Science Saru
Japanese animation studio recognized for digitally assisted production, bold visual experimentation, and internationally acclaimed films and series.
Last updated August 22, 2026
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Overview
Science Saru, formally Science Saru, Inc. and styled Science SARU, is a Japanese animation studio based in Kichijoji, Musashino, Tokyo. It was established on February 4, 2013, by director Masaaki Yuasa and producer Eunyoung Choi. The studio emerged from a long creative partnership between the two founders and was designed to combine the instincts and playfulness associated with animation with the logic, technology, planning, and international outlook suggested by the word “Science.” “Saru” means monkey in Japanese and also reflects Yuasa’s recurring self-portrait motif. The company began with a very small, multinational team and initially balanced original projects with subcontracting and collaboration work. Its first official production under the Science Saru name was “Food Chain,” an episode of the American animated series Adventure Time released in 2014. Directed and written by Yuasa with Choi as co-director, the episode gave the studio early international visibility and demonstrated its willingness to work outside conventional Japanese television-animation formats. Science Saru also provided digitally assisted animation for Ping Pong the Animation and contributed episodes or animation work to projects including Space Dandy, Garo, Crayon Shin-chan, Yo-kai Watch, and other television, film, promotional, and music-video productions. A defining feature of Science Saru’s production method is its hybrid use of hand-drawn animation and digital, historically Flash-based tools. This approach allowed a small team to produce fluid, stylized work efficiently while preserving the irregularity and expressiveness of traditional drawing. The studio’s visual identity is therefore associated less with a single house style than with an openness to unusual layouts, elastic character animation, simplified forms, strong color design, and varied directorial voices. Science Saru moved into feature-film production with Lu Over the Wall and The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl, both released in 2017. The films established the studio as a major creative force in Japanese animation and won recognition at Annecy, the Mainichi Film Awards, the Japan Media Arts Festival, the Japan Academy Film Prize, and other international events. Its global profile expanded sharply with Devilman Crybaby, a 2018 Netflix series directed by Yuasa and based on Go Nagai’s manga. The project substantially increased the studio’s production scale and reached a predominantly non-Japanese audience. Later projects included the original film Ride Your Wave, the series Super Shiro, Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!, Japan Sinks: 2020, the feature Inu-Oh, The Heike Story, Yurei Deco, Star Wars: Visions shorts, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, and Dandadan. In March 2020, Yuasa stepped down as president and representative director after several years of continuous directing, while remaining connected to the studio as a creator. Choi became president and chief executive. The studio also adapted its production practices during the COVID-19 pandemic and entered a non-exclusive strategic partnership with Netflix in October 2020 for development of series and other content. Science Saru’s work has received domestic and international critical attention, including awards and selections from Annecy, the Japan Academy Film Prize, the Mainichi Film Awards, the Tokyo Anime Awards Festival, and the Japan Media Arts Festival.
