MARZA ANIMATION PLANET
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET is a Tokyo-based CG animation studio (wholly-owned by Sega Co., Ltd., ~150 staff) that produces full 3DCG feature films, streaming series, game cinematics, and virtual concert visuals for global IP holders including Paramount Pictures, Netflix, Capcom, and Crypton Future Media, with a Hollywood-facing subsidiary in Burbank.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersHigashi-shinagawa, Japan
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What MARZA ANIMATION PLANET does
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET INC. is a Tokyo-based CG animation studio founded on January 21, 2005, and currently operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sega Co., Ltd. within the Sega Sammy Holdings group. The company produces full-length 3DCG animated feature films, television series, streaming content, game cinematics, and real-time virtual concert visuals, serving global entertainment IP holders including Paramount Pictures (Sonic the Hedgehog franchise), Netflix, Capcom (Resident Evil: Vendetta), TMS Entertainment (Lupin III: The First), Tonko House (ONI), and Crypton Future Media (Hatsune Miku). MARZA employs approximately 150 staff at its Tennozu Isle headquarters in Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, supplemented by a wholly-owned US subsidiary (MARZA ANIMATION PLANET USA INC.) in Burbank, California, which functions as a Hollywood-facing story development hub.
The studio's production technology stack is built on industry-standard CG tools (Autodesk Maya, SideFX Houdini, Arnold renderer, Unity) layered with proprietary MARZA-developed plugins including ShapeMeshing and Time Filter (Maya tools created by Technical Director Brent Forrest) and the MARZA Movie Pipeline for Unity, co-developed with Unity Technologies to enable real-time rendering of CG animation. Selected pipeline components (Alembic Importer/Exporter, FrameCapturer) are released as open source under MIT license, signaling ecosystem engagement. Revenue is generated primarily through project-based CG animation production contracts with major studios and IP holders, supplemented by copyright and licensing revenue, occasional co-production participation in commercial returns (notably the Sonic franchise), and original content creation for global distribution via theatrical, streaming, and broadcast channels. Production fees are negotiated per project and are not publicly disclosed; the company's financials are not separately reported as it is a private subsidiary within Sega Sammy Holdings.
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- MARZA ANIMATION PLANET
- Legal name
- マーザ・アニメーションプラネット株式会社
- Website
- https://marza.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- MARZA ANIMATION PLANET is a Tokyo-based CG animation studio (wholly-owned by Sega Co., Ltd., ~150 staff) that produces full 3DCG feature films, streaming series, game cinematics, and virtual concert visuals for global IP holders including Paramount Pictures, Netflix, Capcom, and Crypton Future Media, with a Hollywood-facing subsidiary in Burbank.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET industry classification
Industry- Product category
- CG Animation Production Services
- NAICS
- Motion Picture and Video Production (512110)
- SIC
- Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Animated Series Production (TV/Streaming) (MPADACAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- CG Simulation & FX (Fluids, Fire/Smoke, Destruction, Crowds) (MPAHABAF), Animation Production (2D/3D/Stop-Motion) (MPAAAMAD), Physics, Animation & Character Tech Middleware (MPAFAFAC)
Keywords
Where MARZA ANIMATION PLANET is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Higashi-shinagawa
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices2 records
Markets served
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- CG Animation Production Services: MARZA generates revenue primarily through CG animation film and video production contracts. The company produces full-length CG films, television series, streaming content, game cinematics, and virtual concert visuals for external clients and IP holders. Revenue is earned as project-based production fees, with some co-production arrangements where the studio participates in a film's commercial returns.
- Copyright and Licensing Revenue: MARZA earns revenue from copyright management, derivative rights, and merchandise licensing associated with original productions and co-produced works. The company also engages in intellectual property rights sales and licensing as part of its business.
- Original Content Production: MARZA develops and produces original CG animation content (e.g., 'THE PEAK', 'Samurai Frog Golf', 'Robodog') internally, with the aim of global distribution and monetization through theatrical releases, streaming licensing, and merchandise.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET product offering
Product offeringCore offering
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET is a Tokyo-based CG animation studio that produces full-length 3DCG animated feature films, television series, game cinematics, and real-time virtual concert visuals for global entertainment clients. The studio provides end-to-end production services—from story development and modeling to final render—using proprietary tools including ShapeMeshing, Time Filter, and the MARZA Movie Pipeline for Unity co-developed with Unity Technologies. Its work is distributed through theatrical, streaming (Netflix), and broadcast channels for IP holders such as Sega, Paramount Pictures, Capcom, Toei Animation, TBS, and Happy Elements.
