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Polygon Pictures

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Polygon Pictures
Information
Industry Computer graphics animation
Founded 22 July 1983
Founder Toshifumi Kawahara
Headquarters Minami-Azabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Notable Personnel Shuzo John Shiota (President and CEO)
Products Knights of Sidonia, Ajin, BLAME!, GODZILLA: Planet of the Monsters, Transformers Prime, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (animation), Hop Step Sing! (VR character animation)
Website https://www.ppi.co.jp


Polygon Pictures (officially Polygon Pictures Inc., often shortened to PPI) is a Japanese computer graphics animation studio headquartered in Minami-Azabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo. It was founded on 22 July 1983[1] by Toshifumi Kawahara,[2][3] and its group has about 500 staff across Tokyo, Malaysia and India.[4] The studio is best known for 3DCG anime and television animation such as Knights of Sidonia, Ajin, BLAME!, the anime Godzilla films, Transformers Prime and Star Wars: The Clone Wars.[5][6]

Its VR work includes Hop Step Sing!, a virtual reality idol project that the publisher Kodansha announced in July 2016 with Polygon Pictures as its partner; Steam credits Polygon Pictures as a co-developer of the first releases, and the studio did the character animation for a 2018 song.[7][8][9][10] In October 2017 the two companies set up Kodansha VR Lab, a joint venture for VR and AR content in which Polygon Pictures holds 30 percent.[11] The studio also designed the main character of the VR rhythm game Airtone (2017).[12]

Reviewed 11 October 2026. Company history, executives, shareholders, group companies and all VR credits checked against PPI official pages, Steam store data and the cited press articles. About review dates.

History

Founding and early CG work (1983-1998)

Polygon Pictures was founded in Minami Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo, on 22 July 1983.[1] In a 2023 interview, president Shuzo John Shiota said that Kawahara started the company without significant funding and that, although it was presented as a CG studio, it did not have a graphics workstation until about five years after its founding.[3] Shiota told CGWORLD that the studio installed its first SGI workstation in 1988 with investment from Namco chairman Masaya Nakamura, and that Kawahara then launched the "Big Bang Project".[2] The project developed MESOZOIC, CG software that supports skeletons, and the studio's work was shown at SIGGRAPH for the first time in 1989.[1][3]

In 1993 its CG dinosaur "Michael" appeared in a television commercial and, according to the company, became the first CG media personality with a television contract. Its rockhopper penguin characters Rocky and Hopper debuted in a television commercial in 1995 and were licensed for toys, clothing and other merchandise.[1]

Television animation and international work (1999-2013)

Taisuke Sasanuma became CEO in 1999, and Shiota, who had joined the company two years after taking part in the 1997 launch of Dream Pictures Studio, became president and CEO in 2003.[1][13] In 2000 the studio began the fully CG television series Mr. Digital Tokoro (245 episodes), and in 2001 it began a full-scale expansion into the United States market.[1] Shiota said that after it won production of Disney Television Animation's My Friends Tigger & Pooh in 2005, the studio became a regular producer of episodic television.[3] Its later television work included Transformers Prime (a 39th Daytime Emmy Award winner), Tron: Uprising (a 40th Annie Award winner) and Star Wars: The Clone Wars (a 40th Daytime Emmy Award winner).[6]

In 2011 Polygon Pictures formed a capital and business alliance with Amana Holdings, and in 2013 it set up the Malaysian joint venture studio Silver Ant PPI Sdn. Bhd.[1]

Anime production and VR ventures (2014 onward)

In 2014 Polygon Pictures Holdings and King Record became the company's majority shareholders.[1] The same year the studio returned to the Japanese market with the anime Knights of Sidonia, followed by productions such as BLAME!.[3] By 2017 it was also known for the Ajin television series and film trilogy and was working on the Godzilla anime film trilogy.[5]

In 2022 the company made Silver Ant PPI a subsidiary and renamed it Polygon Pictures Malaysia Sdn. Bhd.; a wholly owned Indian subsidiary, Polygon Studios India Private Limited, had been established in 2021.[1] The company marked its 40th anniversary in 2023.[1]

Current status

As of October 2026 the company fact sheet lists capital of 100,000,000 yen, Polygon Pictures Holdings Inc. and King Record Co., Ltd. as major stockholders, about 350 employees (about 500 across the group), and Shuzo John Shiota as president and CEO.[14] Its recent works include Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and Star Wars: Visions Volume 3,[15] and on 21 August 2026 it announced that it is handling animation production for the original anime series Maiden Blood, slated for release in 2027.[16]

