this is canon. that said why the F are there so few shirobakos? it's better than toradora which also has a ton of L subtext but no representation here, but there is a lot. this is THE canon pair but Aoi and Erica are damn close to being beyond subtext.
Ai is that good and really how much does she need to talk? Its possible that with Shirobako marking the end of non-digital at Not-KyoAni Studio that they might not want someone like her but this is still the good old days of the 90s or early 2000s when women were women and pens didnt have batteries.