Shirobako

Plot

Characters

Main characters

Musashino Animation

• Yutaka Honda: Production manager of Musashino Animation. He decides to leave Musashino Animation to become a pastry chef. After his departure, he is revealed to have lost much weight during his sporadic pastry delivery visits to Musashino Animation.
• Tarō Takanashi: Production assistant of Musashino Animation. He is later promoted to chief production assistant after Honda's departure. He is known around the company for being irresponsible, loud and being extremely protective of his ego and reputation. This often earns him rebukes from Aoi and Erika, as well as annoyance or indifference from all other characters.
• Erika Yano: Production assistant of Musashino Animation. She is Tatsuya and Aoi's closest co-worker, known for a short temper and generous attitude. She lives in Utsunomiya with her sick father, which causes problems with workloads.
• Tatsuya Ochiai: Production assistant of Musashino Animation. He rarely speaks to anyone but Erika although he is respected around the office. He leaves Musashino Animation to become the production manager at Studio Canaan after a former colleague of his requests his assistance.
• Tsubaki Andō: New production assistant of Musashino Animation and an otaku. She is very enthusiastic to the point where she forgets what is important.
• Sara Satō: New production assistant of Musashino Animation. She is very responsible, but is horrible with directions.
• Daisuke Hiraoka: New production assistant of Musashino Animation after Honda's departure and Tarō's subsequent promotion, although he is in truth very experienced. He is known for being easily annoyed and standoffish. His experience lends him connections to various companies and people in the show, although all of them are mediocre at what they do. When he joins Musashino, due to past "trauma," he initially believes that anime just needs to get finished and that quality does not matter. He later comes around and starts to appreciate what professionals put into their work and that quality does matter.

• Rinko Ogasawara: Star key animator, character designer and general animation supervisor at Musashino Animation. She was the character designer for Exodus!, but after its last episode, she decides to return to her roots as key animator, inspired by Shigeru's horse animations. She is known for her calm demeanor and fashion: gothic dresses. She is also an accomplished softball player.
• Yumi Iguchi: Key animator at Musashino Animation. The assistant general animation supervisor of Exodus! and the character designer of The Third Aerial Girls Squad. After her character designs for The Third Aerial Girls Squad were rejected multiple times by Nogame, Rinko lets her in on her secret place: the softball range. Afterwards, she no longer wears typical casual wear, but instead a pinkish kimono with purple stripes. She also does workout dances with Ema on the roof, a secret between the two.
• Ryōsuke Endō: Key animator at Musashino Animation. The animation supervisor for the Exodus! third and eighth episodes. He has a rivalry with Misato Segawa. He gets annoyed when other characters voice their negative opinions of his work. He loves Idepon, citing it as his inspiration to work in anime, a common ground with Yūichirō Shimoyanagi, a CG animator.
• Akane Uchida: Key animator at Musashino Animation.
• Hikaru Hotta: Key animator at Musashino Animation and Endō's junior. He is a massive proponent of hand-drawn animation being superior to CG animation.
• Ai Kunogi: In-between animator at Musashino Animation. She is later promoted to key animator for The Third Aerial Girls Squad. She is extremely nervous and shy, almost never completing a full word. This leaves her very much attached to Ema, who seemingly magically interprets what she wants to say. She is also deathly afraid of insects.
• Shigeru Sugie: Senior key animator at Musashino Animation. He was once the character designer for the now-defunct Musashino Pictures. His old age means he no longer has the speed to work on Musashino Animation's main projects, but he proves crucial to the completion of the final episode of Exodus!, where he teaches the other animators to animate horses, a lost talent by the time Shirobako takes place. In addition to horses, he can design and animate many other animals.

