Studio Hibari was founded in July 1979 in Ōizumi by former Tsuchida Production cel-colorist Sachiko Mitsunobu and her husband, anime director Hiroyoshi Mitsunobu [ja].[1] In 1985, the couple's son, Seiji, was appointed managing director of the company. In 1998, the head office moved from Ōizumi to Nerima Ward in Tokyo.[3] The next year, the studio debuted its first television animation production, Sensual Phrase.[3] In 2002, the company moved offices to accommodate for the expansion of departments in order to integrate them into the company's production system, and Seiji became president of the company; and a year later set up its own 3DCG department.[3] Due to an increase in employees, the digital sections (namely coloring, compositing, and 3D) were moved to another building separate from the head office.[3] The 3D department was incorporated into a separate studio in 2006, which became Larx Entertainment, a wholly-owned subsidiary.[4] The next year all of the departments were reallocated into a single building, which has served as the studio's headquarters since.[3] In 2009, the studio opened up an office in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; and in 2011, Lerche was established as an animation brand by which most of Studio Hibari's production succeeding its creation would be produced under. The company again expanded in 2020 by taking in studio IngresA (a subsidiary of Ingres) in Osaka and reorganizing the company as a branch studio named Studio Hibari Osaka Studio.[5][3] Music and sound production company AZ Creative is also a part of the Studio Hibari group.[2] In 2022, Hibari's Vietnam branch was incorporated as its own subsidiarty entity.[2]
The studio also maintains a relatively strong relationship with Sao Sang Design in Vietnam and Qixie Studio (formerly Shanghai M.C.C) in China. Producer Li Jiawen (李佳雯), the founder of Qixie Studio and Shanghai M.C.C, moved to Japan from China after college due to interest in Japanese animation, and in the late 2000s he joined Studio Hibari.[6] At the time, Hibari had been looking to open its eventual Hibari Vietnam office; and they had begun accepting foreigners for production jobs.[6] At some point, Li questioned whether he should move up in the company to a production desk (he was working as a production assistant) or if he should go back to China; and eventually, Studio Hibari's president (Seiji Mitsunobu) heard about Li's idea and stated that he would support Li in cultivating talent. After that, Li left the studio and went to establish Shanghai M.C.C.[7] Since 2023, members of Li's studio have been credited under both "Laplace Animation" and "Hibari Shanghai" (雲雀上海). A "Studio Hibari Sao Sang Studio" (スタジオ雲雀 サオサンスタジオ) has also appeared. The relation between the studios is generally unknown.
^ abcOguro, Yuichiro; Tanaka, Kuuchi (September 16, 2003). いろんな会社にオジャマしちゃおう！ 第３回 スタジオ雲雀 [Let's go to Various Companies! Episode 3, Studio Hibari]. WEB Anime Style (in Japanese). Archived from the original on January 13, 2020. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
^ abcde"ABOUT". Studio Hibari (in Japanese). Archived from the original on December 3, 2023. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
^ abcdef"History". Studio Hibari. Archived from the original on December 3, 2023. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
^ラークスエンタテインメント (in Japanese). Works Corporations. Archived from the original on September 1, 2013. Retrieved January 8, 2014.
^Yoshimoto, Takuji (August 2, 2020). お知らせ [Notice]. IngesA (in Japanese). Archived from the original on November 16, 2020. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
^ abmjn (April 11, 2016). 中国人制作的留日和归来——专访上海MCC创始人李佳雯（一） [Studying in Japan and Returning Chinese Producer - Exclusive Interview with Li Jiawen, Founder of Shanghai MCC (1)]. Zhihu. AnimeTamashii. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
^mjn (May 8, 2016). 中国人制作的留日和归来——专访上海MCC创始人李佳雯（五） [Studying in Japan and Returning Chinese Producer - Exclusive Interview with Li Jiawen, Founder of Shanghai MCC (5)]. Zhihu. AnimeTamashii. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
^Ross, Carlos (July 30, 2012). "Sleeping with Hinako". T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews. Archived from the original on August 11, 2012. Retrieved November 24, 2016.
