Kickstart This: 'Retro Anime- The Roots of Japanese Animation'.

Today the Japanese animation industry is a world leader, reaching more fans than ever before. Although anime has existed in English translation since the 1960s, this was not actually the beginning of the story.. not by a long shot. Japan's animation industry actually goes all the way back to 1917 but very little has been written about these earliest days. Roberto Bottazzi wants to change this, by publishing a book entitled Retro Anime: The Roots Of Japanese Animation.

Bottazzi has been working on the book for the past four years, compiling a list of every Japanese animation made between 1917 and 1969. This early stage in the industry is one that is often overlooked when talking about anime's history, so this promises to be quite the resource for fans and students of animation alike.

Much has been written about Osamu Tezuka, the father of modern anime. But what about the people who inspired him? This book will introduce you to them.

It will feature an index of all the animation made in the period in chronological order, listing more than 1000 titles. The book ends in 1969 because this was the year the final black and white anime was broadcast, so can be seen to be the end of an era. Additionally, the book will feature extra chapters profiling key directors and wider topics.



The book is nearly completed and Bottazzi has chosen to launch a Kickstarter rather than self-publish. The book is being originally written in Italian, so part of the funds will be used to provide an English translation and pay proofreaders. The £30,000 will also allow him to produce a high-quality physical version of the book.

The digital version will cost you £15.00 or £25.00 will get you the print version. The campaign will run until November 2nd, 2016. If you want to help out head over to the campaign page now.