Anime Architecture: Imagined Worlds and Endless Megacities

by Stefan Riekeles

Anime has been influencing cinema, literature, comic books, and video games around the world for decades. Part of what makes anime so popular are the memorable and breathtakingly detailed worlds designed by the creators, from futuristic cities of steel to romantic rural locales. Anime Architecture presents the fantastic environments created by the most important and revered directors and illustrators of Japanese animated films, such as Hideaki Anno, Ko—ji Morimoto, and Mamoru Oshii.


Unprecedented access to vast studio archives of original background paintings, storyboards, drafts, and lm excerpts offers readers a privileged view into the earliest stages of conception, development, and  finished versions of iconic scenes from critically acclaimed movies such as Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Metropolis, and more. Revealing the secret creative processes of these major anime studios, Anime Architecture is perfect for anyone touched by the beauty and imagination of classic anime, offering inspiration for artists, illustrators, architects, designers, video game makers, and dreamers.

Genres: Art, Architecture, Nonfiction, Japan, Anime, Design, Film

256 pages, Hardcover

First published October 8, 2020

About the author

Stefan Riekeles is a curator based in Berlin. He has been the Artistic Director of the Japan Media Arts Festival Dortmund, and curated the 2011 exhibition 'Proto Anime Cut'.

Reviews

[Owen Hatherley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very low on analysis and very focused on only five or so films, but worthwhile as an in-depth archival look at the 1980s/1990s East Asian cityscapes in the background or foreground of various cyberpunk anime: especially intriguing for the research processes behind Mamoru Oshii's two Patlabor films and Ghost in the Shell, with deadpan black and white photographs of the backstreets of Hong Kong or Tokyo by Haruhiko Higami being gradually worked up into obsessively detailed colour panoramas.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those books that I will admit makes me stop reading everything else and demands that I read it there and then - rather a tricky thing considering it was delivered in the middle of my working day.

So after several hours or pawing over the pages I now get to write about this book and wow what a book.

Printed on premium page and lavishly bound this is clearly someone's pride and joy. The book itself celebrates the creative processes and skills of those who created the back drops to some of the most famous and instantly recognisable anime films from the period from the 80s to the early 2000s, a time where traditional pen and paper where the chief tools used.

This book celebrates the achievements of these incredibly talented artists and showcases some of their work in high quality print. For any fan of anime this is a book you want to go back to time and time again as I know I will be.

[Ugnė · Rating 4 out of 5]

Įdomiausia bus tiems, kurie senuosius (1990 - 2000 metų) anime matę ir kurie domisi jų kūrimo procesu. Man buvo nuostabu tai, kad pati knyga rašyta kaip mokslinio tyrimo objektas - su paaiškinimu, kodėl vieni autoriai įtraukti, kiti (pvz., turbūt žinomiausias Lietuvoje Hayao Miyazaki) - ne, koks tikslas, kokios santrupos vartojamos ir pan.

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

OBSEDENA s knjigo in njenimi oranžnimi endpaperji!

[XenofoneX · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5.0 Stars.
'Anime Architecture' is a slight misnomer. 'The Art of the Anime Cityscape', 'The Art of the Anime Megapolis' or 'Trans-Urban Anime Backgrounds' would all be more accurate, though I like the simple alliteration of the original title. So don't expect a massive, 24" x 24" hardcover full of down-scaled blueprints, each page a floor-plan for one of Akira's neo-Futurist 500-storey skyscrapers, or the top-secret, 80-level basement-complex, secretly being built & excavated below the under-construction stadium for the upcoming Neo-Tokyo Olympics... serving as a cover for the highly classified - & refrigerated at Absolute Zero - containment facility for a small, enigmatic boy named Akira.

I only mention it because one of the rare criticisms on Amazon was griping that the art in this book is not exactly 'architecture', which struck me as odd. Did he think every crazy construction from Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Innocence, Metropolis, Patlabor, Patlabor 2, Rebuild of Evangelion & Tekkon Kinkreet had its own corresponding 1990's AUTOCAD folder, fully engineered & designed? That would be pretty cool, but I'm content to marvel at the intricately rendered paintings that allowed every stop between Neo-Tokyo & Treasure Town to cast a mesmerizing neon glow & breathe with urban fog, smog & grog.

The art included from 'Metropolis' approaches blueprint-style design, with pen-on-paper drawings that carefully render the complex mathematical perspectives of the Moebius-like Megapolis, created largely by Takashi Watabe & Shuichi Kusamori. The latter of two was responsible for creating full-color visions of the city that are absolutely resplendent, standing brilliantly on their own.

[Grace B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Insanely good book. I can't express how nice it feels to have it in my hands and examine the work of the masters. And to think these backgrounds by hand is just mind-blowing.

The introduction wasn't neither too short, nor too long.

Just a warning: If you haven't seen the movies, I advise you not to read the summaries, as they're full of spoilers.

[Mia · Rating 4 out of 5]

FUCKING LOVE THIS BOOK. HIGHLY RECOMMEND IF YOU ARE INTO SUPER DETAILED BACKGROUND DESIGN/ BACKGROUND PAINT. ALSO STILL MANIFEST MY WAY INTO WORKING ON AN ANIME-INSPIRED SHOW EVEN THOUGH THE CURRENT INDUSTRY IS (mehhhhhhhhh)

[Constantin · Rating 3 out of 5]

More theory about animation techniques then architecture. Still cool if you want to see concept art of Akira, Evangelion Rebuilds, Ghost in the Shell, etc.

[Rix · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a subject matter that I think probably deserves a whole lot more than one book. But it's a good book. Perhaps a little low on insight, and focusing more on theme and imagery than the architectural end of things, but worth it for the spectacular pictures you get to feast your eyes on when you pick it up

[Ashley Lambert-Maberly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very disappointing, and I blame the title. It should have been called Hand Drawn Backgrounds from a Handful of Anime Movies Mostly By The Same Director.

