Chapter 55: Animation Production Is Really Expensive
Solving the issue of card illustrations was only the first step.
As for other art resources, such as UI, scene concept art, card effects, and so on, Chen Mo planned to handle them later. He would outsource what he could and do it himself if outsourcing wasn't an option.
Now, there was another serious problem: he needed to find a reliable animation production company.
For animation companies in this world, recreating *I Am MT* shouldn't be a problem. However, Chen Mo wanted to make it more refined, at least reaching the level of the later seasons of *I Am MT*, and ideally surpassing the quality of *World of Warcraft: The Movie*.
After all, this anime was essentially a promotional tool for the game. Skimping on production quality just to save money would be like sacrificing the root for the branches.
Chen Mo didn't personally know anyone in the animation production industry. After thinking it over, he decided to call Zhao Zihao.
Since Zhao Zihao ran a game studio, he frequently interacted with people in the gaming circle. Finding a reliable animation production company shouldn't be too difficult for him.
On the phone, Chen Mo briefly explained his requirements. Zhao Zihao quickly sent him the contact information for the head of an animation studio.
This studio, called Shining Aurora Studio, had a decent reputation in the industry and had produced a few decent domestic anime works. Their capabilities should be up to par.
Chen Mo briefly outlined his needs and arranged to meet with the person in charge at the experience store the next day.
After finishing all the discussions, Chen Mo could barely keep his eyes open.
"This super accelerator really packs a punch..."
Chen Mo forced himself to wash up, then collapsed onto the bed and fell into a deep sleep.
...
The next morning.
Even after sleeping for a full ten hours, Chen Mo still felt a bit achy all over.
No wonder this super accelerator couldn't be used consecutively in a short period. It could actually kill someone!
He got up, washed up, and opened the store as usual.
Wen Lingwei, like Su Jinyu, now arrived promptly at 10 AM every day, bringing her own drawing tablet and laptop to color the cards in the meeting room on the first floor of the experience store.
In the afternoon, the head of Shining Aurora Studio arrived. Chen Mo led him to his own workspace on the second floor.
This person in charge was named Guo Feng. He was a bit under forty, with a very amiable face, though he was slightly balding.
Chen Mo didn't waste time on pleasantries and got straight to the point about his needs.
"It's like this: I plan to produce an anime. For the first season, I'm aiming for 10 episodes, each about 10 minutes long. There will be one theme song for the opening and one for the ending."
"I can provide the characters, settings, plot, dialogue, and storyboards. You just need to follow my requirements exactly."
"So, I'd like to ask, what would the budget be for an anime like this?"
Guo Feng thought for a moment and asked, "Are you planning to fully fund this yourself?"
Chen Mo nodded. "Yes."
Guo Feng said, "Well, let me give you a piece of friendly advice from a personal perspective. Anime production requires a significant investment. If it doesn't become popular, you might not recoup your costs at all. And since you want to handle the characters, plot, and storyboards yourself, that makes it even riskier."
"Of course, as long as you pay enough, we'll do the work. I'm just giving you a heads-up out of goodwill."
Chen Mo nodded. "Mm, thanks for the reminder. I know what I'm doing. Just give me the quote directly."
Guo Feng nodded. "Alright. Based on current market rates, for a typical anime, an episode around 24 minutes costs roughly 500,000 yuan, averaging about 20,000 yuan per minute. Of course, this is the industry standard. For a lower-tier production, it could be around 10,000 yuan per minute. But if you want high quality, it can easily go up to 30,000 or even 40,000 yuan per minute."
"Your requirement is 10 minutes per episode. If we go with a mid-range standard, it would be about 200,000 yuan per episode, so 2 million yuan for the first season. If you want a higher standard, it would be around 300,000 yuan per episode, so 3 million yuan for the first season."
Chen Mo was a bit surprised. "That expensive?"
Guo Feng smiled wryly. "Yeah, animation is a huge money pit. The cost of a single minute of animation is way higher than what most people imagine. A lot of people think that since 2D animation is just drawing, it shouldn't be that expensive. But actually, the labor involved is immense. A single second of animation requires 24 frames. Even with simplified techniques, it's still a massive workload."
"Plus, there are voice actors, music, post-production, and so on. The cost adds up quickly."
Chen Mo nodded. "Alright, I've decided. Let's go with the high standard. But since I'm providing the character designs and script, that should save some money, right?"
Guo Feng nodded. "Of course. If we don't factor in the investment for the script, character designs, storyboards, etc., the cost can be reduced a bit, but not by much. Maybe about 10%."
Chen Mo couldn't help but rub his forehead. The reduction really wasn't much. But still, saving 200,000 yuan was still saving money, and that was all hard cash.
Guo Feng continued, "However, if you're providing the script and character designs, we'll need you to cooperate closely with our staff. Mainly, we need to finalize these settings and storyboards promptly, and try to avoid frequent revisions, so as not to delay the subsequent production schedule."
Chen Mo nodded. "I understand. How about this: in one week, by the end of this month, I'll give you the character designs, script, and storyboards for the first season. Then we can sign the formal contract."