Muse & Co.‘s primary goal for the Crunchyroll Headquarters project in downtown San Francisco was to give the employees of the company a home, a flagship office they could be proud of, and a space that would resonate with all anime fans who love the genre. Their new headquarters had to be functional, a place for employees to meet and get work done, but as the home of the world’s leading anime streaming service, also needed to showcase the depth and breadth of anime, which is rooted in Japanese culture.

• Design Firm: Muse & Co.

• Completion Date: April 2022

• Location: San Francisco

• Size: 80,000 sq ft

• Average Population: 300

Muse & Co. began with countless hours of cultural and historical research and sent members of their team to explore Japan in person. Muse & Co hired Japanese consultants and designers, binge-watched Kurosawa films, nerded out on the Sapporo ice festival, and had enlightening conversations with members of the San Francisco Zen Center. This project was a daunting task from the outset. Not only would Muse & Co have to research and design every space in the building; they would also be fabricating and installing everything ourselves—all adhering to the city’s building code, of course.