Product overview
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET is a Tokyo-based CG animation studio under Sega Sammy Holdings offering comprehensive animation production services including full-length 3DCG theatrical films (Sonic movies, Lupin III: The First, Resident Evil: Vendetta, たべっ子どうぶつ THE MOVIE), television series (こねこのチー series, ONI), and short films (THE PEAK, THE GIFT, Samurai Frog Golf). The company provides virtual live concert visuals for virtual pop idols (初音ミク, あんさんぶるスターズ！！), game cinematics production, and VR/AR content. MARZA operates proprietary technology including ShapeMeshing and Time Filter (Maya tools), and co-developed MARZA Movie Pipeline for Unity. Their productions are distributed through theatrical release, Netflix, and various streaming platforms. The studio also offers LINE stamp and emoji products for their character IPs.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- 3DCG Animation Film Production Full-length 3DCG animation movie production for theatrical release, including planning, production, and distribution for film studios and IP holders.
- 3DCG Animation TV Series Production 3DCG television animation series production for broadcast and streaming platforms, including episodic content production.
- Game Cinematics Production CG cinematics, cutscene production, and real-time rendered content for video game titles, including trailers and in-game visuals.
- Virtual Live Concert Visuals Real-time graphics and CG visuals for virtual idol concerts and live events, including Hatsune Miku and Ensemble Stars!! DREAM LIVE performances.
- VR/AR Content Production Real-time graphics production for VR attractions and immersive experiences.
- MARZA Movie Pipeline for Unity Jointly developed workflow with Unity Technologies enabling high-quality real-time rendering using Unity engine for film production. Includes Alembic Importer, Skin Shader, Eye Shader, Fake Fur Shader, and Frame Capture for OpenEXR output.
- ShapeMeshing Maya Tool Proprietary modeling and animation tool developed by Technical Director Brent Forrest for Autodesk Maya, used for water effects and character animation.
Quantifiable outcome
- 『Sonic the Hedgehog』 (2020) achieved record-breaking box office of approximately $146 million worldwide, setting a new record for video game-adapted films at the time of release
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use MARZA ANIMATION PLANET
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
AI capability5 records
Feature3 records
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and minor.
- Crypton Future Media株式会社coreMARZA has a longstanding relationship (over 10 years) producing virtual concert visuals and music video content for Hatsune Miku and other virtual idol properties managed by Crypton. Recent work includes 3D music video production for Project Sekai Colorful Stage's 5th anniversary song 'Pentatonic'.
- Happy Elements株式会社coreMARZA and Happy Elements strengthened their cooperation to establish a dedicated project team within MARZA for producing 3D live concert visuals for 'Ensemble Stars!! DREAM LIVE' (StarSri). MARZA has been producing CG video content for Ensemble Stars!! DREAM LIVE since the 1st tour in 2017, and the strengthened partnership aims to expand production capacity and deliver higher quality live content. The dedicated team will enable faster and more stable production of idol concert visuals.
- Tonko HousecoreMARZA served as production partner (handling approximately 60% of animation work) for the Netflix series 'ONI ~ Kamigami-yama no Oni ~'. MARZA was one of three production partners alongside Megalis VFX and Anime. The series won two Annie Awards including Best Animated Television/Broadcast Production (Limited Series).
- XFLAG (mixi, Inc.)coreMARZA produced the XFLAG original short animation 'XPICE (エクスパイス)' for XFLAG ANIME YouTube channel. MARZA's director Tsugumi Nakai directed the piece, and Unity game engine was used for production. The collaboration produced a stylized short with music by SCANDAL and character design by Spooky Graphic.
- 東映アニメーション株式会社 (Toei Animation)coreMARZA co-produced 'Lupin III: The First' with TMS Entertainment and Toei Animation (as production committee member). This was the first 3DCG Lupin film directed by Takashi Yamazaki, won Japan Academy Prize, and was nominated for Annecy International Animation Film Festival 2020.
- Paramount Pictures CorporationcoreMARZA served as planning/producing and CG animation production partner for the Sonic the Hedgehog film series. MARZA handled full CG shots and partial VFX shots for the theatrical releases. The Sonic films achieved record-breaking global box office results.
- SideFXsupportingMARZA's work has been featured in SideFX's official Houdini demo reel, including Tabekko Dobutsu THE MOVIE and Sonic Racing Cross World content.
- Unity Technologies Japan ( unity3d-jp )coreMARZA co-developed the 'MARZA Movie Pipeline for Unity' with Unity Technologies Japan, enabling full Unity-rendered CG animation production. This included development of Alembic Importer, Skin Shader, Eye Shader, Fake Fur Shader, and Frame Capture tools. Key features were released as open-source (MIT license) for the developer community, including Alembic Importer/Exporter and FrameCapturer.
- 株式会社カプコン (Capcom)coreMARZA produced the full CG animated feature 'BIOHAZARD: VENDETTA' (2017) for Capcom. This was a complete reboot of the CG animation series with new creative staff including Takashi Shimizu (The Grudge) as executive producer and Takayuki Tsujimoto directing. The film was distributed worldwide.
