Suginami Animation Museum 杉並 ミュージアム
Animated story
20 minutes from Shinjuku, this animated film museum invites you to dive (for free) into a world where the drawings come to life.
The Suginami district lives up to its reputation as the Tokyo neighborhood of animation. Many studios and have their headquarters there. What better place to welcome a museum dedicated to the animation?
From pencil to computer
It is certainly a bit small, but you can spend hours here. The Suginami Animation Museum offers a rich collection of documents about animated cinema. At the entrance, an English pamphlet helps you get an overview. The history of Japanese animation is well traced from its origins in 1907...!
In the center of the building, a wall features the dedications from major mangaka who have come to give conferences. To understand how far things have come, a huge timeline shows the key dates. Some period animes are shown on a black and white TV, surrounded by collector statuettes. On one side, workspaces are reconstituted. They reflect the changing production methods, from the pencil to the computer.
Down to work
Apprentice animators can participate in coloring workshops. But the big attraction of the museum allows you to slip completely into the role of an animator. Aided by the explanations from staff, visitors draw five stages of a movement.
After being scanned, these frames are animated by software, and the job it done! It's simple, but the experience is worth it. For 100 yen, a CD will be engraved with your own cartoon.
