“I was playing heroines, but in real life I wasn’t earning a living,” said Shibata, now 60. These days, she also works as a home organizer, helping people de-clutter. “Voice acting as a profession just doesn’t pay,” she said.

Even in a country where a culture of overwork permeates a wide range of businesses, the anime industry is notorious for the grueling hours that workers put in. Animators in their early 20s earn less than 2 million yen ($12,948) a year, according to industry data, compared with over 3 million yen for a person of a similar age living in Tokyo. That’s less than half of what US entry-level animators earn, websites like Glassdoor show. Creative workers also complain of late and uncertain payments.

Some, though, sense change is afoot. A working group for the United Nations Human Rights Council last year called out Japan’s anime industry for its poor treatment of workers, along with cases of sexual violence and harassment in the country’s entertainment business. In a May report, the group referred to “excessively long working hours” and low pay, as well as a disregard for creative workers’ intellectual property rights.

Acknowledging such worries, lawmakers passed a new law that took effect in November to boost protections for freelance workers. Late last month, regulatory officials at Japan’s Fair Trade Commission launched a study on labor practices within the anime industry and invited workers to submit complaints.

Once considered a geeky, so-called otaku obsession, anime is now considered mainstream. In 2020, when the pandemic brought Hollywood production to a halt, Demon Slayer: Mugen Train topped global box office sales at over $470 million. In Japan, around 400 anime titles are now produced for TV and theaters every year, attracting dedicated fans who go on to buy related merchandise. The genre’s popularity among global streaming audiences has also prompted a flurry of acquisitions. Sony, which bought anime streaming service Crunchyroll in 2021, became the largest shareholder of anime publisher Kadokawa Corp. in an alliance announced late last year. Movie producing and distributing company Toho Co. bought US-based anime distributor Gkids Inc. for an undisclosed amount to strengthen the Japanese firm’s US reach.

That later evolved into the current system in which studios work within budgets set by powerful committees of publishers, toymakers and businesses which finance the series and share royalties. Production companies outsource work to small anime studios and voice actors’ agencies, which in turn hire even smaller companies and freelancers. This helps companies work on multiple series at once and mitigate any potential losses. As a result, revenue is spread thinly, and it can take months for compensation to filter through to illustrators and voice actors.

Actors often wait six months or longer to get paid, according to Nobunari Neyoshi, who until last year ran a voice actor agency alongside his sound-production business for a decade. “Violations of subcontracting laws are rampant,” said 47-year-old Neyoshi, adding that sometimes actors don’t get paid at all. He closed his voice-acting business due to poor sales.

Workers are also often employed over the phone or via messaging apps without formal contracts, leaving it unclear how much, or even whether, they’ll get paid. “It’s common across the industry to be asked to start working on something even before any paperwork is done,” said Aina Sugisawa, a 24-year-old trainee at Tokyo-based studio TMS Entertainment Co., part of Sega Sammy Holdings Inc. and known for hit series like Detective Conan.

Unlike in Hollywood where a strike by screenwriters and performers brought movie and TV production to a halt in 2023, the majority of Japanese voice actors and illustrators don’t belong to labor unions. Numako, the former union official, says he’s always struggled to convince colleagues to join him.

The new law on freelancers forces companies to provide written contracts, including details on pay, to all workers. Businesses are now prohibited from demanding extra work without promising additional pay and are also required to pay workers within 60 days. The government is stepping up surveillance, and regulators are also inviting workers to blow the whistle on law-breaking activity.

One underlying problem, industry insiders say, has been the sheer number of people willing to endure poor conditions just to be involved in an art form they’ve loved since childhood. Breaking into the industry is still highly competitive; manga and anime illustrators regularly rank among the top dream professions of school children. Some blame themselves for their lack of financial success: there’s always a more senior job to aspire to. Key frame animators are responsible for drawing crucial images at the start and end of major scenes and earn more than those drawing sequences in between. With skills and experience, they can also move on to better-paid jobs including directors. But such senior roles are few. The field of voice acting can be even more competitive.

Shrinking demographics and technological innovation including AI are also seen bringing change — as well as an existential challenge. Japan Research Institute expects a labor shortage among anime illustrators, estimating their number to decline to roughly 5,600 by 2030 from around 6,200 in 2019. Production studios have already been turning to overseas labor, with Toei Animation sending 70% of its animation work to a branch in the Philippines, even though crucial processes remain in Japan. Many fear that AI will replace jobs, particularly at the entry level, turning away younger artists.