• Masato Marukawa: The president of Musashino Animation. He was once the production desk at the now-defunct Musashino Pictures. He is more often than not seen cooking absurd amounts of food for his employees. In the past, he had a distinctive hippie look, with long hair past his shoulders and a headband, but in the present, he is nearly bald and has a distinctive gap between his front two teeth. His name and design are based on producer and animator Masao Maruyama.
• Yuka Okitsu: The general manager of Musashino Animation and a former production assistant. She does not tolerate smoking or violence in the office, and is skilled at defusing situations as well. The police have nicknamed her "Woman of the Speed of Sound", as she will drive over the speed limit to deliver episode tapes on time to broadcasting companies around Japan.
• Jun Watanabe: Line producer at Musashino Animation. He is often nicknamed "Nabe-P" by his colleagues.
• Nao Shinkawa: Color setter at Musashino Animation.
• Yoshiki Sakura: Director of photography at Musashino Animation.
• Yūichirō Shimoyanagi: 3D Director at Musashino Animation. He loves Idepon, citing it as his inspiration to work in anime, a common ground with Ryōsuke Endō, a key animator.
• Chiemi Dōmoto: In-between animation inspector at Musashino Animation.
• Wataru Nakabayashi: Editor at Musashino Animation.

  Production staff

• Seiichi Kinoshita: The director of Exodus! and The Third Girls Aerial Squad. He loves fatty foods, leaving the air conditioner on, and not working. His work style often leads to him suddenly changing the story or refusing to work on his storyboards, leading to delayed production. He has a fatal flaw when people reference his greatest failure in the past, Jiggly Jiggly Heaven. He is also known for celebrating losing weight by eating unhealthy foods, although he measures this in minuscule amounts of grams. His character and design are in part based on Seiji Mizushima.
• Masashi Yamada: The episode director of Exodus! fourth and ninth episodes, and an episode director for The Third Girls Aerial Squad.
• Hironori Madoka: The episode director of Exodus! third episode, and The Third Aerial Girls Squads third and seventh episodes.
• Hiroshi Iketani: The episode director of The Third Aerial Girls Squads fifth episode. He is contacted as an emergency by Erika, formerly known as "the bearded hermit", with barely any money. He is used as comic relief as he often attempts to escape Studio Taitanic with many different ways which included tunneling out and escaping through the vents, always only to be caught by Erika smiling at him at the end.
• Zaruyoshi Yakushiji: The former episode director of The Third Aerial Girls Aerial Squads fifth episode, hailing from Studio Taitanic. He is completely disinterested in working with Seiichi or anime in general, referencing Jiggly Jiggly Heaven and signing episode cuts without having seen any of it. He then disappears after meeting with Musashino Animation.

• Yoshikazu Inanami: Director of audiography.
• Kōtarō Katsuragi: Record producer.
• Eri Nakata: Sound production supervisor.
• Atsushi Yamabuchi: Mixer.
• Asuka Fuji: Assistant mixer.
• Takumi Ōyama: Sound effects engineer. He also works at Sawara Studio.

• Misato Segawa: Freelance key animator. The animation supervisor for the Exodus! fourth and ninth episodes. Ryōsuke Endō considers her a rival, as they have common work history together. She is very diligent, often working throughout the night to exhaustion.
• Mitsuhide Kisa: Freelance key animator. He is very lazy, not working until he is "in his groove", and sleeping well into the afternoon. He is also an avid biker.

• Mei Nakaharu: Voice actress. Voices Akane in Exodus!. Her name and appearance are nearly identical to her voice actress Mai Nakahara.
• Suzuka Itō: Voice actress. Voices Aya in Exodus! and Catherine Weller in The Third Aerial Girls Squad. Her name and appearance are nearly identical to her voice actress Shizuka Itō.
• Mui Kayana: Voice actress. Voices Arupin in Exodus!. Her name and appearance are nearly identical to her voice actress Ai Kayano.
• Yuuna Sakashita: Voice actress. Voices Onee-san in Exodus!.
• Kyōko Suzuki: Voice actress. Voices Aria Hitotose in The Third Aerial Girls Squad. Her design is based on Juri Kimura, the voice actress of Aoi Miyamori.
• Eri Asagami: Voice actress. Voices Noa Ashkenage in The Third Aerial Girls Squad.
• Ayano Makise: Voice actress. Voices Christine Waldegard in The Third Aerial Girls Squad.
• Hiroko Tokiwa: Voice actress. Voices Tatiana Yakovlef in The Third Aerial Girls Squad.
• Rina Sōma: Top voice actress. Her design is a play on her voice actress Yukari Tamura.

