Anime Mania: How to Draw Characters for Japanese Animation (Manga Mania) [Paperback]

Christopher Hart (Author)

Book Description

Series: Manga Mania | Publication Date: July 1, 2002

There’s no doubt about it: Japanese animation is hot. Television shows, films, and videos featuring the anime style of animation are wildly popular. Japanese animation is like a comic book come to life, retaining all its power but in moving form. It has a very different style from traditional western animation, incorporating heavy shading, dramatic camera angles, and beautifully rendered special effects—especially the fantastic anime depictions of ocean waves, storms, smoke, and explosions. Easier to draw than its western counterpart, anime is more limited and simpler in its execution. In Japanese anime the characters move, but their movements are generally staccato, sharp, and dramatic—not free-flowing with lots of overlapping action, anticipation, and follow-through.

In Anime Mania, famous cartoonist, teacher, and best-selling author Christopher Hart demonstrates how any comic book artist can become expert in this wonderful style of animation. Step by step, he details how to draw the coolest anime characters from the widest selection of popular styles: high-tech cyberpunks who live in the world of the future; teen characters—with troubled relationships at school, home, and on the street; and mighty monsters, fantasy warriors, and giant robots. Aspiring animators will also find chapters on anime’s spectacular special effects, the role of storyboarding in anime, sketching and the art of character design, and a mini-crash course in perspective. The book concludes with interviews with Scott Frazier, an American anime director working in Japan, and Mahiro Meada, a renowned Japanese animation director.

Brimming with hundreds of spectacular examples, illustrations, and step-by-step exercises, Anime Mania details how anyone can become a real anime artist without having to reinvent the art of drawing.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

A successful contributor to MAD magazine, the "Blondie" cartoon strip, and various film and TV productions, Hart previously brought us Manga Mania: How To Draw Japanese Comics. In this follow-up, he demonstrates anime, the unique Japanese animation style of heavy shading, dramatic camera angles, and beautifully rendered special effects, most popularly known to U.S. audiences through series like Digimon and Sailor Moon. Based more on character than action, these anime include high-tech cyberpunks and teen characters with troubled relationships, as well as monsters, fantasy warriors, and giant robots. Hart covers storyboarding, sketching, perspective, the basics of animating, and the functioning of an animation studio. Rounding out the book are interviews with two anime directors. Highly recommended for public libraries.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Cartoonist and teacher Christopher Hart is Watson-Guptill’s top-selling author with a track record of phenomenal sales of more than a million copies. He lives in Westport, Connecticut.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Watson-Guptill; illustrated edition edition (July 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 082300158X
• ISBN-13: 978-0823001583
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 0.3 x 11 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #586,719 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Thanks for taking a look at my books, and this "Author Bio." I'm a competent tennis player, who also enjoys playing computer chess while I'm watching TV at night (Hey, it prevents me from channel-surfing). I'm keenly interested in M-theory, although i have become skeptical of it of late, despite Brian's Green's full-body gushing... I love being with my family, and even my extremely evil dog, a Welsh Springer Spaniel named "Rusty." Oh, yes, he truly is that evil.

As for my work, I'm the author of many How-To-Draw books, published by Watson-Guptill,the art imprint of Random House. Thanks to a lot of the wonderful readers (and you know who you are!), I have sold over 3 million copies domestically, which have been translated into 20 languages worldwide.

I'm fortunate to also have had 26 of the Best-Selling art books in the country, according to Bookscan.(Bookscan is the publishing industry's rating system for books, which is owned by same company that does the Neislen TV ratings.)

I also have my own drawing show on the Comcast Network, called, "How To Draw Action Heroes With Chris Hart." It's on Comcast's "Activity TV." I hope you like my books, and find them a valuable adjunct to your own imagination.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed...., May 22, 2002

By 

Serene (Marina, CA, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Anime Mania: How to Draw Characters for Japanese Animation (Manga Mania) (Paperback)

I really love Chris Hart's art books and 'how to' art books in general, but this book is sub par for Chris.

My biggest disappointment was the serious lack of 'how to' drawing illustrations actually included in this book. This book is comprised of mostly completed illustrations, and lacks the sort of detail Manga is famous for.

The sections on 'head shots' is simplistic, the line quality heavy, and the color unspectacular. To make matters worse, over 3/4 of the book is filled with finished drawings. If you are the sort of artist who learns by looking at finished illustrations, this book is for you. However, if you were looking for a 'step-by-step' approach, this book would be a poor choice.

I recommend reviewing this book before purchasing.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Kids Will Like This Book. Serious Anime Fans Will Not., April 23, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Anime Mania: How to Draw Characters for Japanese Animation (Manga Mania) (Paperback)

I would rename this book, THE ART OF WESTERNIZED ANIME. The colorful illustrations are great, but there isn't much instruction on "How To" achieve the drawings. It's a much better idea-generator book. There has also been some criticism about the "Americanized" anime used in this book. I agree that hard-core Anime fans will notice right away that there is something "wrong" with the drawings, the characteristic anime nose, for example.

Despite the above mentioned, the Pokemon crowd will really enjoy this book. The most obvious reason is that it is in COLOR and is filled with ILLUSTRATIONS. It also has pages of those draw "cute" anime critters. So, while it may not be traditional Anime, the younger crowd is not likely to notice, and may actually prefer the "westernized" look. And the lack of instructions probably works to their advantange as well (don't most kids like to skip to the end of instructions, anyway?)

For serious Anime fans, who are truly interested in learning how to draw Japanese Anime, I recommend taking a look at HOW TO DRAW ANIME & GAME CHARACTERS, VOL.1, by TADASHI OZAWA. This book/series is popular in Japan, and has now been translated into English (by an American publishing Co, so have no fear of "all-your-base-belong-to-us" English!) It has step-by-step instructions and the characters really look authentic. Why? Well, because, it's written/illustrated by an animation director at STUDIO GHIBLI (Oscar-winning SPIRITED AWAY) The book, however, is completely in black & white, and while it is completely suitable for kids, will probably not be as attention-keeping as CHRIS HART'S ANIME MANIA.

Overall, I give this book 4 STARS. The breakdown:
5-STAR rating for kids and people who's range of Anime consists of Afternoon cartoons. Highly Recommended.
3-STAR rating for serious Anime fans. Neutral Recommendation. (It still makes a good "Art of" book, though)

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not very good at all...., December 28, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Anime Mania: How to Draw Characters for Japanese Animation (Manga Mania) (Paperback)

I admit I've only browsed through this book at a bookstore.. I didn't buy it because I didn't find it to be worth paying for.

The drawings don't look very... how should I put it? Well done? They look like they're done by a beginning artist. They're not what I'd expect as far as traditional anime goes. I'm a fairly good artist myself looking to hone up on my skills. This book wouldn't be that much help to me at all in that respect.

Maybe I just expect more out of a book that's supposed to be teaching you the proper way things should be drawn? :)