Real change, though, will require workers to act rather than expecting laws to protect them automatically, said Yasunari Yamada, a lawyer with expertise in freelance work. “Freelancers need to recognize that they’re business operators, and take action if they think something’s wrong,” he said.

Some are starting to speak up. Shibata, the voice actor, recently learned that a video game using her voice was reissued a few years ago without paying her royalties. After decades of work under her belt, including key roles in popular series like Saint Seiya, a story about mystical warriors, she complained, prompting the publisher to agree to a payment.

“People have just been clinging to whatever job they get, because if you say something negative you’re put out to pasture,” she said. “Everyone’s been putting up with it.”

FYI:

This was posted by a new account, around 9 mins old.

This is the first post they made. No comments, yet.

“I’m Gonna Miss Her” is a single released by Brad Paisley as the second single off of his album Part II. The song reached the top of the Billboard Hot Country songs chart.

The song describes a man who goes fishing a lot. He is confronted by his wife at home after one of the fishing trips where she tells him that he has to choose between her or the fishing. The song then describes how Brad is “gonna miss her”, the listener can then figure out that Brad choose fishing over his wife.

According to a 2004 issue of Country Weekly magazine, Brad said he co-wrote the song with Frank Rogers in high school during a talent contest where he decided to write a comedy song instead of the ballads he was writing prior.^[1]

Thanks for the information about Operation Bloodstone!

Thanks for the song!

TIL

To make this song even more spot on, Lehrer used eight bars from the well-known German national anthem “Das Lied der Deutschen” as a song intro :-)

For those interested in learning about Operation Paperclip:

Although he officially sanctioned the operation, President Harry Truman forbade the agency from recruiting any Nazi members or active Nazi supporters. Nevertheless, officials within the JIOA and Office of Strategic Services (OSS)—the forerunner to the CIA—bypassed this directive by eliminating or whitewashing incriminating evidence of possible war crimes from the scientists’ records, believing their intelligence to be crucial to the country’s postwar efforts.

Although defenders of the clandestine operation argue that the balance of power could have easily shifted to the Soviet Union during the Cold War if these Nazi scientists were not brought to the United States, opponents point to the ethical cost of ignoring their abhorrent war crimes without punishment or accountability.^[1]

I just posted a video of Annie Jacobsen talking about Nuclear War, she also wrote a book about Operation Paperclip.^[2]

In the days and weeks after Germany’s surrender, American troops combed the European countryside in search of hidden caches of weaponry to collect. They came across facets of the Nazi war machine that the top brass were shocked to see, writer Annie Jacobsen told NPR’s All Things Considered in 2014. Jacobson wrote about both the mission and the scientists in her book, Operation Paperclip: The Secret Intelligence Program That Brought Nazi Scientists To America.

“One example was they had no idea that Hitler had created this whole arsenal of nerve agents,” Jacobsen says. “They had no idea that Hitler was working on a bubonic plague weapon. That is really where Paperclip began, which was suddenly the Pentagon realizing, ‘Wait a minute, we need these weapons for ourselves.’"^[3]

deleted by creator

True, thanks for clarifying!

login anonymously

What does this mean?

Is it similar to Chrome’s “Incognito” mode?

Damn, Aurora is linked to google and you need to login to get apks, unlike F-Droid.

Aurora Store enables you to search and download apps from the official Google Play store. You can check app descriptions, screenshots, updates, reviews, and download the APK directly from Google Play to your device. To use Aurora Store, you need to have a Google Play account, and log in to your Google Play account when you first open and configure Aurora Store.

(Alternatively Aurora Store also allow you to login anonymously)

Unlike a traditional app store, Aurora Store does not own, license or distribute any apps. All the apps, app descriptions, screenshots and other content in Aurora Store are directly accessed, downloaded and/or displayed from Google Play.

Aurora Store works exactly like a door or a browser, allowing you to log in to your Google Play account and find the apps from Google Play.

Please note that Aurora Store does not have any approval, sponsorship or authorization from Google, Google Play, any apps downloaded through Aurora Store or any app developers; neither does Aurora Store have any affiliation, cooperation or connection with them.

F-Droid is cool, but limited with apks.

https://f-droid.org/

F-Droid is an installable catalogue of FOSS (Free and Open Source Software) applications for the Android platform. The client makes it easy to browse, install, and keep track of updates on your device.