  Others

• Tatsuya Hantō: The editor-in-chief for the company that produces and distributes The Third Aerial Girls Squad.
• Shinsuke Chazawa: An editor for the company that produces and distributes The Third Aerial Girls Squad. Later fired after keeping Nogame in the dark about Musashino's attempts to meet him. He approves everything that the cast asks him without consulting Nogame, often seen texting on his cell phone during meetings with Musashino Animation. He also abruptly leaves his meetings, interrupting conversations to remark on how he scheduled another meeting, although it is heavily implied he is actually performing leisure activities, such as going to a golfing range. He is known for his catch phrase "funny story". He says this extremely liberally, using it in emails and normal conversation where there is no story to be told.
• Hisamitsu Isokawa: The president and chief production assistant of A.C Tsuchinoko, and Erika and Hiraoka's former classmate in technical school.
• Kouichi Tateishi: The president of Super Media Creations and Misa's former boss.
• Nobuaki Nakagaichi: The president of Studio Kanabun and Misa's current boss.
• Toshiyasu Kawano: Sound effects engineer for the sound department at Sawara Studio.
• Masahiko Inami: The president of The Born. He is known for being blunt, often refusing interview candidates for being nervous or saying certain phrases He is also forgetful, loud and wears a baseball uniform.
• Keiji Takekura: The chief production assistant of The Born. He is Masahiko's foil, often reminding him he is being far too demanding or brusque.
• Onodera: An episode director working for The Born and a former key animator. He is noted for being "nocturnal", not showing up to work until the late afternoon.
• Tomigaya: Aoi's rival, who works at G.I Staff and frequently races her while on errands for the same people.
• Isamu Momose: The president of Komoro Studio. He was once the color setter for the now-defunct Musashino Pictures.
• Masato Onoue: Head of the Yotaka Bookshop Organization.
• Nobuhiro Sakurada: Producer for Big Japan Advertising.
• Yasuhiro Mizuyama: Producer for a firm advertising The Third Girls Aerial Squad.
• Kenichi Mimura: The head production assistant at Studio Taitanic. He apparently does nothing at work, sleeping when Erika enters Studio Taitanic and not even turning on the Internet.
• Sugesuke Enjō: Producer for Bukkomi Games. He, along with Takumi Yarase and Tsuyoshi Makurada, do not care about The Third Aerial Girls Squad, only gaining money for their respective company. Sugesuke particularly wants well-known voice actors in The Third Aerial Girls Squad for to draw extra publicity for games that accompany The Third Aerial Girls Squad. He is forced to agree to Jun's voice actors for the sake of quality.
• Takumi Yarase: Producer for Gorioshi Music. He, along with Sugesuke Enjō and Tsuyoshi Makurada, do not care about The Third Aerial Girls Squad, only gaining money for their respective company. Takumi particularly wants voice actors with good singing capabilities in The Third Aerial Girls Squad so his company can sell more records. He is forced to agree to Jun's voice actors for the sake of quality.
• Tsuyoshi Makurada: Creative producer for DK Race. He, along with Sugesuke Enjō and Takumi Yarase, do not care about The Third Aerial Girls Squad, only gaining money for their respective company. Tsuyoshi particularly wants physically attractive voice actors in The Third Aerial Girls Squad so his company will have larger panels at conventions. He is forced to agree to Jun's voice actors for the sake of quality.

