CATDOLL: "Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World" production staff: Single season animation is boring, so we have to make a half-year series

The new series "Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World" in April 2016 has been aired for nearly half of the time. The popularity of the series has remained high since its launch, and when the two characters "Ram and Rem" appeared, the popularity spread again, as if these two "supporting roles" were the protagonists!

It is rare for an animation to be announced to take half a year. Generally, it is calculated on a quarterly basis. Even if there is a sequel, few production companies will continue to produce it! So what exactly is the reason for them to decide to do it? Recently, a Japanese media interviewed the relevant production staff of the work to learn about the behind-the-scenes story from them.

When talking about the ninth episode that ended earlier, KADOKAWA's producer Tanaka Sho said with a smile that after watching it, he recalled the dark history of being chased by wild dogs when he was a child. From this episode on, Rem will gradually become more active. Animation producer Yoshikawa Tsunaki and editor Ikemoto Masahiro also talked about their opinions.

I believe many anime fans are impressed by the pinky promise scene in this episode. However, during the script meeting, due to the length of the episode, there was a dispute over whether to keep this scene. In the end, it was finally kept through storyboarding, which made Tanaka feel deeply moved. After all, this was also the opportunity for Rem to change in the original work.

Next, we discussed the process of animation. Ikemoto recalled, "I often discussed the animation of the work with Tanaka. Tanaka once watched the entire online version of "Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World" on his iPad while taking a bath." When talking about the key to the animation version, Ikemoto thought it was "cool lines." As for the issue of choosing an animation company, Tanaka chose WHITE FOX based on his intuition.

This time the animation is a half-year series, which is not common in the current new animation market. When talking about the reason for such a heavy workload, Tanaka said: "If we can't produce two seasons, then there is no point. If it is only one season, it will be the same as an ordinary light-adapted animation, right?" Yoshikawa further revealed that in order to wait for the selection of the director and the chief animation director, Tanaka spent a year just selecting people.

Since it is a half-year series, whether the high standard of animation can be maintained has become the focus of fans. Yoshikawa also admitted that he was also worried about this. However, this work was very difficult from the beginning, and when I was having dinner with the director, I also heard the complaint that "making this work is really tiring."

So, did the original author Nagatsuki Tappei have any requirements for this animation? Ikemoto said, "Nothing special. But he will review all the scripts and watch the voice actors recording on site, which can be regarded as ensuring the stability of the work."

Since the first episode of the work is a 1-hour special, and it would rather cut the time of the theme song/ending song to show the plot, it has won a lot of praise. Such a response also makes everyone happy. At the same time, in terms of selecting voice actors, Yusuke Kobayashi, who voiced Natsuki Subaru, was able to interpret the feeling of being a loser, and as a result, he was unanimously recognized by the audience during the initial audition. And Takahashi Rie, who voiced Emilia, conquered everyone with her sense of transparency at the beginning. As for Arai Satomi, who voiced Betty, basically everyone agreed with her, and she had a feeling of "Lolita Auntie". The sister group of Minase Inori and Murakawa Rie also surprised many people. They didn't expect the two to be able to interpret such an effect.

The current chapter will end in the eleventh episode, but the second quarter is the highlight. They also hope that the audience will continue to pay attention to Subaru's efforts and the performance of the heroines. In particular, Tanaka said at the end: "Not only Emilia, but there are also many plots that Rem fans will like. Please pay attention to the performance of the heroines." So what will the result be? Let's continue to look forward to it.