Anime shows are shorter due to staff shortages

Anime shows are getting shorter seasons, a trend seen in recent titles like Solo Leveling and Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX. These series are often limited to 12 or 13 episodes. An animator, Kyoko Kotani, has shared insights on this development. Kotani, who has worked on popular anime like My Hero Academia and JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, cited a desire for higher quality as a major reason. She explained that creating shows requires a level of quality similar to movies, but there is a shortage of skilled professionals in all areas of anime production. This means that even if studios hire enough staff, they can typically only produce one season in a year. Kotani also emphasized that finding workers with specific skills, like layouts and key animations, is challenging. If initial assets aren't good enough, it creates delays as directors must redo much of the work. The expectation for anime quality has also increased. Series such as Jujutsu Kaisen and Demon Slayer have set a high standard. Audiences now expect TV shows to match the look of feature films, which adds more pressure on production teams. Previously, there was a clear distinction between the quality of movies and TV shows, but that line is fading. It's becoming harder for studios to meet these new expectations, all while managing limited resources. Maintaining quality requires patience from fans as the industry adapts.