Graphic Design Jobs in Japan

i have been designing in japan for the last 5 years. i came over and unable to find design work i took up teaching and then through a local english mag found a design job, have moved since then to another job leading a small team of designs. there are jobs here, they are just had to find and you have to be prepared to teach to get by. also, you may have to take a job that you are over qualified for. My advice is to go for western companies and email the HR departments (there are a bunch of books with listings like, being a broad in japan). some japanese firms will take on foriegners but i am telling you, you have to be able to put in the hours. japanese firms work over 12 hours a day, somethimes staff are there all night! crazy! anyway ganbatte (good luck)

Looking for Animation/Graphic Design jobs in Japan?

Hi:

I am looking for Animation and Graphic Designer jobs in Japan. I am not sure, where I can find this type of job search through the internet. I am from Vancouver, Canada.
I am partly Japanese and Chinese mixed. My grandfather was born in Japan. And I would like to go back there to visit my grandfather. So that is why I am looking for a job oversea.

Hopefully, if anyone knows, please feel free to email me

Can someone please tell me about(names, adresses, contacts) graphic design schools and colleges in japan for studying.

Hi,

I've been working in design, mainly web, for about 6 years in the UK. But I will soon be moving to Japan to work for a company over there.

I contacted the company about 4 years ago & have been doing bits of work for them in my spare time ever since then.

I started with a simple web design for them & then did more & more for them until early last year I developed a full ecommerce site for them. They were so pleased they paid for me to fly out for 2 weeks holiday!
This year they have asked me to move out & work for them full time.

So it certainly is possible for you to get a job over there if you want one. I wasnt really looking to go there for a job, but when they offered I couldn't really turn it down - what an opportunity!

Good luck to everyone with their job seeking!

Hi all, I'm an Australian Graphic Designer living in Tokyo who has been looking for design work since I arrived here a year ago. I am near leaving for home and noticed this great job on GaiginPot.com Thought I'd post it and see if anyone who is desperate for a job was interested. If I was staying I would have loved this one!

Tokyo American Club
Graphic Designer
JPY 300,000/Month,
Minato-Ku, Tokyo

Hi,

I read what you posted. Guess things have worked out beautiful for you. But, do you think this sort of thing can happen anywhere, do you think? This sort of thing, what I mean by that is, work for someone in another country and gradually developing a relationship, then eventually you get to visit that country (or even living there). That's wonderful.

Things people should realize. Tokyo is a big city so therr are opportunities like any big city. There are large budgets in the print industry. 4 page fullcolor advertisements for apartments for sale are randomely passed out at stations and stuffed in mailboxes to a non targeted audience. But Japan is NOT international by any stretch of the imagination. Yes there is an old boys network and its hard to break in. Without a strong Japanese language ability you wont survive in the long run. Of course you can learn it despite what the Japanese would like to believe about the languge being devine and impossible to learn for westerners. VISAs- People cant just move here without one. A spouse visa- which I have is great because I can do freelance work and look while I am here. Otherwise you have to get a job before you come and the company provides you with a visa. This is difficult in the design world- why? because why should a Japanese company hire a person from another company who might come here and realize its not what they wanted and leave? They have to fill out paperwork and get you aquainted with Japan etc etc. And foreighners want lots of benefits, long vacations, equal rights, overtime pay etc. They can just hire a Japanese guy who is familiar with the customs, lives here and can start tommorrow, will work almost for free, doesnt need vacation nor expect any respect at all etc etc. It wouldnt make sense. UNLESS!!!! You have something they dont have. Maybe english or another foreign language skill, contacts with a foreign market, or some special niche. This is why the Japanese outsource IT professionals. There are lots of graduates here who are looking for work and will work cheap (10$ an hour). If you are familiar with the graphic design field you know that anyone can search for photos or do basic grunt work in Photoshop and illustrator or Dreamweaver. Creative skills? ok if you have a unique portfolio the bigger companies DO HIRE on a one time job basis. Companies like NIKE, Sony etc. for the Japanese market. FORGET MANGA and ANIME unless you come and work for a foreign based company (i know some French).There are so many animators here and they often work for dirt as well. someone else said try starting in your own country- great advice look for contact who are connected with Japan. IN Japan its who you know like anywhere, but more so because if you are introduced to a Japanese person by someone they trust, they will automatically trust you. Everyone wants to be a designer so the pay is lower than say IT. Other places to look: your countries Chamber of Commerce. Freelance websites- Elance i think is one- and try to get jobs that relate to Japan market and build your portfolio. Last word for anyone Design is about money for the clients and the designer- We need to survive and they need excellent design services cheap. Find your niche

Whoa.. just stumbled across this message board and was suprised to find so many GDers trying to get in on the J-action. I'm over here now (teaching of course) and never thought much about trying to get work in GD over here. Although its worth looking into.
Anyhow, I'm almost over teaching and want to put together my portfolio for getting a job back home. Any suggestions on how I could use this living experience to my advantage in respect with my portfolio? And if so is that what companies back home desire?
Any thoughts would be great.

