The challenge of the 45th anniversary of "Gundam" - New visual expressions in "Requiem for Vengeance" and "Phantom of Silver Gray" - An interview with producer Naohiro Ogata

「機動戦士ガンダム 復讐のレクイエム」の一場面(c)創通・サンライズ
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「機動戦士ガンダム 復讐のレクイエム」の一場面(c)創通・サンライズ

Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance, a part of the popular Gundam anime series, was released worldwide on Netflix on October 17th. It is an original 3D anime focusing on the European front of the One Year War from the first Mobile Suit Gundam series, and was produced as a "Gundam for the world." The VR movie Mobile Suit Gundam: Phantom of the Silver Gray was released on October 4th for Meta Quest 2, Meta Quest 3, and Meta Quest 3s, and in October, two works that challenged new visual expressions were released. Where is the Gundam series heading in its 45th anniversary? We spoke to Executive Producer Ogata Naohiro of Bandai Namco Filmworks, which is in charge of the series, about the aims of the two works and the future development of the series. ◇A chance for Japanese anime to expand overseas

"Requiem for Revenge" was produced by Sunrise and SAFEHOUSE using the 3D game production tool "Unreal Engine 5". Unreal Engine realizes advanced graphics and real-time rendering, and is mainly used for game development.

"The expression and production process of anime and games are not all equal, but they are evolving by exchanging each other's technologies. Unreal is also being used in part of "Hathaway's Flash Part 2", which is currently in production, and such 3D technology is becoming a major part of the process of making anime. We have been creating a base in 3D and turning it into 2D anime, but with "Requiem for Revenge", we tried to challenge ourselves to a new visual expression by producing the entire series of videos with Unreal."

In recent years, Japanese anime, including the "Gundam" series, has been accepted more than ever before in the world. The number of overseas fans watching Japanese anime through streaming has also exploded. "Requiem for Vengeance" incorporates traditional Japanese animation techniques while aiming for a new expression for an overseas audience. The global production team, including director Erasmus Brosdau from Germany and screenwriter Gavin Heinite from the United States, attempted to create a visual expression that had never been seen before.

"Because it will be distributed by Netflix, it will be distributed simultaneously in many countries and regions. It is different from the previous method of targeting Japan as the main target and then expanding to the world from there. We are trying and erroring to expand globally, and it is true that Japanese anime, which has grown from limited animation, is accepted worldwide, but we are exploring the look and other aspects for a global audience. 2D anime is also being produced by overseas staff, and it has become the norm. We also tried to challenge ourselves to make it globally, including creative. How do overseas creators see the One Year War? I feel that their perspective on the war is slightly different. The 08th MS Team is popular overseas and has a big influence, so we have Yamane Kimitoshi as the super mechanical visor. We need to restrain the expression of Gundam-like mecha, so we proceeded with the expression of the mobile suits and the action while receiving advice from Yamane." It is true that Japanese anime is becoming more widespread overseas, but there are still some groups that have not yet been reached. We wanted to have existing fans enjoy it while also cultivating a wider fan base. It is also a new visual expression for that purpose. The Gundam series has a history of challenging new visual expressions, such as releasing the 3DCG animation Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO about 20 years ago in 2004. In this age of streaming, they wanted to create a "new Gundam" that was possible with the latest technology. "There are still many people around the world who have not seen Gundam. I wanted to explore the possibilities there. Of course, there are elements aimed at core fans, and I value them, but I tried to make a video in a different direction than before. For Gundam, overseas expansion is also a long-cherished wish. Hollywood has been greatly affected by COVID-19 and strikes, making it difficult to make major productions. There are great opportunities for Japanese content, including the fact that Japanese anime is being watched via streaming. Thankfully, there are many fans of Gundam in Japan and Asia, but there is still room for growth in the United States and Europe. In preparation for the 50th anniversary and the Hollywood live-action movie currently in the planning stages, I think it is our mission to get more people to watch it."

◇A history of evolution with cutting-edge technology

"Phantom of the Silver" is set in U.C.0096 (Universal Century 0096) and was co-produced by Sunrise and Atlas V, a French VR production company that has worked on "Gloomy Eyes" and "Battlescar." It also attracted attention when it was nominated for the Venice Immersive competition in the Extended Reality (XR) category at the 81st Venice International Film Festival, one of the world's three major film festivals. This is the first time that the Gundam series has been nominated at an international film festival. "VR has a strong image of being a game, and there have not been many video works made with it. Moreover, it is very rare to have a feature-length work of 90 minutes. Many works have strong game and interactive elements, and even in Venice, there were not many feature-length works centered on the story. While Gundam is centered on the series and theaters, it has a history of immersive video development such as GUNDAM THE RIDE at Fuji-Q Highland and DOME-G at Odaiba, and has evolved by incorporating cutting-edge video technology. This VR work is part of that, and although it may not be familiar yet, I think it will be necessary as a future video expression, so I took on the challenge. I think that the unique expression of VR, such as wanting to sit in the cockpit of a mobile suit, wanting to operate it, and wanting to enter the hangar, is a good match for Gundam."

The characters in "Requiem of Revenge" are more realistic, but "Phantom of Silver Gray" is closer to 2D animation.

"Due to the specifications, we went for 2D, which is more suitable for VR. Expressing Universal Century characters in 3D, following in the footsteps of Yoshikazu Yasuhiko (who was in charge of character design for the first film), was one of the challenges for the Gundam series, but I think we were able to overcome some of them. It was produced using not only 3D but also hand-drawn elements, and the work was divided between Sunrise, Atlas V, and Meta... it was a site where French, English, and Japanese were mixed."

◇What will happen with Part 2 of "Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway"?

Both "Requiem for Revenge" and "Phantom of the Silver Gray" are Universal Century works. What kind of developments are planned for the 50th anniversary?

Fans are eagerly awaiting Part 2 of "Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway" and we are also curious about it.

"Following on from "The Witch of Mercury" and "SEED FREEDOM," we're of course going all in on the Alternative Series as we approach the 50th anniversary, but starting this fall, Gundam as a whole is moving towards the Universal Century. The second part of "Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway" is currently in production. We're sorry to have kept you waiting, but we want to deliver it to you as soon as possible. I think it will be more than you'd expect, so I hope you'll look forward to it."

Although they are trying new visual expressions with 3D, Sunrise (Bandai Namco Filmworks) is undoubtedly the best in the world when it comes to the technology and expression of hand-drawn robot anime.

"The key for the future is to expand overseas, but the visuals of 'Hathaway's Flash' will not end up like 'Requiem for the Revenge.' There are some things that can only be done with Unreal Engine, and some things that can only be expressed with 2D. The mecha action, human drama, and 2D Gundam that we have cultivated so far will remain our main focus. We are trying to evolve our visuals while challenging ourselves for the future. Our powerful weapon at Sunrise is robot anime that no one else in the world is doing, and while cherishing that, we are trying to incorporate new technologies and expressions to create works that more people can watch."

The evolution of the "Gundam" series will not stop. We are sure to continue to show new expressions while inheriting the tradition that has been around for about 45 years.

This site uses machine translation. Please note that it may not always be accurate and may differ from the original Japanese text.

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