History
Science Saru was founded in Tokyo on February 4, 2013, by Masaaki Yuasa and Eunyoung Choi. The founders had worked together on earlier animation projects, and Choi brought experience from Ankama Japan, where digitally assisted production and an international staff formed part of the operating model. The studio was initially housed in a converted suburban home and operated with only a handful of people. Its first official production was “Food Chain,” a 2014 episode of Adventure Time. Yuasa directed, wrote, and storyboarded the episode, while Choi co-directed. The production was completed internally and received strong critical attention, including selection at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and an Annie Award nomination. Around the same period, Science Saru supplied digital-animation assistance for Ping Pong the Animation and contributed to selected episodes of Space Dandy. These projects established the studio as both a creative partner and a specialist in hybrid production. During 2014 and 2015, the studio also undertook opening-credit animation, promotional projects, music videos, and assistance on films and series connected with Garo, Crayon Shin-chan, Yo-kai Watch, Typhoon Noruda, and OK K.O.!: Let’s Be Heroes. This subcontracting period helped the small company develop capacity while maintaining close ties with Yuasa and other recurring collaborators. Science Saru’s first major feature was Lu Over the Wall, completed in a compressed production period and released in 2017. Yuasa directed and co-wrote the original fantasy. The studio also produced The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl, adapted from a novel by Tomihiko Morimi. Although the latter entered production after Lu Over the Wall, it reached audiences first, partly because distributors considered a pre-existing literary connection useful for the studio’s first theatrical release. Both films were critically acclaimed and won significant awards, including the Annecy Cristal for Lu Over the Wall and the Japan Academy award for Animation of the Year for The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl. The studio’s international profile grew substantially in 2018. Netflix released Devilman Crybaby, a large-scale series based on Go Nagai’s manga. The production required Science Saru to expand beyond its earlier small-team structure, and the series attracted a particularly large audience outside Japan. It was followed by Ride Your Wave in 2019, Super Shiro, and then the 2020 series Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! and Japan Sinks: 2020. Eizouken! was praised for its depiction of animation creation and received major television-animation recognition. Japan Sinks: 2020 generated debate in Japan over its treatment of nationalism, while also receiving attention for its multicultural and inclusive perspective. On March 25, 2020, Yuasa resigned as president and representative director, explaining that he wanted a break after years of continuous directing. Choi assumed leadership while confirming Yuasa’s continuing creative relationship with the company. During the pandemic, Science Saru adjusted its workflow and continued production. Its October 2020 non-exclusive Netflix partnership formalized an additional route for developing and distributing international-facing work. The studio’s subsequent work included the 2021 feature Inu-Oh, the series The Heike Story, two Star Wars: Visions shorts, Yurei Deco, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, and Dandadan. Science Saru has received recognition from Japanese and international institutions, including Annecy, the Japan Academy Film Prize, the Mainichi Film Awards, the Tokyo Anime Awards Festival, and the Japan Media Arts Festival. Its continuing identity rests on a flexible production system, strong director-led authorship, and the ability to move between original films, literary adaptations, manga, streaming series, anthology work, and contracted animation.
- 2024
Dandadan
[1]Science Saru produces the animated adaptation of the contemporary manga series Dandadan.
- 2021
Inu-Oh and The Heike Story
[1]The studio releases a feature film and television series with historical and literary themes.
- 2020
Leadership transition and Netflix partnership
[1]Yuasa leaves the presidency, Choi becomes chief executive, and the studio enters a non-exclusive strategic partnership with Netflix.
- 2018
Devilman Crybaby premieres
[1]The Netflix series expands the studio’s scale and international audience.
- 2017
First feature-film cycle
[1]Lu Over the Wall and The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl bring the studio major critical and festival recognition.
- 2014
Food Chain released
[1]The Adventure Time episode becomes the studio’s first official production under the Science Saru name.
- 2013
Studio established
[1]Masaaki Yuasa and Eunyoung Choi establish Science Saru in Tokyo.
Products and positioning
Creator-led, internationally oriented animation studio emphasizing expressive visual direction, experimental storytelling, hybrid hand-drawn and digital production, and collaboration with distinctive directors.
Television animation episode · 2014
Food Chain
Science Saru’s first official production, this Adventure Time episode was directed and written by Masaaki Yuasa with Eunyoung Choi as co-director. Its unusual visual language and self-contained concept gave the young studio immediate international visibility and festival recognition.
Animated feature film · 2017
Lu Over the Wall
A family-oriented fantasy and musical adventure directed and co-written by Yuasa. It was Science Saru’s first large-scale feature production and won the Annecy Cristal for a feature film, along with other Japanese animation awards.
Animated feature film · 2017
The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl
A romantic comedy based on Tomihiko Morimi’s novel and connected thematically to Yuasa’s earlier The Tatami Galaxy. Its energetic night-time journey through Kyoto received the Japan Academy award for Animation of the Year and several international honors.