Yes, this is just another policy that hinders the working class, the duopoly does like their police state.

Anyone have any thoughts on APKPure as an alternative?

The shot is at a steep angle where it hits the helmet, ricocheting. You can see another hole a few inches back from the initial ricochet.

Saving Private Ryan - Lucky bastard! | 00:11 | https://youtu.be/bTmQA4DKYkg

Is The US Army’s New Helmet a Complete Disaster? The IHPS | 18:17 | https://youtu.be/SwDoWSkiGZ4

Notable comment:

@nurse-dude | 1 year ago

Another fantastic demonstration of how a ballistic helmet’s primary function is NOT protection from rifle/pistol rounds but rather a secondary function. They are primarily designed to protect from shrapnel and blunt force trauma.

In his own words:

Independent, Unencumbered Analysis and Investigative Reporting, Captive to No Dogma or Faction.

He criticizes the duopoly and the oligarchy, but I know those loyal to the duopoly tend to become tribal if people don’t outright support one side and hate the other.

Glenn has proven himself as a journalist with his reporting of Edward Snowden and much more.

He does not fall into simplistic political groups, so I understand the frustration some political factions have with people like him.

Which people do you recommend if Glenn Greenwald does not meet your standards?

“The ultimate test of a society’s freedom is not how it treats its good, obedient, compliant citizens; it’s how it treats its dissidents.” - Glenn Greenwald

Oh, that is not new; it is the status quo.

The United States is controlled by the oligarchy.

We have legalized bribes; it just gets called lobbying.

The duopoly is ruled by the owner class, who also have a huge say in what policy is pushed and what is passed into law.

Bill Gates and other billionaires do have a direct line to all politicians, but you are right; Elon’s actions are much more in the open, especially with his online persona and presence in full display, similar to Trump, where he blurts out the quiet part out loud for the masses to hear.

country for sale bullshit

Sorry, what does this mean?

True!

What is going on with their manufacturing and quality control department?

Well, more robots are being added; I am not sure if the robots would fix any future recall issues, though.

One of the things that Tesla has had difficulty with over the years is the build quality of their vehicles. Whether it be panel gaps or odd creaks and sounds, Tesla’s build quality has a stain on it. Even my Model 3 RWD - after about 5,500 miles, has some odd creaks and noises coming from the passenger door while driving.

Tesla has made great strides in reducing panel gaps and other quality issues, but they are still not where they need to be. Tesla is going to install robots to help with this. Also, fascia refers to a vehicle dashboard, so this likely deals with interior quality control.

This quality control will apply to the following Tesla products:

• Model 3
• Model Y
• Model S
• Model X
• Cybertruck
• Tesla Bot (Optimus Sub-Prime)^[1]

Thanks, you made me look more into that event.

I was not sure if it really happened in front of a Trump hotel.

Firework mortars and camp fuel canisters were found stuffed into the back of the Tesla Cybertruck that exploded outside President-elect Donald Trump’s Las Vegas hotel early Wednesday, killing a suspect inside the vehicle and sparking an intense investigation into possible terrorism.

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police and Clark County Fire Department officials said that a person died inside the futuristic-looking pickup truck and seven people nearby suffered minor injuries.

Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill said authorities know who rented the truck with the Turo app in Colorado, but are not releasing the name until investigators determine if it is the same person who died.^[1]

Tesla sits at the top of the list when it comes to total vehicles recalled in 2024, with 5.1 million cars compared with 4.3 million for No. 2 Ford. The futuristic-looking Cybertruck is one of Tesla’s most expensive vehicles, with prices ranging from around $80,000 to $102,000, depending on trim. The price can go up more as well, based on add-ons such as the Full Self-Driving mode, which tacks on $8,000 (and which isn’t fully autonomous, in spite of its name).

Though Tesla hasn’t announced any official sales numbers, Forbes estimates that 28,250 Cybertrucks have been sold as of October 2024. Tesla didn’t respond to a request for comment.

…recall issued for the Tesla Cybertruck… according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s website:

1. Incorrect font size on warning lights
2. Unintended acceleration from trapped pedal
3. Front windshield wiper can fail
4. Improperly adhered trunk bed trim can detach
5. Rearview camera image may not display
6. Inverter fault may cause loss of drive power
7. Tire pressure warning-light issue

A quick search, and I was able to find a couple of AI sites that can create songs.

Trial and error, go for it!