Group companies

The company fact sheet lists these related companies:[14]

Company Relationship Established Business
Polygon Pictures Malaysia Sdn Bhd Subsidiary 2 January 2013 Computer graphics production
Polygon Studios India Private Limited Subsidiary 16 July 2021 Computer graphics production
Kodansha VR Lab, Ltd. Corporate joint venture October 2017 Planning, production and licensing of digital content such as VR/AR, videos and games
Elementfactory, Inc. Affiliate 4 January 2018 Production and development of next generation 3D models

XR work

Hop Step Sing!

Kodansha announced Hop Step Sing! in July 2016 as an idol music project made for virtual reality, with Polygon Pictures as its partner, character designs by tanu, music by Yashikin and music production by Lantis. Anime Herald reported that the first music video, "Kisekiteki Shining!", would come to smartphone VR apps first, with later versions planned for Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Gear VR.[7] Polygon Pictures describes the group as having debuted in 2016 with that VR content.[8]

On Steam, the first "HQ Edition" releases list Kodansha, Polygon Pictures Inc. and Lantis as developers. From the 2018 single "Nozokanaide Naked Heart" onward, Steam credits Kodansha VR Lab instead; for that release, planning and direction came from Kodansha VR Lab and character animation from Polygon Pictures, with in-scene audio mixed using Ambisonics.[8][10]

Title Steam release Developers credited on Steam Polygon Pictures role
Hop Step Sing! Kisekiteki Shining! (HQ Edition) 29 June 2017 Kodansha, Polygon Pictures Inc., Lantis Co-developer[9]
Hop Step Sing! kiss×kiss×kiss (HQ Edition) 29 June 2017 Kodansha, Polygon Pictures Inc., Lantis Co-developer[17]
Hop Step Sing! Kimamani☆Summer vacation (HQ Edition) 17 August 2017 Kodansha, Polygon Pictures Inc., Lantis Co-developer[18]
Hop Step Sing! Nozokanaide Naked Heart (HQ Edition) 10 September 2018 Kodansha, Kodansha VR Lab, Lantis Character animation[8][10]

Kodansha VR Lab

Polygon Pictures and Kodansha announced Kodansha VR Lab, Ltd. on 27 October 2017 as a joint venture for "a new generation of storytelling, making use of VR, AR, and other cutting-edge technologies". It was capitalized at 10,000,000 yen, owned 70 percent by Kodansha and 30 percent by Polygon Pictures, and led at launch by CEO Hiroaki Morita; the announcement said it would target a worldwide market from the start.[11][19] Anime News Network noted that Kodansha's VR content team had previously worked with Polygon Pictures on Hop Step Sing!.[5] As of October 2026 the Polygon Pictures fact sheet and the lab's own site list Kenji Ishimaru as its CEO.[14][20]

The lab's own productions include the VR animation Last Dance (2020, directed by Nobuaki Hanzaki and released on Viveport and Steam)[21] and Thank you for sharing your world (2022), which was nominated in the VR competition of the 2022 Kaohsiung Film Festival.[22] In April 2026 the lab released Atsushi Wada's VR film IF YOU SEE A CAT on Steam and Meta's store.[20] These sources credit the lab, not Polygon Pictures, with these later works.

Airtone

Airtone is an air rhythm action game made in Unreal Engine 4 for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. It was developed by Historia and distributed by Amusement Media Academy; its main character, Neon, was designed by Polygon Pictures character designer Yuki Moriyama, whose earlier credits include BLAME!, Ajin: Demi-Human and Knights of Sidonia.[12][23] Steam lists its release date as 8 June 2017.[24]