Iv been a art director/deigner/webdesigner freelance for approx 9 years now, am 32, and really really looking into living and working in tokyo, where do i begin? im going for a 5 week holiday in sugust, any suggestions how or what i need to do while im over there to try and secure work, full time, are there many english magazines for example over there? im really want to get sponsorship so i can stay perm, any help v appreciated.

Wow, someone should start a website dedicated to Designers in Japan. I had been living in Tokyo for the last 1.5 yrs and had to leave to sort out my life back home. I also want to head back soon.
Where to start... There are design jobs in Tokyo to be had, but as you can see there are also many designers looking for those few jobs. A friend worked for free for over a year, going in twice aweek as an intern and working her way into the company. That takes dedication. I can only recomend, learn Japanese asap, it really helps even if its only basic, it can open up new doors. I plan to work as a teacher when I return because I love it, but also to keep me in that cool country until I can speak good enough Japanese to work for a multinationl company.
I signed up to meetup.com and you can arrange to meet fellow designers each week or month at a choosen place, hope to see some of you there :)

I cant find one when I need one though. Go figure...

Hello one and all. I've only recently discovered this forum despite any previous searches.
Basically I too am seeking a Graphic Design post in Japan. I currently live in Kyushu teaching English,and using the time to study Japanese. I currently focus on that primarily as I figured out a long time ago that the native language would be an invaluable aid.
It is good to find out that there are jobs around but its unfortunate that they aren't immediately open to gaijin like ourselves.
If anyone cares to get in touch regarding possibilities of uniting or simply for informing about job possibilities here is my website and email...
ray@exray.co.uk
www.exray.co.uk

Hey I'm trying to find something to design in Japan aswell. It seems like an untouchable dream that should beeasier but isn't. Anyways my website is www.nobodyland.com

Hi to all
I'm working as a Graphic Designer in HK but would love to work in Japan. I speak fluent English as well. My main query is, would it be easier to get a job teachng English rather then as a Graphic Designer? Because I don't mind teaching, but eventually would like to do graphics.

it is very easy to get a job as an english teacher (if you are fluent in the language). i've been looking for an interior design job in tokyo for a few months but have had no luck so far as i don't speak japanese well enough yet. i don't know how it goes for graphics but for interior design, there are some bilingual firms so in the office english is spoken but japanese is needed with clients and vendors. the publisher of metropolis magazine (based in omotesando, tokyo) sometimes looks for freelance graphic designers. you might want to check their web site classifieds. good luck.

hi im a student from lincoln uk and im currently on a product design degree and i am after a bit of information on the japanese lifestyle. the area that i am looking in to is the jeapanese tea ceremony and would love to hear some first hand information off anyone who could tell me if this tradition is still alive, so if there are any japanese people out there who would be kind enough to help me forward my research i would be very greatful!

Hi designers and artist!
I've been surfing the Internet for months to get graphic design/art job info in Japan, and finally I found this forum today! A big surprise that so many people are on the same boat.
I'm Japanese, going back to Japan in fall next year after 10 years of the US life. I want to work as a graphic designer/artist in Japan... preferably using English daily base and working with non-Japanese people somehow because I need to pursue my love of international communications while I go on my life in art and design.
I have never worked for a Japanese design company. I did a CD design project for a musician once, that's it. I was a different area of businesses before I came to the US.
Here is the US, received a BFA in Graphic Design and working in the industly for about three years.
Since it seems that there is almost no design jobs for me to apply for, (Japan's age limit for jobs really sucks.), I have started thinking about a possibility to be a freelance. I didn't know where to start, but for now, I've been researching and creating my website for that in English and Japanese.
Ok, I gotta stop here. I was so excited to find this forum and I can go on and on!
If you are interested in me as a friend or even a possible future business partner, please feel free to email me at hitomi162@hotmail.com. If we can help each other some ways, I don't know what ways right now though, it will be great. I cannot stop dreaming a international design/art team in Japan...

just read my message above. many mistakes on my writing... sorry, sorry.

Hi all!
Nice to read all the messages!

I'm a multimedia designer in Australia.

I just got back from Japan on a holiday, and I would like to work there in the near future if possible as a motion graphic designer/print designer. I meet a few people in the advertising industry and Anime industry whilst there, so that was promising.

I currently work for Australia's & New Zealand's largest Anime/Manga distributor as a designer/animator. We literally hold a 60 million dollar anime industry. But to work in an Anime studio in japan you would defineately need fluent japanese janguage or work for an american company in japan.

my site can be seen here:
http://www.peaceforsale.com

Its a personal folio site. I'm try to find job listings, I know the best ones would be in japanese though.

good luck.

Yeah, I too am an artist living in California but hope to live in Japan doing the same kind of work.

Please visit my site at:
http://webpages.charter.net/bikemechanic_onna/

By the way...one of the posters on this thread had a good idea. We should actually have some kind of guild or something. Would be interesting.

Nice to meet everyone!