Sunrise (company)
Sunrise Inc. is a Japanese animation studio and production company which is a subsidiary of Bandai Namco Holdings. Its former name was Nippon Sunrise and, before that, Sunrise Studio. Its headquarters is in Suginami, Tokyo.
One of Japan's largest and best-known studios, Sunrise is renowned for critically praised and popular original anime series such as Gundam, Cowboy Bebop, Space Runaway Ideon, Armored Trooper Votoms, Yoroiden Samurai Troopers, Future GPX Cyber Formula, Crush Gear Turbo, The Vision of Escaflowne, Love Live School Idol Project, Witch Hunter Robin, My-HiME, My-Otome, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, Tiger & Bunny, Cross Ange: Rondo of Angel and Dragon, as well as its numerous adaptations of acclaimed light novels including Dirty Pair, Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere and Accel World, and manga such as City Hunter, InuYasha, Outlaw Star, Yakitate!! Japan, Planetes, Keroro Gunso, Gin Tama, and Kekkaishi. Many of Sunrise's original anime have similar themes, including mecha and masked identities, accompanied by fluid animation. Many fans refer to the quality of their work as "Sunrise Smooth".
Most of their work are original titles created in-house by their creative staff under a collective pseudonym, Hajime Yatate. They also operated a defunct video-game studio, Sunrise Interactive. Sunrise launched a light-novel publisher, Yatate Bunko Imprint, on September 30, 2016 to publish original titles and supplement their existing franchises with new materials. Anime created by Sunrise which have won the Animage Anime Grand Prix are Mobile Suit Gundam in 1979 and the first half of 1980, Space Runaway Ideon in the second half of 1980, Crusher Joe in 1983, Dirty Pair in 1985, Future GPX Cyber Formula in 1991, Gundam SEED in 2002, Gundam SEED Destiny in 2004 and 2005, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion in 2006 and 2007 and Code Geass R2 in 2008, making Sunrise the studio which won the largest number of Animage Awards.
History
According to an interview with Sunrise members, the studio was founded by former members of Mushi Production in 1972 as Sunrise Studio, Limited. Rather than having anime production revolve around a single creator, Sunrise decided that production should focus on the producers. The market for mainstream anime was already dominated by existing companies, so Sunrise decided to focus on robot anime, known to be more difficult to animate but which could be used to sell toys.Sunrise has been involved in many popular and acclaimed anime television series, including Mobile Suit Gundam, the Mashin Eiyūden Wataru series, the Yūsha series, the Eldran series which has now become part of the Yūsha series since the Takara Tomy merger, and the Crest of the Stars series. They produced the apocalyptic Space Runaway Ideon in 1980.
The company have co-produced a number of series with Toei Company, including Majokko Tickle, the Robot Romance Trilogy; Chōdenji Robo Combattler V, Chōdenji Machine Voltes V, Tōshō Daimos, and Cyborg 009. Sunrise is well known for their mecha anime series, such as Invincible Steel Man Daitarn 3, Fang of the Sun Dougram, the Armored Trooper Votoms and Aura Battler Dunbine series, Blue Comet SPT Layzner, , The Vision of Escaflowne, The Big O, Overman King Gainer, Zegapain, Code Geass, Tiger & Bunny, and Valvrave the Liberator, and worked with Tsuburaya Productions to animate The Ultraman.
Studios
- Studio 1 was created when Sunrise was founded in 1972. Notable works include Mobile Suit Gundam, Space Runaway Ideon, Armored Trooper Votoms, Patlabor, and Inuyasha. It was also the studio responsible for various later Gundam installments: G, Wing, X, Turn A, Unicorn, Reconguista in G, and Thunderbolt.
- Studio 2 was created around 1974-75, and some key members left to found the Bones studio in 1998. Notable works include Aura Battler Dunbine and some installments of Gundam: including Zeta, ZZ, Victory, ' and F91. It also worked on The Vision of Escaflowne and Cowboy Bebop, co-producing a film adaptation of each with Bones. The studio was involved with Tribe Cool Crew.
- Studio 3 was created in 1975. Early works included Blue Comet SPT Layzner and City Hunter. It was responsible for many Gundam installments, including ', ', and TV series of the franchise: 00, AGE, Build Fighters, Build Fighters Try, and '.
- Studio 4 was created in 1979, and notable works include The Ultraman anime. The studio became inactive in 1987. The current Studio 4 began as support for Studio 2, and was known as Studio Iogi . The studio's first major work was 1985's Dirty Pair, and other notable works include Planetes, s-CRY-ed and Code Geass.
- Studio 5 was also created in 1979. One of its producers was Mikihiro Iwata, a founder of A-1 Pictures. Notable works include Crest of the Stars, the InuYasha movies, Daily Lives of High School Boys, Aikatsu!, Good Luck Girl!, Gin Tama, Mobile Suit SD Gundam and '.
- Studio 6 was created in 1983. Notable works include The Big O, Sgt. Frog, and Tiger & Bunny. they also provided animation to '. Some of its members left to found Studio Bridge in the 2000s.
- Studio 7 was created in 1985. Its first work was on the American cartoon series The Centurions, and it is noted for Sacred Seven, s-CRY-ed and the Yūsha series. Some members left to form Manglobe in 2002.
- Established around 1995, Studio 8 is notable for My-HiME, Buddy Complex, ', The Girl Who Leapt Through Space, Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere, Accel World and Love Live!.
- Studio 7's sister studio, Studio 9 was established in 1996. Notable works include Gasaraki, Infinite Ryvius, Mobile Suit Gundam SEED and SEED Destiny, Argento Soma and Battle Spirits.
- Studio 5's sister studio, Studio 10 was established around 1996. Notable works include Outlaw Star, Dinosaur King and '.
- Studio 8's sister studio, Studio 11 was established in 2009 and worked on Kurokami and the SD Gundam Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors series.
- Sunrise’s CG production studio, D.I.D. helps creating CG for many of the company’s shows. They also produce CG work for other animation studios, including Xebec's Space Battleship Yamato 2199.
- Formerly known as Ogikubo Studio or Sunrise Emotion, Nerima Studio is best known for the Freedom Project, Valvrave the Liberator, the King of Thorn anime film and Cross Ange.
- Sunrise Origin Studio is Sunrise's in-between animation studio that does in-between animation for other studio's anime titles such as My Hero Academia to The Boy and the Beast.
- Sunrise Beyond is a subsidiary of Sunrise established after the purchase and closure of Xebec. Some of their works include .
Filmography
Non-Japanese productions
- Inspector Gadget
- Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors
- The Centurions
- Street Fighter
- Siegfried & Roy: Masters of the Impossible
Video game animation work
- '
- Blazing Lazers
- SD Gundam Neo Batoringu
- Brave Saga
- Real Bout Fatal Fury Special: Dominated Mind
- Sunrise Heroes
- Brave Saga 2
- Sunrise Heroes 2
- '
- '
- '
- Sunrise World War
- '
- '
- '
- Brave Wars
- Battle of Sunrise
- '
- Xuccess Heaven
- Starwing Paradox
- Love Live! School Idol Festival All Stars
Miscellaneous work
- Pink Crows
International distribution