- 株式会社日本航空 (JAL)minorMARZA produces original content including promotional videos for science education events. Collaboration with Tokyo University of Science for Science Fes 2024 in Oita prefecture.
- Autodesk JapansupportingMARZA uses Autodesk Maya as a core production tool. Technical Director Brent Forrest developed ShapeMeshing and Time Filter as Maya plugins. MARZA staff have presented at Autodesk Day 2025.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights6 records
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Framestore: Framestore is a global VFX/animation studio (Gravity, Paddington, His Dark Materials) overlapping with MARZA in CG feature work and immersive virtual content. A broader incumbent competing for high-end global CG commissions.
- Industrial Light & Magic (ILM): ILM is a global VFX and animation powerhouse (Star Wars, Marvel, Jurassic World) and competes with MARZA for Hollywood feature-film CG/VFX shot work. It is a broader incumbent rather than a Japan-specialized peer.
- Production I.G: Production I.G is one of Japan's largest and longest-established animation studios (Ghost in the Shell, Psycho-Pass, Haikyu!!). It is a broader incumbent with hybrid 2D/3DCG capabilities and similar global IP-holder relationships.
Direct peers
- Polygon Pictures: Polygon Pictures is a Tokyo-based CG animation studio of comparable scale that produces theatrical films, streaming series, and game cinematics — closely mirroring MARZA's production-services-plus-IP business model and leveraging Japanese studios for global distribution.
- OLM (Oriental Light and Magic): OLM is one of Japan's largest and most established CG animation studios (Pokémon, Yo-kai Watch, Inazuma Eleven). It is a national peer for high-volume CG animation production and competes with MARZA for IP-driven franchise work.
- Trigger: Studio Trigger is a Tokyo-based animation studio (Promare, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, BNA) known for highly stylized 3DCG-augmented series. It competes with MARZA for streaming platform commissions and global festival-circuit prestige.
- Orange: Orange is a Japanese 3DCG animation studio known for Berserk, Land of the Lustrous, and Trigun Stampede. It competes head-to-head with MARZA for premium 3DCG anime series commissions from global streaming platforms like Netflix and Crunchyroll.
- MAPPA: MAPPA is a major Japanese animation studio producing high-profile anime series (Jujutsu Kaisen, Attack on Titan Final Season, Chainsaw Man). It is a comparable for premium anime production at scale, including 3DCG work.
- Science SARU: Science SARU is a Tokyo-based animation studio (Devilman Crybaby, Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken, The Colors Within) producing hybrid 2D/3DCG content for streaming platforms. It competes for the same pool of Netflix/anime-original commissions as MARZA.
- Studio Colorido: Studio Colorido is a Tokyo-based animation studio producing both 2D and 3DCG content (A Whisker Away, Drifting Home) for Netflix and theatrical distributors. It is a direct comparable for streaming-first 3DCG feature/series commissions.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET social profiles
Digital presenceMARZA ANIMATION PLANET financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about MARZA ANIMATION PLANET
What does MARZA ANIMATION PLANET do?
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET is a Tokyo-based CG animation studio that produces full-length 3DCG animated feature films, television series, game cinematics, and real-time virtual concert visuals for global entertainment clients. The studio provides end-to-end production services—from story development and modeling to final render—using proprietary tools including ShapeMeshing, Time Filter, and the MARZA Movie Pipeline for Unity co-developed with Unity Technologies. Its work is distributed through theatrical, streaming (Netflix), and broadcast channels for IP holders such as Sega, Paramount Pictures, Capcom, Toei Animation, TBS, and Happy Elements.
Is MARZA ANIMATION PLANET a public or private company?
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was MARZA ANIMATION PLANET founded?
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET was founded in 2005. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is MARZA ANIMATION PLANET based?
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET is headquartered in Higashi-shinagawa, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does MARZA ANIMATION PLANET make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. CG Animation Production Services are the primary driver. The others are copyright and Licensing Revenue and original Content Production.
Who are MARZA ANIMATION PLANET's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Framestore, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) and Production I.G. Direct peers are Polygon Pictures, OLM (Oriental Light and Magic), Trigger, Orange, MAPPA, Science SARU and Studio Colorido.
Does MARZA ANIMATION PLANET have an API?
No public API is recorded for MARZA ANIMATION PLANET.
What industry is MARZA ANIMATION PLANET in?
MARZA ANIMATION PLANET's product category is CG Animation Production Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPADACAG, Animated Series Production (TV/Streaming), with a secondary code of MPAHABAF, CG Simulation & FX (Fluids, Fire/Smoke, Destruction, Crowds). Its NAICS code is 512110 and its SIC code is 7812.