Bandai Namco Pictures
Bandai Namco Pictures Inc.[lower-alpha 1] is a Japanese animation studio and production company. It is a spinoff of Sunrise, a subsidiary of Bandai Namco Holdings. The company is formed as a part of the medium-term management plan of Bandai Namco Holdings on restructuring Bandai Namco Group. All the anime intellectual property and production divisions of Sunrise that aims at children and family was transferred to BN Pictures. The company began its operations in April 2015.
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Native name | 株式会社バンダイナムコピクチャーズ |
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Romanized name | Kabushiki gaisha Bandai Namuko Pikuchāzu |
Type | Subsidiary |
Industry | Anime |
Founded | April 2015 |
Headquarters | Nerima, Tokyo |
Key people |
|
Products | Anime, films, DVDs |
Revenue | ¥10 million |
Owner | Bandai Namco Holdings |
Number of employees | 70 (2016) |
Parent | Sunrise |
Website | www |
Footnotes / references "Corporate Profile". www.bn-pictures.co.jp (in Japanese). Bandai Namco Pictures. Archived from the original on April 28, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2020. |
History
On February 12, 2015, Bandai Namco Holdings announced plans to restructure itself through the usage of a three-year medium-management plan.[1] The company sought to focus its resources on creating new intellectual properties (IPs) and marketable characters, and required faster planning and development time to satisfy these demands.[1][2] Bandai Namco executives also believed it was necessary for its IP Creation content area to strengthen ties with its Toy and Hobby area, as it would lead to both strong relationships between the two divisions and allow for future product collaborations.[2]
As part of its efforts to fulfill these obligations, Bandai Namco Pictures was established in April 2015 in Nerima, Tokyo.[2][3] Headed by Masayuki Ozaki, the representative director of animation studio Sunrise, the company was to lead its parent's "Strengthen IP Creation Output" project and focus on the creation of new characters and franchises, specifically those targeted towards children and families.[1][3] Bandai Namco Pictures would also work together with the Toy and Hobby division of Bandai Namco Holdings to strengthen the linkage between the two areas of the latter company.[1][2][3] Pictures absorbed Sunrise's production departments relating to children-oriented IPs, becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of Sunrise and part of Bandai Namco's IP Creation department.[4][5]
The company's first project was Aikatsu!, an anime based on the Bandai trading card arcade game of the same name which had been produced by Sunrise until that point.[3] In addition to working on pre-established franchises, Bandai Namco Pictures would produce several original projects, such as the stop-motion animation series Milpom!.[6] Pictures focused primarily on series and characters targeted towards children and families, though some, such as Tiger & Bunny and the Gintama series, were aimed at older audiences. The company regularly collaborates with other subsidiaries within Bandai Namco Holdings; in 2016, it partnered with Bandai Namco Entertainment to produce Dream Festival!, a multimedia franchise centered around video games and original net animations.
In August 2018, Bandai Namco Pictures opened a division in Osaka, the Bandai Namco Pictures Osaka Studio, for the purpose of digitally transferring animation to decrease production times.[7] The company hoped the success and productivity from the Osaka Studio could allow for additional offices to be opened in Japan and eventually overseas.[7] A year later in October, Pictures absorbed Studio Dub, an animation subcontractor established by former Sunrise animators. The acquisition renamed the company Bandai Namco Pictures Iwaki, though it continues using the Studio Dub name for its projects.
Works
Television series
Title | First run start date |
First run end date |
Eps. | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Aikatsu! | October 8, 2012 | March 31, 2016 | 178 | [3] |
Tribe Cool Crew | September 28, 2014 | October 4, 2015 | 50 | [8] |
Battle Spirits: Burning Soul | April 1, 2015 | March 30, 2016 | 51 | [9] |
Gintama° | April 8, 2015 | March 30, 2016 | 51 | [10] |
Battle Spirits: Double Drive | April 6, 2016 | March 29, 2017 | 51 | [9] |
Aikatsu Stars! | April 7, 2016 | March 29, 2018 | 100 | [11] |
Heybot! | September 18, 2016 | September 24, 2017 | 50 | [9] |
Gintama. | January 8, 2017 | March 26, 2017 | 13 | [9] |
Gintama. Porori-hen | October 1, 2017 | December 24, 2017 | 13 | [9] |
Gintama. Shirogane no Tamashii-hen | January 7, 2018 | October 7, 2018 | 26 | [10] |
Aikatsu Friends! | April 5, 2018 | September 26, 2019 | 76 | [12] |
B-PROJECT~Zecchō*Emotion~ | January 11, 2019 | March 29, 2019 | 12 | [10] |
Aikatsu on Parade! | October 5, 2019 | March 28, 2020 | 25 | [13] |
Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun | October 5, 2019 | March 7, 2020 | 23 | [14] |
Motto! Majime ni Fumajime Kaiketsu Zorori | April 5, 2020 | TBA | TBA | [15] |
Saikyō Kamizmode | October 9, 2020 | TBA | TBA | [16] |
Aikatsu Planet! | January 10, 2021 | TBA | TBA | [17] |
Cestvs: The Roman Fighter | April 2021 | TBA | TBA | [18] |
Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun Season 2 | April 2021 | TBA | TBA | [19] |
