How much does it cost to produce one episode of "Rick and Morty"?

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• According to Masamune Sakaki, a CG creator in the anime industry, an average 13-episode anime season costs around 250 million yen (or $2 million).
• He also made it clear that most anime can’t recoup this expense, and the industry relies on the windfall of a few big hits.
• In a July interview, Takayuki Nagatani, producer of Shirobako, claimed that his show cost 500 million yen (or $4 million) for 24 episodes.
• Shinji Takamatsu, a veteran animator, cited a figure of 150 to 200 million yen ($1.2 to $1.6 million) for an anime.
• According to an investigation by the Media Development Research Institute Inc., a 30-minute episode of a TV anime in 2010 that totaled 11,000,000 yen (about US $145,214 at the current exchange rate) consisted of the following expenses:
  • Original work - 50,000 yen ($660)
  • Script - 200,000 yen ($2,640)
  • Episode Direction - 500,000 yen ($6,600)
  • Production - 2 million yen ($26,402)
  • Key Animation Supervision - 250,000 yen ($3,300)
  • Key Animation - 1.5 million yen ($19,801)
  • In-betweening - 1.1 million yen ($14,521)
  • Finishing - 1.2 million yen ($15,841)
  • Art (backgrounds) - 1.2 million yen ($15,841)
  • Photography - 700,000 yen ($9,240)
  • Sound - 1.2 million yen ($15,841)
  • Materials - 400,000 yen ($5,280)
  • Editing - 200,000 yen ($2,640)
  • Printing - 500,000 yen ($6,600)
• Voice acting is likely to be one of the significant expenses, although it’s not certain how much this would cost, given that many of the shows’ budgets are not public.
• It’s a risk to make TV adaptations because the studios don’t know how well they will perform domestically and internationally, and it’s not unusual for studios to become bankrupt after making a failed show domestically, even if it did well internationally.
• It could cost a fortune to produce an anime, and

• The discussion is about how animated TV shows make money and the cost of production
• The original poster was surprised to find out that an episode of Adventure Time took 8-9 months to produce, and other users on Reddit are discussing how the show, and other similar ones, make money.
• One user mentions that Cartoon Network cancels shows that are not profitable in terms of sellable merchandise (such as toys, clothing, and accessories) and revenue from streaming and advertising.
• Another user mentions that TV shows do not make money directly, but the networks that own them can use the show in many ways to generate profits, including licensing deals, merchandise sales, and advertising revenue.
• They also mention that the cost of producing animation varies and is not fixed for each episode.
• It’s suggested that the time and cost for each episode is not always the same. One team can work on multiple episodes simultaneously, and some parts of the animation work, such as keyframes, can be outsourced to animation studios in Korea and China. However, communication and coordination issues can increase the turnaround time considerably.
• One user suggests that in general, shows that are more popular and have higher ratings will earn more revenue from advertising, which can help offset the cost of the show.
• Many users mention merchandising as a crucial source of revenue for these types of shows. Adventure Time, for example, has games, backpacks, t-shirts, novelty gadgets, and other merchandising opportunities that can help offset the show’s high production costs.
• However, merchandise sales will generally depend on the popularity of the show. Shows with a cult following may not sell much merch, while more mainstream shows can expect a higher volume of merchandise sales.
• It’s pointed out that animated shows like Adventure Time and Rick and Morty may be cheaper to produce than live-action shows in some cases. The animation process, while time-consuming, can be less expensive, especially if some of the work can be outsourced to other countries.

• According to an article from Crunchyroll, it costs 11 million yen (about $145,000) to produce one episode of Japanese anime.
• In comparison, according to an article on Lineboil, an episode of an average American animation costs $532,000.
• The Simpsons cost $2,000,000 per episode in 2007.
• The per-episode average cost of The Simpsons is driven up by lucrative contracts with key actors.
• The animation on The Simpsons is mostly done by a Korean animation company, not a Japanese one.
• In Japan, the work force of animators is smaller, consisting of a few key animators who work longer hours to produce more frames for the animation.
• A managerial animator is needed to make sure the style is the same.
• Older animations are often hand-drawn and then scanned, which is cheaper than creating computer animations.
• Japanese animators can create more frames per day than American animators, so the cost per day is lower.
• Animations tend to take more “shortcuts” - frames without any movement are a lot more frequent than in Western animation.
• A significant difference between anime and Western animation is the way in which mouth flaps are done in anime, which can cut down on time and cost.
• An anime called Golden Boy had an episode showing the life of an animation team, and showed how few people are needed just for animation in Japan.

