Toei Animation — the producer of anime classics such as Mazinger Z, Dragon Ball, Sailor Moon and One Piece — is making a thoroughly modern move, expanding its NFT initiatives by partnering with creators to develop animation franchises based on their tokenized artwork. On Monday, the 60+ year-old Japanese studio announced the development of its first collaborative property, Zombie Zoo. The series is based on an NFT collection by nine-year-old artist Zombie Zoo Keeper, and marks Japan’s first NFT based animation project. A first-look is coming this spring.
In addition to being a unique crossover for NFTs and anime, the project also stands out due to its young creator. As the studio notes in the announcement:
“We have brought many kids’ animations into the world through the hands of adult creators, but the main creator of this project is the children themselves. We started this project because we wanted to support and create animations that reflect children’s creativity as it is … It would be a pleasure if we could share the wonders and joys of the children’s creativity spreading around the world by gaining wings through technology and the internet.”
Zombie Zoo Keeper began his NFT project with his mother, multimedia artist and musician Emi Kusano, as a summer school assignment in 2021. Since then, the Zombie Zoo horde has grown to 212 pieces of pixel art created on an iPad and quickly selling out on the OpenSea marketplace. The budding artist gained critical acclaim for his project, becoming an NFT sensation and making the 2021 Forbes JAPAN 100 list.
“I am so excited that a dream I had been talking about with my mom every day, creating an anime about capturing zombies, came true!” Zombie Zoo Keeper beamed in the announcement. “I am thrilled that as a kid I get to work with adults and creative professionals.”
Follow Zombie Zoo‘s progress at toei-anim.co.jp/zombie-zoo.
[Source: Toei Animation via Anime News Network]
