From hand-drawn television and cinema to global fandom, games and character design — explore how Japanese animation became a worldwide cultural force.
NarutoOne PieceDemon Slayer
Read! Watch! Draw!
Start here
What actually is anime?
Anime is the word commonly used outside Japan for animation from Japan. It is not one single genre or one single drawing style.
Anime can be funny, frightening, romantic, sporty, historical, futuristic or completely fantastical. Some stories are made for children; others are made for teenagers or adults.
That variety is important. Saying all anime looks the same would be a bit like saying every live-action film looks the same.
ANIME IS A MEDIUM — NOT ONE SINGLE LOOK.
Astro BoySpirited Away
One medium. Loads of styles.
Pick your world
Anime can be almost anything
⚡
Action
Battles, rivals, powers and big dramatic moments.
🌙
Fantasy
Spirits, magic, strange worlds and impossible creatures.
🏐
Sport
Competition, teamwork, training and trying to improve.
🍜
Everyday life
Friendship, school, family, food and quieter stories.
Picture wall
You might know these...
Tap a poster for a quick intro.
My Hero Academia
Different worlds!
Look again
Anime is not one art style.
Compare character shapes, colours, backgrounds, movement and expressions. What makes one series instantly feel different from another?
!
Fast-forward
From Japan to screens around the world
This is a quick route through a much bigger history — just enough to see how anime kept changing.
1910s
Early Japanese animation
Japanese artists experiment with short animated films.
1963
Astro Boy
Television becomes an increasingly important home for Japanese animation.
1980s
New audiences
Television, home video and films help more styles and stories reach viewers.
1990s
Global favourites
Series including Dragon Ball, Sailor Moon and Pokémon gain huge audiences outside Japan.
2001
Spirited Away
Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli's fantasy film becomes an international landmark.
Today
Global fandom
Streaming, games, conventions, fan art and online communities make anime easier to discover around the world.
Look closer
How can animation make a moment feel HUGE?
Tap the ideas. These are storytelling tools — not rules that every anime has to follow.
👁️
Close-up
Moving close to a face or eye can make a reaction feel intense and pull our attention towards emotion.
💨
Movement
Lines, blurred backgrounds, camera movement and changing poses can make action feel faster than a still drawing.
😲
Expression
Animators can push facial expressions and body language to make fear, excitement, embarrassment or anger immediately readable.
💥
Sound + impact
Music, silence, voices and impact sounds work with the pictures to change how a scene feels.
Your turn
Make your own manga character
You do not need to be an expert artist. Start rough and build it up.
