OLM, Inc.^[a] (formerly Oriental Light and Magic) is a Japanese animation and film studio headquartered in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan,^[2] founded on October 3, 1990, by former Studio Gallop and OB Planning employees. They are best known for producing children's anime series such as Pokémon, Yo-kai Watch, and Beyblade Burst. They have also produced many series for older audiences, such as Berserk, Odd Taxi, and The Apothecary Diaries.

^ OLM subsidiaries
^ "Outlines." OLM, Inc. Retrieved on November 28, 2009.

tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

Establishment

[edit]

OLM was founded as Oriental Light and Magic, Inc. on October 3, 1990, by Toshiaki Okuno, Shūkichi Kanda, Shōji Ōta, Kunihiko Yuyama, Naohito Takahashi, Yuriko Chiba, Nobuyuki Wasaki, Tsukasa Koitabashi, and Takaya Mizutani, all of which were formerly affiliated with Studio Gallop or OB Planning. Their name is derived from the American special effects studio Industrial Light & Magic.

In 1995, OLM representative director Toshiaki Okuno founded OLM Digital, which became the main CG work company behind a majority of OLM's works. Toshiaki Okuno stood as both companies' representative director since their establishment until 2024, when he elected to step down from his position. Hideki Kama, the vice president of the company at the time, was declared his successor at the main studio, while Misako Saka would succeed him as the representative director of OLM Digital. These changes took place on April 1, 2024.^[1] Okuno remains with the company as part of the board of directors.

^ Mateo, Alex. "Imagica Group, OLM Change Representative Directors". Anime News Network. Retrieved 31 March 2024.

Studio structure

[edit]

Similar to Bandai Namco Filmworks and Bones, OLM is divided into separate, distinct production lines that are typically named after the Animation Producer^[a] leading the production. As of 2025, the studio officially operates six separate production lines.

Current OLM Production Units
Team Name	Lead Producer	Notes
OLM TEAM INOUE^[b]	Takashi Inoue (井上たかし, Inoue Takashi)	Established by a former TEAM WASAKI member.
OLM TEAM YOSHIOKA	Daisuke Yoshioka (吉岡大輔, Yoshioka Daisuke)	Established by a former TEAM WASAKI member.
OLM TEAM KUMEMURA	Makoto Kumemura (久米村誠, Kumemura Makoto)	Reshuffled from TEAM KATO.
OLM TEAM HIKITA	Takahito Hikita (引田崇人, Hikita Takahito)	Established by a former TEAM INOUE member.
OLM TEAM MASUDA	Katsuhito Masuda (増田克人, Masuda Katsuhito)	Formerly a producer at MAPPA. Staff spun-off from TEAM SAKURAI.
N/a	Eiji Sumitomo (住友英司, Sumitomo Eiji)	Formerly a producer at Studio Gokumi. Staff spun-off from TEAM KOJIMA and TEAM INOUE.
N/a	Satoshi Shōda (正田聡史, Shōda Satoshi)	Established by a former TEAM ABE member.
OLM TEAM MIIKE	Misako Saka (坂美佐子, Saka Misako)	Division of OLM Digital. Produces live-action works under the direction of Takashi Miike.
Former OLM Production Units
OLM TEAM KATO^[c]	Hiroyuki Katō (加藤浩幸, Katō Hiroyuki)	Established by a former TEAM KAMEI member. Reshuffled into TEAM KUMEMURA following the production of Pokémon Horizons: The Series episode 45. Hiroyuki Kato remains in the team as Creative Producer.
OLM TEAM KOITABASHI	Tsukasa Koitabashi (小板橋司, Koitabashi Tsukasa)	Formerly of Gallop. One of the original production units. Last credited work was Pochitto Hatsumei: Pikachin-Kit. Due to inactivity since 2020, it is assumed this team has disbanded.
OLM TEAM WASAKI	Nobuyuki Wasaki (和崎伸之, Wasaki Nobuyuki)	Formerly of Gallop. One of the original production units. Last credited work was Kamisama Minarai: Himitsu no Cocotama. Due to inactivity since 2018, it is assumed this team has disbanded.
OLM TEAM OTA	Shōji Ōta (太田昌二, Ōta Shōji)	Formerly of OB Planning/Pastel. One of the original production units. Disbanded in 2008 following the production of Let's Go! Tamagotchi. Currently production desk for Hanakappa.
OLM TEAM IGUCHI	Noriaki Iguchi (井口憲明, Iguchi Noriaki)	One of the original production units. Disbanded in 2010 following the production of Episode 2 of Pokémon: Diamond and Pearl: Sinnoh League Victors.
OLM TEAM IWASA	Gaku Iwasa (岩佐岳, Iwasa Gaku)	Disbanded and spun off in 2007, establishing the studio White Fox following the production of Utawarerumono.
OLM TEAM KOJIMA	Hiroaki Kojima (児島宏明, Kojima Hiroaki)	Formerly a producer at Diomedéa Disbanded and spun off in 2022, establishing the studio Bug Films^[1] following the production of Summer Time Rendering.
OLM TEAM ABE	Isamu Abe (阿部勇, Abe Isamu)	Formerly a producer at SynergySP. Disbanded in 2022 following the production of Shinkansen Henkei Robo Shinkalion Z. Currently affiliated with KONAMI Animation as of 2024.
OLM TEAM SAKURAI^[d]	Ryōsuke Sakurai (櫻井涼介, Sakurai Ryōsuke)	Formerly a producer at SynergySP. Disbanded in 2019 following the production of Zoids Wild. Remained as Associate Animation Producer for Beyblade Burst Surge up until episode 26. Currently affiliated with East Fish Studio as of 2024.
OLM TEAM KAMEI	Yasuteru Kamei (亀井康輝, Kamei Yasuteru)	Established by a former TEAM KOITABASHI member. Disbanded in 2017 following the production of 100% Pascal-sensei.
OLM TEAM GO	Gō Sawada (澤田剛, Sawada Gō)	Established by a former TEAM KOITABASHI member. Merged into TEAM INOUE following the production of Cardfight!! Vanguard: Shinemon-hen. Remained as a production manager for TEAM INOUE.
OLM TEAM KAWAKITA	Manabu Kawakita (河北学 (Kawakita Manabu)	Established by a former TEAM INOUE member. Partially merged back into TEAM INOUE following the production of Inazuma Eleven: Orion no Kokuin. Remained as a production manager until 2022 when he transferred to AQUASTAR Inc.^[2]
OLM TEAM MIYAGAWA	Keisuke Miyagawa (三宅川敬輔, Miyagawa Keisuke)	Former live-action production unit. Disbanded in 2015 and absorbed into Fuji Creative Corporation (FCC).

tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

^ "Twin Engine Establishes 2 New Anime Studios". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2022-06-25.
^ "河北学 | 株式会社Aquastar".

Studios

Episodes

Duration

Source

Country

Genres

Tags

Related