Elementfactory

On 4 January 2018 Polygon Pictures Holdings, the studio's primary shareholder, and Historia founded Elementfactory, Inc. to produce 3D CG models that can be reused across media; the announcement named games, VR and events among the media that share content and said the company would build models for Unreal Engine.[25] Mogura VR reported that the company would build an asset production system for games and VR works.[23]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 "History - About Us". Polygon Pictures. https://www.ppi.co.jp/en/about/history/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "第 8 回：塩田周三（ポリゴン・ピクチュアズ代表取締役、プロデューサー） - 日本にフルCGアニメは根付くのか？". CGWORLD.jp. https://cgworld.jp/regular/008-shiota.html. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Ramin Zahed (2023-09-05). "Polygon Pictures: Celebrating a Japanese Powerhouse at 40". Animation Magazine. https://www.animationmagazine.net/2023/09/polygon-pictures-celebrating-a-japanese-powerhouse-at-40/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  4. ↑ "Overview - About Us". Polygon Pictures. https://www.ppi.co.jp/en/about/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Crystalyn Hodgkins (2017-10-27). "Kodansha, Polygon Pictures Establish 'Kodansha VR Lab' VR Company". Anime News Network. https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2017-10-27/kodansha-polygon-pictures-establish-kodansha-vr-lab-vr-company/.123287. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Polygon Pictures Announces HARUKAS WINDOW, An Exclusive App for ABENO HARUKAS Observatory (HARUKAS 300)". Polygon Pictures. 2014-03-05. https://www.ppi.co.jp/news/press_release20140305abenoharukas/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Samantha Ferreira (2016-07-17). "Kodansha and Polygon Pictures Create "Hop Step Sing!" VR Idol Project". Anime Herald. https://www.animeherald.com/2016/07/17/kodansha-polygon-create-hop-step-sing-vr-idol-project/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 "Hop Step Sing! - Works". Polygon Pictures. https://www.ppi.co.jp/en/works/hopstepsing/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Hop Step Sing! Kisekiteki Shining! (HQ Edition) on Steam". Steam. Valve. https://store.steampowered.com/app/538000/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 "Hop Step Sing! Nozokanaide Naked Heart (HQ Edition) on Steam". Steam. Valve. https://store.steampowered.com/app/929120/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Polygon Pictures and Kodansha Announce Joint Venture: Kodansha VR Lab, Planning and Production of Revolutionary VR-focused Content". Polygon Pictures. 2017-10-27. https://www.ppi.co.jp/news/ppipr20171027_vr-lab/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Official Site Opened for VR Game Airtone, with Character Design by Polygon Pictures!". Polygon Pictures. 2017-03-07. https://www.ppi.co.jp/news/ppipr20170307_airtone/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  13. ↑ "President's Message - About Us". Polygon Pictures. https://www.ppi.co.jp/en/about/message/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 "Company Fact Sheet - About Us". Polygon Pictures. https://www.ppi.co.jp/en/about/factsheet/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  15. ↑ "Awards - About Us". Polygon Pictures. https://www.ppi.co.jp/en/about/awards/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  16. ↑ "Polygon Pictures Announces its Latest TV Anime Series "Maiden Blood" Slated for 2027 Release". Polygon Pictures. 2026-08-21. https://www.ppi.co.jp/en/news/ppipress20260821/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  17. ↑ "Hop Step Sing! kiss×kiss×kiss (HQ Edition) on Steam". Steam. Valve. https://store.steampowered.com/app/646530/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  18. ↑ "Hop Step Sing! Kimamani☆Summer vacation (HQ Edition) on Steam". Steam. Valve. https://store.steampowered.com/app/689710/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  19. ↑ "講談社とポリゴン･ピクチュアズ「株式会社講談社VRラボ」を設立…世界市場をターゲットとした企画も". gamebiz. 2017-10-30. https://gamebiz.jp/news/196582. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 "Kodansha VR Lab". Kodansha VR Lab, Ltd.. https://www.kodanshavrlab.com/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  21. ↑ 待場勝利, 玉置淳 (2021-05-15). "【VR映画ガイド第48回】講談社VRラボが仕掛けたVR映画の底力". MoguLive. https://www.moguravr.com/?p=145761. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  22. ↑ 浅田カズラ (2022-08-25). "講談社VRラボのVRアニメが、台湾の国際映画祭にノミネート 盲目の少年が想像する美しい世界を描く". MoguLive. https://www.moguravr.com/?p=192456. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 みたらし (2018-01-10). "ヒストリアとポリゴン･ピクチュアズ 3Dモデル制作会社を新設 VR向けアセット等制作". Mogura VR. https://www.moguravr.com/?p=64870. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  24. ↑ "Airtone on Steam". Steam. Valve. https://store.steampowered.com/app/631900/Airtone/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
  25. ↑ "Polygon Pictures Holdings partners with expert Unreal Engine game developer Historia to found joint venture company "Elementfactory, Inc."". Polygon Pictures. 2018-01-10. https://www.ppi.co.jp/news/ppipr20180110/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
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