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• The article is about the most expensive animated TV series ever made.
• TV has become expensive in recent years, with some episodes of shows like “Lost” and “Sense8” costing upwards of $10 million, and seasons of “Game of Thrones” costing up to $90 million.
• Animated shows have also seen an increase in production costs over the last 20 years.
• Some of the most expensive animated TV series of all time had production costs of over $1 million per episode.
• “Father of the Pride” was an early, big-budget animated program from NBC. It was a costly mistake, being canceled before the first season was finished production. One episode of the show cost up to $2 million to make.
• “The Simpsons” is one of the longest-running animated series of all time and also happens to be one of the most expensive. Top voice actors Dan Castellaneta, Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer make $400,000 each per episode for their work voicing a majority of the characters across Springfield, putting the show’s budget at $1.2 million per episode, not accounting for the cost of animation.
• “Family Guy” is another extremely popular animated show that has come to rely on a consistent voice cast. In 2013, the top-paid voice cast of the animated sitcom negotiated for new salaries in the range of $175,000-$225,000 per episode. This puts the cost of a single episode at the minimum of around $1 million.
• “South Park” was a relatively cheap project when it began, costing between $500,000 and $1 million per episode back in 2008. Nowadays, the cost of an episode of the show has likely increased.
• “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” had a budget of around $1 million per episode, which was unprecedented in 2008.
• “One Piece” is believed to be one of the most expensive anime shows produced, with a budget of around $100,000 per episode.
• The lead voice actors of “Dragon Ball” make a lot of money per year, with Masako Nozawa making approximately $360,000 per year and Ryo Horikawa making approximately $270,000 per year.
• The cost of an episode of a TV show can be impacted by a variety of factors, including cutting-edge animation technology and salary demands of a popular voice cast.

Notes:

• The webpage is a Reddit post on the Over the Garden Wall subreddit.
• The post is titled “How Much Does an Episode Cost to Make?” and is tagged with “Discussion”.
• The post was created 7 years ago and has received 15 points.
• One of the comments in the post suggests that most 11-minute cartoons cost around $500,000 to produce per episode.
• Another comment disputes the claim that the cost per episode of Over the Garden Wall could be as high as $100,000, arguing that animators are typically salaried employees or inexpensive overseas contractors.
• Some users suggest that the cost of animation is only a fraction of the total cost of producing an animated show, as voice acting, music, marketing, and other factors also contribute to the budget.
• One user speculates that the cost per episode of Rick and Morty may vary depending on factors such as the level of detail and complexity in the animation, the salaries of the voice actors, and the production schedule.
• Some users mention that Rick and Morty has higher production values than some other animated shows, which may drive up the cost per episode.
• Others note that the show’s popularity and success on streaming platforms may offset the production costs.
• Some users comment on the difficulty of quantifying the cost of producing an episode of any show, since there are many variables that can impact the budget.

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• A Reddit user asks how much it might cost to make an episode of Chicago PD, Fire, and Med.
• A user comments that Fire is more expensive to produce because its cast is larger and there are more practical effects.
• Another user guesses that these shows cost around $4-5 million per episode to produce due to on-location shooting, stunts, and practical effects.
• An estimation from a previous post about The Blacklist says that it cost about $4 million an episode to produce.
• A user thinks that if the show were on a network like CW, it would only cost about $2 million per episode.
• One redditor comments on the show producers “robbing the budget,” while another praises the Chicago franchise’s plot and ideas.

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• The cost of producing a single episode of an animated show depends on several factors and can vary greatly.
• Production and post-production costs are a significant part of the expenses.
• 3D animation requires a lot of technical skill, patience, and can take years to master.
• Hand-drawn animation is a different animal. It also requires a lot of pre and post-production work, and animation expertise is not cheap.
• A whole team of animators may take over a week to animate a single scene.
• The processing power required to render an animation is enormous. It can take four minutes or more for a single frame to render for production.
• Voice talent is another major factor that can significantly impact the costs. Salaries can increase dramatically, especially if the show becomes a runaway hit.
• The voice actors of “Family Guy” were reportedly making an average of $300k per episode in its peak.
• Writers and showrunners don’t always have a clear idea of what they want. This can lead to unclear storyboarding and minimal instructions for turning the writing and basic idea into a finished episode.
• Animators may have to start again or make significant changes to the arc and flow of the story.
• Last-minute changes can complicate things for the animators, and they may have to work longer hours to get everything done.
• Anyone who thinks that creating a fully rendered, production-ready piece with motion timed to voice, professionally produced, and acted in a matter of days is probably wrong.
• A lot of work goes into each and every episode by dozens of people that viewers never see or hear about.
• Voice actors are entitled to a fair cut of the profits if the show is highly successful, which explains the other big reason for skyrocketing episode costs.
• A single episode of a popular animated series like “Family Guy” can run $2 million or even more per episode.
• The animation industry is an extremely competitive one, and many people spend years making minimal pay before landing a job on a breakout series like “Family Guy”.

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Comparison of production costs between seasons

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Detailed production costs breakdown for the TV show 'Rick and Morty'