trailer that I had seen on Netflix. I didn’t watch it because of ads that I saw from any one company. Instead, I watched it because an Anime Content Creator recommended it to me, one who I know is truly passionate about anime. You get where I’m going with this?
Every single Anime Content Creator — regardless of whether they are a nano-influencer, a mega-influencer, or anywhere in between — plays a role in the growth of anime; especially in recent years. If we could sum up that impact, I would bet that together they played the single largest role in the recent widespread adoption of anime. Yes, that includes Crunchyroll’s latest subscriber milestone of 3 million paying users and 70 million overall users worldwide.
I believe that it isn’t a stretch to hypothesize that ACC’s literally drove the growth of anime around the world to heights never before seen. And yet, they are doing all of this for free! Because they want to. Marketers who work on Influencer Marketing campaigns typically make $5.20 for every $1 spent on their campaigns and yet the Anime Industry could, comparatively, be making $5.20 on every $0 spent.
At the very least, with the lack of pay aside (unless, perhaps, an ACC has made it to the mega-influencer level), shouldn’t we enable ACC’s rather than threaten copyright takedowns? Shouldn’t we make sourcing anime digital media IP’s easier, safer, and legal for them?
Community
Additionally, ACC’s provide a vital component to the lifeblood of anime; community. And they’re experts at building them.
Whether they create discord channels, communicate with their fans directly on Instagram, or simply let their viewers know that they aren’t alone in their fandoms through posting a silly TikTok video — they are building communities in a space that adores the power of friendship.
Think about it this way. If you have friends in a space that you love, you’re more likely to talk about your love more — you’re more likely to completely engross yourself into whatever it is that brings you joy while connecting with others. This power has been well known by the Anime Industry for ages now; Crunchyroll talks about it all the time as a major reason for its success and continued stronghold. However, no one is thanking ACC’s for the part that they play in strengthening this pillar.
Accountability
In the same way that elections are held in a democracy to help ensure the best for a country — ACC’s often voice critiques to help ensure the best for the Anime Industry. They hold players in the Anime Industry accountable for their actions and/or inactions.
Is the easiest option to silence ACC’s? Sure. Is the better option for the health and wellbeing of the Anime Industry to encourage them? Absolutely.
Few of us create companies simply because we want to make money — some do, of course — but many more go through all of the pain and struggle because they believe in some vision. For most in the Anime Industry, they created their companies because they love anime.
Isn’t it a blessing, then? That Content Creators can help a company stay true to their vision? That they can meaningfully drive the company in the direction that best reflects their original, core values?
As someone who is trying to build an anime company from scratch — I certainly think that holding others accountable is a task for heroes.
Stigma Destroyers
Growing up, I didn’t know anyone who liked anime. I didn’t know about anime conventions, cosplayers, or anything else. I kept it a secret that I watched Yugioh and Pokemon, and I certainly never dared to let others know that I somehow acquired the DVD for the first season of Fruits Basket and rewatched it whenever I could.
Looking back, it’s so incredible how many things have changed since then. Although we aren’t perfectly stigma-free yet, we’ve come such a long way.
Some might say that this stigma is slowly being chipped away because of companies like Crunchyroll and Funimation and their marketing efforts. However, because of how effective ACC’s are at spreading their passions like wildfire, I believe that ACC’s have a similar, if not a much larger, role to play in the normalization of the medium.
Future
Looking towards the future, I see so many potential benefits that ACC’s could have for the Anime Industry if they are encouraged and empowered in this space.
Because of their authentic love for anime, I believe in a future where ACC’s are celebrated for finally helping Animators receive fair wages. I believe in a future where, because they allow more Animators to enter into the field, together they can tangibly say “We helped pave the way for that new anime”. I believe in a future where ACC’s are able to monetize their creations because their creations help both the Anime Industry and themselves. I believe in a future where ACC’s are looked upon as a beacon of hope for small studios who wish to share their anime titles with the world by unlocking the power of authenticity.
If you made it this far in the article, I hope that you’ve acquired a new sense of gratitude for ACC’s and all that their passions have brought them to achieve. You’ve probably gotten a sense of my vision already, but to drive the point home I’ll write it out here: I want to transform the Anime Industry to include its Hidden Heroes: Anime Content Creators.
If this dream resonates with you in any way, I’d love to have the opportunity to connect, learn, and grow from one another.
Please,
- If you’re an Anime Content Creator — either aspiring or current — Join our Discord. It’s new, but I’ll be offering feedback to help you grow, as well as throwing ideas back and forth if you aren’t sure where to start.
- Signup for our monthly newsletter via our Coming Soon Site.
- Follow our journey on our Instagram
Thank you so much for your time, and as always:
Adventure on anime enthusiasts!
