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Every KyoAni star among the deceased - the legend behind their animation philosophy, their warmest director, the ace animator whose designs were integral to many work's texture, veterans in art&painting departments - hurts as much as the newcomers we couldn't grow acquainted with
The truly irreparable tragedy is every personal loss. Don't forget that. Having seen many member's adamant refusal to give up to give up though, it seems important to start talking about KyoAni's future. In a non-fatalistic way but also without shying away from the issues
KyoAni operates in different ways than any other anime studio. Many unique features make them a much better workplace - objectively so in terms of working conditions, but also due to its family-like atmosphere. Other differences are more akin to quirks, but still set them apart
And that confuses people. Just yesterday, an industry member made a remark about KyoAni having no production assistants (whom are just called managers in their works) which rubbed involved parties the wrong way. If creators can screw up like that, imagine careless writers & fans
One of the more fundamental differences is that status as an oasis, technically within the anime industry but not really connected to it anymore. *Every other major anime studio* works in other companies' productions, be it through proper subcontracting or via individual support
But not modern KyoAni. Their staff are full-time employees who only work on their titles - something that's only feasible because of those living wages at the studio, which don't force them to seek other work. Anytime someone sneaked out it was under a pseudonym to help a friend
And I mean "KyoAni staff only work on KyoAni titles" quite literally. Most of their members have only *ever* worked on their anime. While the studio's been around for nearly four decades, the average age is very young because training new artists has always been a main goal
KyoAni's recruitment is usually limited to people under 25 years so most join right after university. Some of them first attend the KyoAni school first: a pro training course where the studios's veteran staff mentor them for 1/2 years - teaching technique & work philosophy alike
As a result of this training & dedication, KyoAni's staff are very good at making anime - whenever one leaves to become freelance they manage to surprise their new coworkers, even those that weren't famous beforehand. But most importantly, they excel at making *KyoAni anime*
Having a studio with an actual creative ethos, instilled in new generations of artists for decades and extending way beyond whatever project they're working on is great! One of the keys to their unique success. And yet it also means there's no easy fix to this disaster
KyoAni can't go recruit many talented veterans now, not just because it's not feasible, but because they're a special team that can only be reconstructed as carefully as it was made. The studio won't need manpower, they'll need creators trained under their unique philosophy again
Their lawyer must have had that in mind when he said they'll need about a dozen times the already generous sum of donations: there's extended care for burn injuries & family support ofc, but also the slow rebuilding of the studio. Keep helping if you can, now and in the future
When it comes to the exact measures they'll take moving forward, nothing seems set in stone yet, as you might imagine. For once, there's a unique side to KyoAni that you might have heard about - they're the one anime studio that does essentially everything in-house, always
Between the multiple locations in Kyoto, their Animation Do branch in Osaka, and ST BLUE (Anivillage in the past) in Korea, they handle all the direction work, animation, painting, and largely the tasks that studios don't always do like compositing, backgrounds, etc
(There are exceptions to this rule such as minor in-betweening & painting assistance when heavy theatrical productions overlapped with other works, or assistance with the BG art on even-numbered eps, but they're simple curiosities at the end of the day)
Will they be able to keep that up after a brutal attack that decimated their workforce? Not with ease. They're likely going to need some more outside help for a while, though I don't see them compromising their independence either since it's core to the studio's identity
Since president Hatta's so resolute on not giving up, and staff members so against wasting their friends' efforts, I can't really imagine them ditching all these things that make KyoAni special, even if change is necessary. It'll continue to be painful but believe in all of them. 
