I am the Entertainment Tycoon

Auditorium, Tokyo Animation Studios, Elffire City.

Hundreds of people could be seen in the stands.

They all had one thing in common.

Their eyes were shining with excitement with the thought that they could finally start working in their dream jobs!

Two weeks ago they got the news that a studio was doing interviews for animator positions.

At first, they were skeptical, but when they heard that in-between animators would earn the salary of keyframe animators, their hopeful hearts started beating faster.

Each one of them chose to take the gamble and come to Elffire City.

And they were grateful to their past selves for taking that decision because what they met in Elffire City was the best studio they could ever hope to work for.

Even the in-between animators had huge privileges.

And everyone had the chance to contribute to the production.

That's why they could not contain their excitement as they waited.

When the clock hit 8 am, they saw Ryoko coming from backstage.

She stood on the stage and looked at them with a smile on her face.

They could not help but admire their new boss, she was always so calm and elegant.

"Good morning! I suppose I should refer to you all as the new employees of this studio." Ryoko started with a gentle smile.

The animators smiled proudly when they heard that.

"I welcome you all to the opening day of the Tokyo Studios!" Ryoko declared.

At that moment, someone started clapping and the rest immediately clapped too.

Thunderous applause sounded throughout the auditorium.

They transformed their excitement into applause, and it showed how much they were looking forward to their new job.

When they stopped clapping, Ryoko smiled and said, "I see everyone is excited about the start of work. I'm glad you all think this way."

"Now, without further ado, I will pass the first assignments to every one of you." She declared with a calm voice.

The animators took a deep breath when they heard that.

They finally would get to know what they would work with.

"Because there are so many of you. We decided to assign teams. So, everyone will be in a team. Whatever position you are." Ryoko informed.

The animators had different reactions when they heard that.

Some were celebrating and some were depressed.

But they all understood why the studio chose to divide them into teams.

With this team system, their work would be more efficient and easier to inspect.

"Here are the division of the teams." She added as she pointed at the big screen behind her.

As soon as she said that, the screen lit up and rolls of people's names could be seen on it.

The animators immediately looked over and searched for their own names.

The disposition of the animators' positions was like this:

In-Between Animators: 400.

Keyframe Animators: 120.

Supervisor Animators: 30.

Editing Team: 50.

Layout and Art Department: 150

Digital Frame Supervisors: 10.

Composition Department: 50.

Special Effect Department: 90.

Each department and position were essential for the production of the anime.

When the animators saw their names, they did not know what to think.

After all, most of them didn't know their teammates, so they had to meet them to develop an opinion about the division of teams.

But some people had ecstatic faces as they saw their names on the screen.

They had different positions in the studio.

From the In-Between Animators until the animators who passed the fourth phase.

That was because these people all had two words attached to their names on the screen.

[TEAM LEADER]

"As you see, every team has a leader. We chose the leaders based on what we saw in the interviews. But if we see that these leaders are slacking off. The leaders will change. So, I recommend to every one of you to work hard. Because if the team leader does not work well, if you do a good job, you can get the position." Ryoko explained with a small smile on her lips.

"And you may be wondering what are the perks of the team leaders." She said as she looked at them.

They indeed were curious to know if the team leaders would get something else.

After all, why would they work hard if there were no rewards?

"Every team leader will get a 5% discount on every product of the cafeteria and grocery store. And the most important perk is that every leader gets the right to participate in the creative meetings of the anime production." Ryoko declared with a playful smile.

She did not believe they wouldn't be excited about the rewards.

And she was right because as soon as she said that, the animators felt their hearts beating faster.

First was the money reward where they could save more money each month.

And the other was that they could participate in the creative meetings!

Every animator there had the dream of participating in these meetings.

These were the meetings where the destiny of the anime would be decided!

If they performed well in these meetings, they could climb higher in the studio!

When the animators who got the team leader positions heard that, they beamed with happiness.

And the others who didn't get the position burned with determination to get the position.

This was Ryoko's idea, and when she told him her idea, he thought it was brilliant.

With this system, everyone would work past their limits to produce their best results.

After all, a competition was the best way of motivating people.

And Ryoko applied that perfectly.

"I believe you also saw the information of where the workstation of every team is. I believe you are all familiarized with the building and you will not need a guide to take you all to the workstations." Ryoko commented.

"But before you guys head to your workstations. I still have two things to say." She added as she looked at the animators.

They paid extra attention when they heard Ryoko saying that.

"First, after we finish here in the auditorium, every team leader will head to Conference Room 1A for the first creative meeting. The rest of the animators will head to the workstations." She informed.

The animators had different reactions when they heard her words.

The team leaders were beaming with happiness to be able to participate in the creative meeting.

The ones more excited were the team leaders chosen from the in-between animators.

After only being able to get in-between animator positions in the interviews, they thought they would be at the bottom of the pyramid.

They never imagined that they would have the privilege of participating in these meetings.

Ryoko knew their feelings, and that's why she chose team leaders among in-between animators.

With this move, she could move the most underestimated position in animation to produce better results.

These animators would earn to perform better and this way the quality of the anime would be secured.

And the candidates who did not have the opportunity of participating in the meeting had stubborn and sad faces.

They wanted so much to be there!

"And second, for the next four months, we will work on only one anime. It is the adaptation of the [Sword Art Online] Novel published by the Fuji Jump. I recommend to the animators who will not participate in the creative meeting to search and read the novel. Even though you will only start working when the team leaders leave the meeting. You can use this time to deepen your knowledge of the novel we will work with." Ryoko declared with a nonchalant and calm face.

The animators had shining eyes when they heard that.

They finally knew which anime they would produce.

Even though most of them did not hear about this novel, they could not wait to read it!

"With that, our meeting here is finished! Team leaders, I will see you in a bit. And to everyone else, I expect great things from you all." Ryoko declared with a gentle smile.

The animators had their hearts beating faster when they heard that.

They could not disappoint their boss!

Ryoko left the stage as the animators walked out of the auditorium.

The studio was finally open for business!

Now was the time for the creative meeting.

What would happen in this meeting?