Ben Dooley and Hikari Hida, The New York Times
Published: 25 Feb 2021 03:22 PM BdST
Updated: 25 Feb 2021 03:27 PM BdST Tokyo’s Akihabara district, a centre of anime culture, on Jan 14, 2021. The industry’s boom has only widened the gap between profits and wages. Noriko Hayashi/The New York Times Tetsuya Akutsu, a freelance animator, at work in his apartment in Tokyo on Jan 14, 2021. Akutsu wants to start a family, but on his wages, he says, it’s impossible to get married and to raise a child. Noriko Hayashi/The New York Times A game centre in Tokyo featuring anime-inspired prizes on Jan 14, 2021. An activist says the government shows little interest in protecting animators from overwork. Noriko Hayashi/The New York Times