Tiger & Bunny 2 | 2022 | TBA | TBA | [20] |
OVA/ONAs
- Milpom! (2015–2017)[9]
- Gin Tama (2015)
- Dream Festival! (2016)
- Gintama°: Love Incense Arc (2016)
- Dream Festival! R (2017)
- Gintama: Monster Strike-hen (2019)
- Fight League: Gear Gadget Generators (2019)[21]
- Battle Spirits: Kakumei no Galette (2020)
Films
- Kaiketsu Zorori: Uchū no Yūsha-tachi (2015, co-produced with Ajia-do Animation Works)[22]
- Aikatsu! Music Awards - The Show Where Everyone Gets an Award! (2015)
- Aikatsu! The Targeted Magical Aikatsu Card (2016)
- Aikatsu Stars!: The Movie (2016)
- Eiga Kaiketsu Zorori ZZ no Himitsu (2017, co-produced with Ajia-do Animation Works)
- Gintama The Final (2021)
- Hula Fulla Dance (2021)[23]
Notes
- Japanese: 株式会社バンダイナムコピクチャーズ, Hepburn: Kabushiki-gaisha Bandai Namuko Pikuchāzu
References
- "ム › ニュース › トレンド › 記事 バンダイナムコピクチャーズ2015年4月設立 サンライズがキッズ・ファミリー向けを分社化". Anime Anime (in Japanese). IID. February 12, 2015. Archived from the original on March 29, 2019. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
- "サンライズの一部を分社化「バンダイナムコピクチャーズ」設立 「アイカツ!」などキッズ向け担当". ITMedia. February 12, 2015. Archived from the original on September 8, 2019. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
- "Sunrise's Kids & Family IP to Spin Off Into New Bandai Namco Group Company". Anime News Network. February 12, 2015. Archived from the original on August 29, 2020. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
- "Corporate Profile". www.bn-pictures.co.jp (in Japanese). Bandai Namco Pictures. Archived from the original on April 28, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
- "Bandai Namco Group Integrated Report 2019". Bandai Namco Holdings. September 13, 2019. Archived from the original on May 18, 2020. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
- Ressler, Karen (March 30, 2015). "Bandai Namco Pictures Unveils Milpom Stop-Motion Anime Project for Girls". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on January 30, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- "BNP、大阪スタジオを設立。アニメーション現場の環境整備にも着手。". OtakuIndustry.biz (in Japanese). September 7, 2018. Archived from the original on January 11, 2021. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- Loo, Egan (September 9, 2015). "Tribe Cool Crew Team Makes Dance Anime Brave Beats". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on November 6, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- Antonio Pineda, Rafael (January 10, 2017). "Bandai Namco Pictures Studio Plans Original Projects". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on November 15, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- "Works". www.bn-pictures.co.jp (in Japanese). Bandai Namco Pictures. Archived from the original on July 2, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- Ashcraft, Brian (April 12, 2016). "Your Complete Spring 2016 Anime Guide". Kotaku. G/O Media. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- Antonio Pineda, Rafael (February 4, 2018). "Aikatsu Friends! Anime's Cast, Staff Revealed". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on April 17, 2019. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- Ashcraft, Brian (October 5, 2019). "Your Spring 2019 Anime Guide". Kotaku Australia. G/O Media. Archived from the original on August 4, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- "「魔入りました!入間くん」第2シリーズ放送決定!!". NHK News (in Japanese). NHK. March 9, 2020. Archived from the original on December 9, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- Mateo, Alex (February 13, 2020). "New Kaiketsu Zorori Anime Reveals Cast, Theme Songs, April 5 Premiere". Anime News Network. Retrieved February 13, 2020.
- Hodgkins, Crystalyn (August 10, 2020). "Bandai Namco Pictures Announces Saikyō Kamizmode Anime". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on December 18, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- "『アイカツプラネット!』実写×アニメ×CGでアイドル活動しちゃおう♪". Dengeki Online (in Japanese). Dengeki. August 12, 2020. Archived from the original on September 29, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- Hodgkins, Crystalyn (November 5, 2020). "Kentō Ankoku Den Cestvs, Kentō Shitō Den Cestvs Manga Get TV Anime in April 2021". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
- Antonio Pineda, Rafael (September 2, 2020). "'Welcome to Demon School, Iruma-kun' Anime Season 2 Premieres Next April". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on December 20, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- Hodgkins, Crystalyn (May 1, 2020). "Tiger & Bunny 2 Anime Reveals Character Visual, More Returning Cast". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 25, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
- "Fight League Anime's Trailer Reveals Cast, More Staff, February 14 Debut". AnimeNewsNetwork. December 10, 2018. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
- "Kaiketsu Zorori: Uchū no Yūsha-tachi Film Trailer Teases Original Story". Anime News Network. April 18, 2015. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
- "Aniplex Reveals Hula Fulla Dance Original Anime for Summer 2021". AnimeNewsNetwork. November 4, 2020. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
External links
- Official website (in Japanese)
- BN Pictures at Anime News Network's encyclopedia