Japan’s most famous anime/manga artist trade school now has a fully online program

Yoyogi Animation Academy is looking for applicants for its new Full Remote School’s first semester this fall.

Founded in Tokyo’s Yoyogi district in 1978, the Yoyogi Animation Academy is Japan’s most respected and renowned trade school for anime artists. However, the school relocated across town to the Suidobashi neighborhood a few years ago, so you don’t really have to be in Yoyogi anymore to study at Yoyogi Animation Academy. Actually, you don’t even have to be in Tokyo, since Yoani (as the school is also called) now has branches in a few other cities, such as Osaka and Nagoya, and as of this fall, that geographic untethering is going even further, as Yoyogi Animation Academy is now offering a completely online remote learning option.

Yoyogi Animation Academy says its Full Remote School is the first in the Japanese anime industry. In addition to online lessons specifically for the all-online program, students will also have access to live streams of in-person lessons held at Yoyogi Animation Academy’s physical locations. Online students will be able to ask instructors questions and receive feedback and corrections for their projects, and they’ll also have one-on-one weekly interviews with a teacher to see how they’re progressing and handling their studyload.

On-paper drawing is no longer the norm for the anime industry, and so electronic drawing tablets work as both preparation for what’s to come in the professional sphere and also a facilitating format for online submissions and feedback.

Yoyogi Animation Academy says that Full Remote School students will also use VR headsets, though it’s not entirely clear if they’re for use with class sessions or the virtual space the school is setting up for student events, socializing, and club activities.

Full Remote School students can choose from three specializations, starting with the Department of Animation (for those aiming to become animators, directors, or character designers)…

…the Department of Manga (manga artists, editors, and assistants)…

…and the Department of NFT Illustration.

The online program wants to provide not just geographical freedom but time flexibility too, with the archived lessons allowing students to complete courses with Yoyogi Animation Academy at their own pace even if they’re concurrently attending another school or working.

The Yoyogi Animation Academy Full Remote School starts classes this October, with the next possible starting date after that in April of 2023. Ordinarily it’s a two-year program, but those starting in October of 2022 will be on a slightly faster track, with their graduation coming in March of 2024.

Related Yoyogi Animation Academy Full Remote School official website
Source: Yoyogi Animation Academy, PR Times via Otakomu
Top image: PR Times
Insert images: Yoyogi Animation Academy
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