I have been a casual fan of anime for over a decade, most of my life. I have been listening to and reading other people’s thoughts and insights on the medium on a daily basis for about a year. I have been researching and writing about the medium everyday for the better part of two months. I have reached that point of familiarity where I am confident that I know a lot more than the average person, more than some fans, less than the most ardent devotees and almost nothing compared to what there is to know about anime and manga.
At this point, one would expect to have a fair handle on the vocabulary and a general idea of the paths one can take to learn more. So when I encountered a word that was brand new to me while killing time on YouTube, I was a little surprised. After all, I thought I had the basics down pat.
I was watching Mother’s Basement’s new video on Pokémon: Sun and Moon and he used the term sakuga multiple times. Now, I’m reasonably sure I’ve heard the term a time or two before but didn’t register it, but I still didn’t really know what he meant besides that it was a reference to animation quality. So I Googled it.
Turns out sakuga really just means “drawing” or “animation” or something in that realm. But that’s just the basic definition in Japanese. What it means to non-Japanese audiences is a little more in-depth.
Anime takes a lot of shortcuts so that it can be produced with tight budgets and tight deadlines. This is part of why there’s so much of it. Chief among these cheats is limited animation. Think about the number of scenes in anime where two characters talk and the only things moving are their mouths (if that). Limited animation is a hallmark of the genre, and when used well it doesn’t necessarily detract from the show.
But sakuga, at least in international parlance, is the opposite of all the corner cutting techniques. Sakuga is when the animation is at its best, most fluid and detailed. Sakuga sequences are often reserved for critical moments in a series and much of the budget and the time and talent of the animators will be focused on these moments.
I knew this existed, though I didn’t know it had a name, and I also knew that a certain segment of anime fandom focused a lot of its attention on actual animation quality. But the concept of sakuga runs deeper than that. Sakuga moments in anime are often cataloged and anthologized. Fans use them to identify and study animators and animation techniques in ways that I don’t have the time or knowledge to get into. For now, just check out the below fight scene from Cowboy Bebop.
Now, if you’re looking to learn more about sakuga and Japanese animation techniques in general, there are much better sources than me. Sakuga Booru is an entire website dedicated to cataloging these moments of high quality animation, and a user there has already drafted a handy introduction to the concept. There’s also a nice article on the concept over at Anime News Network and another good start at ThoughtCo. if that’s not enough for you.
This isn’t what I’d planned to write today, but it’s not everyday you run into a new, highly focused way to enjoy a favorite medium. Until tomorrow!
chasetriesagain.com 