, stylized as Science SARU, is a Japanese animation studio headquartered in Kichijōji, Tokyo. Established on February 4, 2013 by producer Eunyoung Choi and director Masaaki Yuasa, the studio has produced four feature films and five animated series, as well as co-productions, a compilation film, and episodes of series for other studios. Science Saru's first animation was the "Food Chain" episode of the American animated series Adventure Time (2014); its most recent projects are the animated feature film Inu-Oh (2021), two short films for the animated anthology project Star Wars: Visions (2021), and the animated series The Heike Story (2021) and Yurei Deco (2022).
The studio's work has received critical acclaim both within Japan and internationally, winning awards from Annecy, the Japan Academy Film Prize, the Mainichi Film Awards, and the Japan Media Arts Festival.
Science Saru utilizes a hybrid animation production method which combines hand-drawn and digital animation (including Flash animation), a technique not previously used in Japanese animation. The studio is currently led by Eunyoung Choi (President and CEO).
Name
The studio's name Science Saru translates into English as "Science Monkey". Company co-founder Masaaki Yuasa frequently drew himself as a monkey in self-portraits, but wanted his company to be smarter than a monkey; as a result, he added the word Science in front of Saru with the intent of having a company that possesses both instinct and intelligence.
Co-founder Eunyoung Choi further described the meaning behind the name: "We thought about a lot of possible names for the studio... Science is like logic, business, numbers, plans, technology, and new tools. On the other hand, 'Saru' means monkey in Japanese. As animators, we put in creativity, intuition, art, enjoying moments and being playful… a kind of 'monkeying around'. We want to keep these personalities in Science Saru. Thus, we wanted to create a balance. 'Science' is in English, which highlights being international, and 'Saru' in Japanese maintains traditional anime."
History
Founding
Science Saru was founded on February 4, 2013 by Masaaki Yuasa and Eunyoung Choi. Yuasa and Choi had previously worked together on numerous projects, and Choi had prior experience leading Ankama Japan, a studio which utilized similar digital animation production techniques and employed a multinational staff. The creation of the studio was proposed by Choi during the making of the short film Kick-Heart (2013), which was the first large-scale Japanese animated project to be successfully crowdfunded on Kickstarter. The studio's first official production under the Science Saru name was an episode of the American Adventure Time animated series entitled Food Chain (2014), on which Yuasa worked as director, writer, and storyboard artist; Choi served as co-director. By July 2014, the studio was also recognized for creating the digital animation for Yuasa's animated series Ping Pong the Animation (2014).
Science Saru's first production location was a small suburban house converted into an impromptu animation studio. By the end of 2013, the company had expanded to a staff of five, including Yuasa, Choi, and Abel Góngora, a former member of Ankama Japan; the studio's first productions began with this small crew.
Production technique and studio environment
Science Saru utilizes a combination of traditional hand drawn animation and digital animation created using multiple software programs, including Adobe Animate. The studio refers to its animation production method and resultant style as 'digitally assisted animation.' When utilizing 'digitally assisted animation', the initial animation work, called key animation (where the key poses of movement are established), is drawn by hand, and then recreated digitally for the stages of inbetween animation (used to create smooth movement by filling in the gaps between keyframe poses), as well as for coloring. The advantage of this production technique is increased efficiency, allowing projects to be completed faster and with a smaller crew; the small team focus allows for a strong understanding of the director's artistic vision. This approach to animation production has won praise from creators and industry publications.
Science Saru's diversity is also unique among Japanese animation studios: it employs a multicultural animation staff. According to Choi, staff are chosen based on skill regardless of national origin, and the inclusion of global perspectives helps create more well-rounded stories.