As a highly creative and visually distinctive media form, Japanese anime is popular worldwide for its unique styles and features; its fascination has spread and it has become one of the most remarkable icons of Japanese culture.

According to Statista, the total sales revenue of the anime industry in Japan and overseas reached a record of about 17.5 billion USD in 2019, before decreasing slightly to around 17 billion USD in 2020 as a result of the pandemic. Overseas revenues have grown strongly in recent years and surpassed domestic revenues for the first time in 2020.

Credited to the well-developed anime industry and abundant talent resources in Japan, there are highly professional and standardized procedures for creating anime works. Audio plays a significant role in bringing vivid anime characters to life.

It has been a year since Delfisound, an expert team in audio production for Japanese anime, joined the PTW group. Founded in April 2005, Delfisound provides one-stop professional audio production services for anime, including sound production, voice production, studio recording, and artist management.

To celebrate Delfisound's first anniversary of joining PTW, we interviewed Yusuke Uchimura, Audio Production Manager, about the studio's operations, their work in anime audio production, and their future.

 Can you give us an introduction to Delfisound?

Yusuke: Delfisound’s principal business revolves around audio production for anime and games, including voice and sound production, studio recording and artist management.

 What is the process for voice recording for an anime series? Where does the work request usually come from?

Yusuke: For anime, we usually receive requests either from producers or production studios. On most occasions, we gather a “production committee” to manage the production of an anime title. The members include those from the production team, producers and studios. So, it depends on who has the right to choose recording studios/audio teams, which is based on the former relationship between the committee and the producer. For CDs and games, we receive requests from producers most of the time.

 How many anime projects do you work on in a year?

Yusuke: We work on more than 10 projects every year, including those under audition.

 How many staff members are normally involved in one project? What are their roles?

Yusuke: In one project, there are normally three members: a project manager, a sound engineer, and a recording assistant. But in most cases, we’ll need four to five members to help with the various tasks. In terms of their roles, the sound engineer will balance the sound of dialogue, background music, and sound mixing during recording, dubbing, pre-scoring and post-recording. The recording assistant is to help the sound engineer with noise checking and dialogue editing during the recording. As for the project manager, this role is responsible for various coordination tasks, such as scheduling the flow, casting, ordering scripts, etc.

 Is there anything special about an animation recording studio?

Yusuke: I would probably say "size". Usually, an animation recording studio is not as big as a music studio, but much bigger than a games audio studio because we have slight differences in procedure. Game audio studios normally record one actor at a time, while anime requires a bigger space to record several actors simultaneously. In addition, an anime recording studio normally provides a big screen so that the actors can match their performance to the anime itself. 

Voice acting in Japan is unique in many ways. The occupation of voice actor, or “seiyu”, has long been established in Japan. In the 1950s and 1960s, many TV dramas and animated cartoons were imported from the U.S. to Japan, increasing the demand for dubbing recordings.  

The total number of registered voice actors and actresses reached 1,562 in 2021, and the number continues to increase. Today, voice acting has become a popular profession. Many voice acting talents have become celebrities and appear in a variety of media.

We asked Yusuke about how they go about casting voice actors.

 How do you decide on the casting? How do you choose the voice actors? Do you hold auditions?

Yusuke: For anime, the major characters are decided by the audition, and I discuss the supporting characters with the sound director. If I am in charge of the work, I will look for a candidate who not only fits the character, but also fits the schedule, then consult with the director and sound director. In the case of audio drama CDs and games, we normally follow the requests of the producers in casting.

 Is there any advice for people who want to engage in voice acting?  

Yusuke: In my opinion, you need the ability to perform, a lively tongue and the ability to self-promote.

 Which project is the most memorable?

Yusuke: One that stands out in my memory is a project where we recorded almost 100 people in half a day. We only had about two weeks from reading the original script to deciding the casting. It was a valuable experience.

 What is Delfisound’s aim in five years?

Yusuke: I would be happy if we could continue to work with our existing clients for a long time, and I also look forward to meeting more new clients and working on more new titles. I expect to see more growth in our young engineers and sound production staff at the Delfisound team. 

 You have been a member of the PTW group for one year. Is there anything you want to accomplish with the group?

Yusuke: I am very grateful for the opportunity to be a member of the PTW group. I had the opportunity to speak with members of the Palabra team who impressed me a lot. (Palabra is a team in the PTW family that produces accessibility options in video content, especially audio descriptions and subtitles for those who have visual and auditory disabilities.) There are many other teams at PTW that I look forward to co-working with more closely in the future.

With our two elite in-house audio teams at SIDE and entalize, PTW has been delivering the best audio performances for games, including some of the most exciting titles such as Cyberpunk 2077, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and Assassin's Creed. With the joining of Delfisound, we expand PTW's marvelous work to the anime industry. We look forward to seeing more exciting anime productions from Delfisound in the future.