"Eternal Yugure," an original TV anime produced by PAWORKS, the animation production company behind "true tears" and "SHIROBAKO," is currently airing on MBS and TBS's late-night anime slot, "Super Animeism TURBO." It's a full-fledged love story set in a future world where AI technology has advanced. The protagonist, Himegami Akira, who has pledged his love to his beloved, Ou Maki Towasa, wakes up from years of cold sleep to find a city devastated by war. An android named Yugure, who bears a striking resemblance to Towasa, appears before Akira, and they embark on a journey together, believing they will be reunited with Towasa, who is believed to be alive somewhere in the world. We spoke to editor Takahashi Ayumu about the behind-the-scenes production.
◇The key to editing is how to connect the cuts
-What were you responsible for in this work?
I'm in charge of editing. The job of an anime editor is to connect the video data for each cut, which was created based on the storyboard, and adjust it to fit the length of the program. In this work, the main length was 20 minutes and 40 seconds, but there were episodes that were 2 minutes or even 5 minutes longer, so there was a lot of work to do, such as discussing lines and scenes with the director and cutting them down. Within that, I tried to add variety to the work by editing, such as leaving more pauses in serious scenes and cutting lines at a good tempo for comical dialogue, in order to increase the viewer's empathy with the characters and understanding of the story.
-What is your impression of the work?
I have worked with PAWORKS on many projects. Among them, there have been quite a few original works, but most of them are set in the real world, so I felt that a work set in a fantasy world like this one is rare. Since the setting is Japan of the future, the place names that appear are based on real place names such as "Hakodate" and "Omiya"... But even so, the main character, Akira, wakes up in the future world and is confused by the values of the future, but still sets off on a journey in search of Towasa, which I think is typical of PAWORKS' works, and which values the characters' emotions.
-What orders did the director give you?
I'm grateful for that, but they generally respected our editing. With the exception of a few important scenes, the tempo of the conversations and cuts was left as is in most cases. As it was an original work, the director's orders included many unique settings, and I think he gave many orders to maintain the intensity of the work, such as "Please leave this line in and don't cut it." --How did you try to express the tempo of the work?
I tried to edit the footage in a way that focused on the characters depicted in the footage. In serious scenes, I edited the footage to show their expressions with plenty of pauses. In comical scenes, I edited the footage to emphasize the characters' movements. I believe that tempo is ultimately created by the cuts made by the animators and directors, so the key to editing is how to connect the cuts.
◇The story will keep you on the edge of your seat until the final episode.
--What is the appeal of PAWORKS' videos?
The story is set in a future Japan, but the old-fashioned setting, with beautiful nature, stone houses, oxcarts, and steam-powered vehicles in a world where electronic computing technology has been banned, left a strong impression. I think the beautiful visual expression cultivated in works such as "Nagi no Asukara" and "Tenka Ranman" is on full display. Among them, the action scenes in "Yugure" and "Yoiyami" were captivating, similar to those seen in "CANAAN," "Chrome Shelled Regios," and "Sirius the Jaeger."
-Finally, please give us a message.
I feel like there are a lot of anime adaptations of manga these days. Of course, I understand the appeal of such works, and it's fun when your favorite manga is adapted into an anime. This work is a completely original. The excitement of wondering "What will happen next?" is something you can only get from an original work. I think the story will keep you on the edge of your seat until the final episode, so I hope you enjoy it.