The author has chosen eight movies (most by the same director, so likely access was an issue), no television shows, and has rejected computer-drawn films. He is not terribly interested in the final product, just the background layout art.

I thought I was going to get a rich, gorgeous, sumptuously illustrated book showing the many different environments from anime (e.g. Water Seven from One Piece, or Naruto's Hidden Leaf Village, maybe the world of Serial Experiments Lain, etc.), but no, so far it's just Tokyo in the slight future, and skyscraper (or grubby old town road) over and over again.

It's as if I bought Exciting Vegetable Recipes From Around the World and each recipe was a Slavic take on the potato, nothing more.

The text reads like a doctoral thesis.

So sad, I thought this was going to be a high point for my summer reading! But it its title had reflected its contents, I wouldn't have bothered to read it, which would have suited me fine.

(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. )

[movedbyair · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10
I took an unintentional hiatus halfway through reading this, but I've come back to finish up! Riekeles puts together something that's more an impressive preservation of behind-the-scenes stills and anecdotes for these anime films, than a write-up of anime architecture. And that's fine, because a few of these works and their surrounding franchises/influences mean a great deal to me personally, and it's really important to keep this stuff as accessible as possible before it withers away in some warehouse. We follow a bit of a technical throughline, from the watershed physical achievement of Akira to the real/CG tandem of Tekkonkinkreet, which is basically the standard as digital workflows become ubiquitous. I'm no artist, so I learned quite a lot about the composition of these shots, and the immense amount of work that these guys used to spend just to make several seconds of footage look believably embodied. At risk of sounding oldhead, I think we've lost some of this magic. Full of downright beautiful imagery.

[Justin Norman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve never been a big fan of anime storytelling or acting but I have a great appreciation for some elements of the art. This book highlights the extreme amount of thought and detail that goes into the backgrounds, many of which are amazing to behold on their own. It’s a beautiful book with very informative text about each film and the thought process that went into the creation of the background art. I especially appreciated seeing some parallax effects broken down into their separate layers, as well as the same piece of art in various stages of its creation. It’s extremely enjoyable, even if you haven’t seen any of the films from which the art is taken.

[Ronnie Fairley · Rating 4 out of 5]

One day at Barnes and Noble, I came across Anime Architecture: Imagined Worlds and Endless Megacities by Stefan Riekeles. After flipping through the pages, I decided to purchase this book. I was initially looking for a Minecraft book because I was looking for inspiration to build a megastructure in Minecraft. To clarify, in this review, I do not watch anime. I was pleasantly surprised that I immensely enjoyed this book due to its in-depth discussions on the cityscapes. The artwork inside was cool-looking and well-thought-out. The book discusses cityscapes created in sci-fi anime from the 1980s to the early 2000s. I recommend this book to anyone curious about megastructures and anime.

[alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 maybe

such a beautifully researched and interesting book! i liked the acknowledgement at the beginning of why miyazaki, shinkai, and kon weren’t included and i only take half a point of with the thought that a future edition of this book would include kon’s work (and perhaps a different book would include miyazaki and shinkai’s works lol). overall a very compelling overview of both anime history and backgrounds in anime and it makes me want to read more into both!

[Shrike58 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seeing as public libraries in the area are opening up enough to allow for quick browsing, this was something of an impulse grab. While the book is nice, it's also a bit slighter than it looks, as the author basically looks behind the scenes of some of the last great productions of when anime was based on hand-produced art, as opposed to digital composition; I had been hoping for a somewhat broader slice of the history of the field.

[Elijah]

I've become an art book guy. Pro tip - borrow them from the library first and only buy them when they really set your hair on fire. This one was a little too brief for my tastes, but I do appreciate the thoroughness of what it shows. It feels a bit like the author was hoping to get to do a series of these.

[Bryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful collection and preservation of drawings that could have eventually found themselves lost. Just as an archive it's a worthwhile book. Also gives good insight into the considerations and philosophies of the artists' designs.

[Max Lothian · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing insight into the world of background paintings. This book is filled to the brim with stunning imagery that gives you a deeper understanding and appreciation of the work that goes into developing these worlds.

[JN · Rating 5 out of 5]

D'Akira à Metropolis en passant par Ghost in the Shell et Patlabor, les animes japonais influencent toutes les cultures. Cinéma, littérature et jeux vidéo n'en sont que quelques exemples. Ce livre permet un survol architectural de villes aussi futuristes que fascinantes. J'aime!

[Mark Ames · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful curated and layouted book, also the images are super stunning. Learned a few things about anime production as well and got inspired by it. Love it!

[kerrycat · Rating 5 out of 5]

lots of gorgeous, telling photos - but make sure you read the text or you'll miss so much

[The Laughing Man · Rating 5 out of 5]

Covers some of my all time favorite anime titles, dives deep into their awe-inspiring scenes. Just what I needed.

[Caramello · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to see some really amazing sketches and understand the talent it takes to do background illustration, this book is for you (and me ❤️)

[Ronan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Obsessed with the neon orange end papers.

[Bud Winn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting read - good reference for when I watch more anime

[Allen Abbott · Rating 4 out of 5]

The writing wasn't that great, but the pictures were wonderful.

[Xavier Remacle · Rating 5 out of 5]

In-depth and artistic overview for culturally significant anime art work. I constantly have this at my desk to be inspired

[Konstantinos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Besides being a treasure trove of excellently presented art showcasing some of the most beautiful urban and architectural images anime has to offer, Stefan Riekeles' Anime Architecture also offers pithy texts, insightful comments, and enlightening views. Highly recommended!