Studio Mayflower Appoints Ryu Nakayama, Director of TV Animation 'Chainsaw Man,' as New CCO

(Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, August 20, 2024) Studio Mayflower and its CEO Taisei Tateno announced today the appointment of Ryū Nakayama as Chief Creative Officer (CCO) to strengthen its management structure.

Ryū Nakayama is an animator and director with previous experience working with highly- regarded studios such as GAINAX and Tatsunoko Productions. In addition to his work on titles such as “Fate/Grand Order” and “Jujutsu Kaisen,” he is best known for his directorial debut of the anime adaptation of “Chainsaw Man,” which won “Best New Series” at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2024.

Career and Achievements:
● Hunter × Hunter: The Last Mission – Key Animation
● Macross Delta – Main Animator, Animation Director, Key Animation
● Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You! – Key Animation
● Sword Art Online the Movie: Ordinal Scale – Action Animation Director
● Black Clover – ED storyboard, Direction, Animation Director, Key Animation
● Gamers! – Storyboard (OP), Direction (OP), Action Animation Director (OP)
● The Ryuo's Work Is Never Done! – Storyboard (OP), Direction (OP)
● raison d'etre (Eve/MV) - Director, Storyboard, Direction
● The Rise of the Shield Hero – Storyboard, Direction
● Fate/Grand Order Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia – Storyboard, Direction, Action Animation Director
● Jujutsu Kaisen – Storyboard, Direction
● Chainsaw Man – Chief Director

In recent years, the animation industry has been facing a variety of challenges, including soaring production costs and a shortage of animators due to increasing demand for high-quality visual content. In order to solve these problems, Studio Mayflower has been actively promoting efforts to streamline the production process while maintaining high quality standards.

Studio Mayflower's medium-to long-term strategy is to create IP through a content production process that utilizes the latest technology. In this environment, content quality control is critical, which is where Mr. Nakayama's expertise comes in. Mr. Nakayama's wealth of experience and outstanding creative abilities are perfectly aligned with the direction of Studio Mayflower, making him the best choice for the position.

“I am pleased to announce my appointment as CCO of Studio Mayflower,” Ryū Nakayama said. “I have been involved in the animation production industry ever since I was a university student, and over my 10 years of experience I've witnessed a variety of challenges. As a result, I have come to the conclusion that a different and more drastic approach is needed to solve these problems, and I share AnotherBall's clear vision of global reach and Mayflower's innovative mindset. I'm looking forward to working with Mr. Oyu and Mr. Tateno to create a new form of entertainment.”

CEO Taisei Tateno said, “We are delighted to welcome Mr. Nakayama, a top-class animation creator in both name and reality, as our CCO. His skills are indispensable in solving the conflicting issues of improving production efficiency and quality, and I am confident that Mayflower will be able to make even greater strides by combining our technical capabilities with Mr. Nakayama's accumulated knowledge. As a representative of Japan's anime venture scene, I will continue to contribute to the development of anime, which is recognized all over the world as one of Japan's greatest cultural exports, and to succeed on the global level.”

Shunsuke “Captain” Oyu, CEO of AnotherBall, which acquired Studio Mayflower in May 2024, said, “Looking back, I met Mr. Nakayama about a year and a half ago. At the time, I cold- emailed him to request an illustration from him – yes, it was a cold email that brought us together! He agreed to a meeting, and though it started as a simple commission discussion, during our five-minute conversation, I had a gut feeling that 'this is a person who sees things way beyond an individual creator level.' I remember vividly, as if it were only yesterday, that I immediately switched my pitch materials to one geared towards investors instead. I am looking forward to taking on new challenges together with such an incredible person.”

About Studio Mayflower
Studio Mayflower is a tech-based animation studio whose mission is to “advance anime with the power of technology.” The company has been part of AnotherBall Group since Spring 2024.

About AnotherBall
AnotherBall is a venture company whose core strategy is to “Leveraging Japan's competitive cultural assets of anime and VTubers through technology.” Established in May 2022 and led by Shunsuke “Captain” Oyu and Tatsuro Shimada, the management team comprises serial entrepreneurs who previously launched “mamari,” an information hub website for families, and the multinational VTuber agency known as “PRISM Project.”
In addition to Mayflower's anime production business, AnotherBall develops and operates the mobile streaming app “AniLive” for virtual creators.
Website: https://anilive.app/