Kadokawa aims to more than double its annual anime cour output with new five-in-one anime studio Studio One Base 

Starting November 2026, Japanese publisher Kadokawa established the new anime production company Studio One Base. Located in Tokyo, the new company integrates five existing animation studios into one production hub: Engi, Studio Kadan, Chiptune, Bellnox Fims and Raging Bull, with the goal of creating high-quality anime. 

Kadokawa positioned this move as a way to respond to the growing global demand for anime while also addressing the industry’s growing issues like labor shortages and high production costs. In a new earnings results presentation published on November 12, the company detailed some of the improvements it expects to achieve through Studio One Base. 

Specifically, through productivity reforms and increased recruitment of new talent, Kadokawa plans to increase the number of anime cours it can produce per year (a cour refers to a three-month TV broadcast run, typically 12 to 13 episodes). In the fiscal year 2025, Kadokawa produced 4 anime cours annually, while by fiscal year 2031, it plans to achieve more than double this number. Additionally, by streamlining operational costs, it plans to lower its expense to revenue ratio from 12.1% to 9.5% during the same period.  

By fiscal year, 2031, the company is aiming to produce 50% of its anime in-house (as opposed to 18.2% this year). This figure accounts not only for Studio One Base, but for other anime studio‘s under the Kadokawa group such as Doga Kobo. 

Incidentally, Kadokawa’s earnings report for the first half of the fiscal year reveals that the company’s anime and live-action sector stayed in the red, posting an operating loss of 804 million yen (approx. $5.03 million) despite high revenue from hit anime releases like Re:Zero and The Saga of Tanya the Evil. The aforementioned Studio One Base is part of the company’s strategy to achieve long-term profitability of its anime business. 

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