Few series have managed to capture fantasy and excitement so completely anime“>Spy x Family. A delightful spy tale intertwined with family dynamics captivated audiences around the world with its unique blend of action, comedy, and heartwarming moments. Behind this fantastic anime adaptation is a talented production team that brings the characters and their world to life, including an animation producer Kazuki Yamanaka And Koji Asanocharacter designer and chief animation director.
Yamanaka’s expertise shines through in his ability to create immersive and captivating animated series, including his contributions to anime“>The attack on the Giants Season 1-3 f anime“>Kabaneri of the Iron Castle. In 2022, Yamanaka took on the role of animation producer for anime“>bubble The movie, the movie that wowed audiences with its stunning visuals.
Known for his exceptional talent and artistic vision, Koji Asano He established himself as a prominent character in the anime. as one of the founders WIT STUDIOAsano has played a pivotal role in shaping the anime scene. As the character designer and chief animation director for iconic series such as anime“>Psycho-pass And anime“>The attack on the Giants Seasons 1-3 Asano’s dedication to detail and understanding of character dynamics has captivated audiences all over the world.
during this year anime CentralI had the opportunity to sit down with Yamanaka and Asano, who played instrumental roles in bringing anime“>Spy x Family to bear fruit. In this interview, they discuss the creative process, challenges, skills, and teamwork that helped them adapt this successful series.
© 遠藤 達 哉 ／ 集 英 社 Spy × Family 製作 委員会
anime“>Spy x FamilyThe fantasy world is mixed with espionage and family dynamics. How did your team approach creating the visual aesthetics and atmosphere to enhance storytelling?
Yamanaka: We’ve tried to explore a wide range of things like color, how we shoot, the range of photography and lighting techniques we used and a particular color. I think it’s really powerful to have bright or dark scenes that change the effect of a scene whether it’s kind of atmospheric or very challenging. Or more of a warm or loving atmosphere.
Asano: The original manga is really a fun and interesting read and has a good mix of seriousness and comedy as well. So we spoke to the creator, Endo sensei to discuss before we went into production, after we went into production, and until now. It’s really the mutual communication that helps us develop the atmosphere.
The relationships and interactions between the main characters are a focus anime“>Spy x FamilyCharm. How did you handle activating the interactions between Yor, Loid, and Anya to capture the chemistry and bond?
Yamanaka: We do a really good job of keeping the original work authentic. Our contacts are with Endo-sensei to discuss our approach and ensure there are no loopholes. It really helped us to be honest with those relationships.
Asano: The only person who truly understands the relationships between these characters is Endo sensei. So the best we can do is read the manga and think about what those relationships are and then confirm with Endo-sensei. We can’t just make our own decisions and change that, breaking those relationships on our own will make it difficult to be true to the original vision.
anime“>Spy x Family It has a rich developed world with unique settings and location designs. How did you ensure that the animation and background art complemented each other to immerse viewers in this fantasy world?
Yamanaka: So I think that really relates to the first question you asked about the atmosphere. Our goal was to connect all the different parts of production. So when we set different patterns, we have different opinions of people. Basically, if you look at Episode 1, what we started and what we aired at the end was very different in terms of colors and other things. So it’s just the building and communication of different opinions that ultimately helped us come up with this combination of animation and background.
Asano: I don’t think you’ll get the perfect match for things like backgrounds and animations right from the start. It takes time to build that up. And so you’ll need to really challenge and build something, but then kind of incorporate each person’s idea and build up with employee contributions over time. This is how we got to the final product.
Were there any specific scenes or aspects of the manga that were particularly difficult to adapt and animate into the second season or upcoming movie? If so, how did you overcome those challenges?
Yamanaka: There are some places in the original work that require some interpretation before being introduced into animation. For example, there is a scene, which is only a few pages in the manga, but it’s about 20 minutes of animation. So this was particularly challenging, although it seems to have been well received.
anime“>Spy x Family It includes complex spy missions and thrilling action sequences. Can you provide some ideas for the process of choreographing and moving these dynamic scenes to create a sense of suspense and excitement?
Asano: It really comes down to the skills of the animators. I mean, of course, we start with manga, we create storyboards, and then we have our animators imagine ways to make those storyboards and those action scenes come true. Of course, we choose the good ones, but it is their ideas and skills that realize the action you see on the screen.