Streaming television series · 2018
Devilman Crybaby
A dark, stylized adaptation of Go Nagai’s manga, directed by Yuasa for Netflix. The series marked a major expansion in Science Saru’s production capacity and became a breakthrough for the studio with viewers outside Japan.
Animated feature film · 2019
Ride Your Wave
An original romantic fantasy directed by Yuasa about grief, memory, and a relationship connected through the sea. It competed at Annecy and won animated-feature honors at festivals including Shanghai, Fantasia, and Sitges.
Television anime series · 2020
Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!
Yuasa’s adaptation of Sumito Ōwara’s manga follows three students who attempt to make animation. The series was praised for its imaginative visualization of creative ideas and received major television-animation awards in Japan and abroad.
Streaming television series · 2020
Japan Sinks: 2020
A Netflix adaptation of Sakyo Komatsu’s disaster novel, directed by Yuasa and Pyeon-Gang Ho. The series combines catastrophe drama with questions of identity, migration, nationalism, and social inclusion.
Animated feature film · 2021
Inu-Oh
A musical historical drama based on Hideo Furukawa’s novel, centered on the friendship of two traveling Noh performers in fourteenth-century Japan. The film premiered at the Venice International Film Festival and later received international theatrical distribution.
Television anime series · 2021
The Heike Story
A television adaptation of Hideo Furukawa’s reinterpretation of The Tale of the Heike. The series uses a young narrator’s perspective to explore war, impermanence, and the collapse of a medieval political order.
Television anime series · 2024
Dandadan
An animated adaptation of Yukinobu Tatsu’s manga combining supernatural encounters, science-fiction elements, action, comedy, and romance. It represents Science Saru’s continued work on high-profile contemporary manga properties.
Brand decisions
2020
Leadership transitionStrategyBackground
After approximately seven years of continuous directing and studio leadership, Masaaki Yuasa said he wanted time to rest while continuing to work creatively with Science Saru.
Action taken
Yuasa stepped down as president and representative director, and Eunyoung Choi became president and chief executive.
Aftermath
The studio continued developing Yuasa-related projects while also emphasizing opportunities for other directors and maintaining production during the COVID-19 period.
2020
Non-exclusive Netflix partnershipStrategyBackground
Science Saru sought additional international development and distribution pathways as streaming became increasingly important to animation production.
Action taken
The studio entered a non-exclusive strategic partnership with Netflix covering the development of new series and content.
Aftermath
The agreement reinforced Science Saru’s position as an internationally visible creator and production partner.
Recent events
- 2024
Dandadan becomes a major recent Science Saru series[1]
Product launch
The studio produces the animated series Dandadan, extending its work into a high-profile contemporary manga adaptation.
- 2021
Science Saru releases Inu-Oh and The Heike Story[1]
Product launch
The feature film Inu-Oh and television series The Heike Story demonstrate the studio’s continuing range across historical, musical, and literary material.
- 2020
Masaaki Yuasa leaves the presidency[1]
Leadership change
Yuasa steps down as president and representative director to rest after sustained directing work; Eunyoung Choi succeeds him as president and CEO.
- 2020
Science Saru enters strategic partnership with Netflix[1]
M&A
The studio and Netflix announce a non-exclusive partnership covering development of new animated series and content.
- 2018
Devilman Crybaby brings global streaming attention[1]
Product launch
The Netflix series substantially enlarges the studio’s production operation and becomes its most internationally visible project to that point.
- 2017
Science Saru expands into feature films[1]
Product launch
Lu Over the Wall and The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl establish the studio’s feature-production profile and receive major festival and industry recognition.
- 2014
Food Chain becomes Science Saru’s first official production[1]
Product launch
The studio produces an episode of Adventure Time, giving it an early international showcase.
- 2013
Science Saru is founded by Masaaki Yuasa and Eunyoung Choi[1]
Other
The two collaborators establish an animation studio in Tokyo focused on digitally assisted and creatively flexible production.
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