• Mimuji and Roro: Aoi's dolls who she occasionally imagines being alive. Mimuji is a female doll with an eyepatch who wears a long purple and black dress. She is ignorant to the anime creation process and finds the meetings and work boring. She also bullies Roro and serves as the negative voice for Aoi, telling her to quit work and question why she is working in anime. Roro is a white teddy bear who explains the anime creation process. He is the positive voice for Aoi, reminding her why she is working in anime. In Shirobako's final episode credits, Ai Kunogi sees Mimuji and Roro as being alive, which stuns her.
• Kaori Miyamori: Aoi's older sister, who unhappily works at a Shinkin bank. She lives in the country, and acts like a stereotypical tourist during her visit to Tokyo, embarrassing Midori. She questions whether Musashino Animation is a legitimate company, but ultimately approves of Aoi.
• Shimeji Maitake: The head writer of Exodus! and one of the writers for The Third Aerial Girls Squad. His name is based on real-life novel author Kinoko Nasu, while his appearance is similar to that of real-life screenwriter Hiroyuki Yoshino.
• Yūji Atsumi: Art director for The Third Girls Aerial Squad. He is known for his art direction featuring clouds, as well as his forehead, which is longer than any other character's in the show,
• Masahiro Ōkura: An art director who is hired to handle certain background scenes for The Third Girls Aerial Squad. He was once a key animator for the now-defunct Musashino Pictures. He is a talented painter. His character and design are in part based upon Hiromasa Ogura.
• Mari Tateo: A former voice actress and Shizuka's mentor.
• Mitsuaki Kanno: A high-profile animator who was involved in several famous anime works. His name is a play on that of real-life director and animator Hideaki Anno, and his appearance is similar to that of Anno as well. As with Anno, he is most well known for being the art director for a popular mecha anime. In Anno's case, this is Neon Genesis Evangelion.
• Mrs. Endō: Ryōsuke's wife.
• Mrs. Miyamori: Aoi and Kaori's mother.
• Mrs. Yasuhara: Ema's mother.
• Mrs. Sugie: Sugie's wife, who he met at the now-defunct Musashino Pictures, where she worked as an in-between animation supervisor.
• Kōji Sagamori: The art director of the now-defunct Musashino Pictures. He is instantly recognizable from his large mustache and his short temper, which he often directed at Masato Marukawa, who as a production assistant requested the art department draw certain things, an unheard-of action in anime.
• Takezō Nogame: The original creator of The Third Girls Aerial Squad. Unlike any other character in the show, he appears to regularly wear traditional Japanese kimonos. His name is based on manga artist Takeshi Nogami.

  Anime characters

• Akane: The leader of the idol group Tracy, and one of the protagonists of Exodus!. She is voiced by Mei Nakaharu.
• Aya: A member of the idol group Tracy, and one of the protagonists of Exodus!. She is voiced by Suzuka Itō.
• Arupin: A member of the idol group Tracy, and one of the protagonists of Exodus!, who is 29 years old despite publicizing her age as 17. She is voiced by Mui Kayana.
• Onee-san: A shady businesswoman who is in frequent contact with Tracy, who appears to be an antagonist of Exodus!. She is voiced by Yuuna Sakashita.
• Miho Koigakubo: An ambitious police inspector transferred from South Africa, who is assigned to track down Akane, Aya, and Arupin on suspicion of murder. She appears to be an antagonist of Exodus!.
• Taguchi: The manager of Tracy, who winds up being murdered and his death pinned on his own idol group.

• Aria Hitotose: The main protagonist of The Third Girls Aerial Squad, and a pilot from Japan, sardonically nicknamed "Ice Doll" for her cold and calculating personality. A member of the 307 Aerial Squad, or "Hell Alice", she flies a Mitsubishi F-1. She is voiced by Kyōko Suzuki.
• Catherine Weller: A pilot from America and one of Aria's allies. A member of Hell Alice, she flies a McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II. She is voiced by Suzuka Itō.
• Christine Waldegård: A pilot from Sweden and one of Aria's allies. A member of Hell Alice, she flies a Saab 37 Viggen. She is voiced by Ayano Makise.
• Noa Ashkenage: A pilot from Israel and one of Aria's allies. A member of Hell Alice, she flies an IAI Kfir. She is voiced by Eri Asagami.
• Tatiana Yakovlef: A pilot from an unknown country, and one of Aria's allies. A member of Hell Alice, she flies a Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23. She is voiced by Hiroko Tokiwa.
• Valroph: The commanding officer of Chofu Base and the leader of Hell Alice.
• Olivia: A lieutenant colonel and the squadron leader of Hell Alice, who sacrifices herself to save Aria and Catherine.
• Lye: A rear general who is responsible for overseeing and repairing Hell Alice's aircraft.
• Elise: An apparent representative of the Clow Corporation, which supplies Chofu Base with gathered parts.
• Lucy Weller: Catherine's younger sister, who was specifically created for an anime-original scenario for the adaptation. She is voiced by Shizuka.
• Myers: A pilot who participates in the attack against Midway Pillar, during which he is shot down and killed.

  Media

Print media

Anime

Reception