A representative for Japanese animation studio White Fox took to Twitter yesterday to issue a public apology following allegations of gender discrimination at the studio, and his response is telling.
White Fox, founded in 2007 by former OLM employees, has produced popular shows like Steins;Gate and Re:Zero and engages in a joint venture with Egg Firm on Studio Bind to adapt MushokuTensei.
But as Anime News Network reports, the company listed a job opening for a production assistant seeking an eligible “woman under the age of 26” as recently as 2019.
White Fox’s founder and representative director, Gaku Iwasa, wrote on the studio’s Twitter account that the position had been advertised with such requirements in the past and profusely apologized for any discomfort to those concerned.
In one Tweet, he also shared that he had just learned about Japan’s Equal Employment Opportunity Law, which reporters and Twitter users alike have pointed out was passed in 1972—35 years before the studio’s founding. The law has been implemented since 1986 following an enforcement ordinance, though neither contains meaningful enforcement mechanisms.
As one Tweet frames the attempt at an apology, the incident exemplifies misogyny in anime studios across the industry,
An updated recruitment page includes an age limit, of 30 but no gender requirement. While it may be above board legally now, that doesn’t mean Iwasa understands the issue at hand.
The studio’s latest production, an anime adaptation of Utawarerumono: Mask of Truth, premieres in July.
Published: Mar 1, 2022 04:58 pm