Anime and manga are two very different industries. Creating a seamless moving image is vastly different from laying out a dynamic page composition for a page in a manga. With this in mind, I will cover the different jobs you might take in each industry, and what they would involve.

As a semi-professional manga artist, I have more experience with the rigours and needs of the graphic novel. So let's cover manga first.


THE MANGA INDUSTRY

The benefit of manga is one person can perform all of the following roles, if s/he is talented enough. If your skill lies more in drawing than in writing, however, I suggest you team up with someone.

- The Writer

The writer is responsible for creating the story, characters and script of the manga. Scripts can be as detailed or loose as you like. Some writers like to specify camera-angles for each and every panel, others rely on the artist to create the effect they are looking for.

Getting a job as a writer is relatively difficult: you can try http://digitalwebbing.com/talent or apply to individual small companies such as NDP Comics (http://www.ndpcomics.com/).


- The Artist

The artist is usually responsible for the entirety of the page layout, artwork, and overall 'feel' of the manga. Being able to draw a variety of settings and characters is useful, and being able to sequence art is a skill often overlooked. You should be able to draw a character over and over again.

Grayscale, or colour is usually added by the artist, but can be delegated to another person in some companies, such as TokyoPop.


- The Colourist

Most manga are black-and-white, so the colourist is more likely to apply grayscale. Originally, this was transparent sheets with a dot print that simulated grey that could be stuck onto the art to give it depth. Many artists have switched to digital tones however, which has opened up a lot of new techniques. Photoshop is the tool of choice.

Colour is obviously used for covers and pin-ups. This is the role that I perform, and therefore one I know quite a lot about. The best way to get accepted into a manga team is to create a portfolio showcasing your best work. Black & white work can be found here: http://artcorner.org and here: http://www.frozenlilacs.com/ (Please note that you should ALWAYS credit the original artist)

Most of my work I have found through http://digitalwebbing.com/talent, or by independent people who have found my website. There is a certain amount of luck involved, and you must be prepared for rejection.

http://www.helium.com/items/445661-h...manga-business