Qubic Pictures Employed Forceful Integration of Star Wars and Anime Elements
Star Wars: Visions Unleashed continues to thrill fans as it consistently showcases the boundless storytelling potential within the Star Wars universe, stepping beyond the iconic Skywalker saga. In recognition of the audience's hunger for fresh narratives, Lucasfilm prepares for the third volume of Star Wars: Visions to debut on Disney+ this fall, followed by the rollout of spin-off series Star Wars: Visions Presents.
One factor often overlooked in Star Wars: Visions' success is its pioneering collaboration with prestigious Japanese animation studios like Studio Trigger (Promare, Kill La Kill), Production I.G (Kaiju No. 8, Heavenly Delusion), and Wit (Attack on Titan, Spy x Family). Qubic Pictures, an independent production company, spearheads these artistic collaborations with the mission to produce high-quality animation that transcends cultural boundaries, captivating audiences beyond the core anime fanbase.
As the arrival of Star Wars: Visions volume three edges closer, we sat down with Qubic Pictures CEO Justin Leach to gain insights into the origins of the animated anthology series and the strategies it employs to elevate its collaborations to unprecedented heights, potentially inspiring other pop culture franchises to embrace animation anthologies.
Isaiah Colbert, io9:For a period, anime anthologies like Memories and Robot Carnival seemed a relic of the past, but now they're experiencing a resurgence in shows like Love, Death + Robots and Star Wars: Visions. With Visions bridging some of the most celebrated anime studios, how did Qubic determine which studios to collaborate with?
Justin Leach:My history with Production I.G dates back to 2001 when I worked on Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence as a CG creator. Over the years, I've remained in contact with many friends at the studios and watched them create outstanding work. I was always a fan of Memories, Robot Carnival, and Neo Tokyo-I watched all of those when they first released. When tasked with working with the Lucasfilm team on finding studios for the Visions project, I aimed to provide a balanced selection based on quality, style, and reputation. My intention was to create a diverse array of studios that would each contribute something unique and exceptional. I prioritized quality and working with passionate creators.
io9:You mentioned previously fostering these relationships. Building upon that, were these partnerships that led to Star Wars: Visions volume one formed through outreaches, like a one-to-one "We're going to have you in Visions,' or did those studios also submit their pitches for what they envisioned as a potential episode for the show?
Leach:The way Lucasfilm structured the Visions project was to have the creators make their unique Star Wars visions. We approached the studios with a creative brief of the project and expressed our interest in working with them. The studio would then recommend someone who was passionate about making a Star Wars short or suggest a director who they believed would be a good fit for the project. It was a solid partnership with each individual studio, as they were involved in every step of the creative process.
Each creator presented a pitch for their desired episode. At times, it was a single pitch, and at others, there were multiple pitches. We reached out to additional studios that, for unforeseen circumstances, were not available or didn't work out. Our goal was to establish a list of people we wanted to collaborate with, and we were fortunate in finding talented individuals with a genuine enthusiasm for Star Wars. In the first season, we were unsure of how the world of Star Wars would manifest through the lens of anime. One of the initial standout moments was the dual artwork for the ["The Duel" character] Ronin, which was one of the first artworks that arrived. It was an impressive moment, watching these creations come to fruition.
io9: What was the original vision behind the production model Qubic Pictures developed for Star Wars: Visions?
Leach:Qubic's primary focus has always been bridging the gap between Hollywood and Japan or creating international collaborations. Our first collaboration was Eden, an original pitch based on my idea for a four-episode series. We assembled a team, including a director from Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, [Yasuhiro] Irie-san, and a character designer from Cowboy Bebop, [Toshihiro Kawamoto], who is one of the founders of [studio] Bones. We've worked with a variety of international collaborations, and our objective has always been to make the audience as wide as possible. I don't want anyone to have any misconceptions about the art form.
Over the years, as I've spent more time working in Japan, I've cultivated relationships with the studios and artists whose names I wanted to become recognized globally. With Visions, the exceptional aspect is that the Lucasfilm team allowed the creators to tell their own story. It wasn't prescriptive, though there were broader branding guidelines they had to adhere to. Our role was as the central hub between all the studios and the Lucasfilm team. We facilitated communication between them, ensuring that everyone received what they needed, communication went smoothly, and there was no misunderstanding.
io9: How did Qubic develop a production pipeline and workflow enabling studios like David Production, Wit Studio, and Studio Trigger to amalgamate their distinctive styles while maintaining a cohesive Star Wars feel for the series, without adversely affecting the differences between Hollywood's style of production and Japan's?
Leach:We devised methods for tracking communication. Mostly, our tools were centered on communication and translation because we allowed each studio to handle production on its own pipeline. We didn't enforce a global pipeline across all studios. Instead, we let the studios operate independently.
What we typically do in terms of production is establish milestones, such as setting a date for the script to be delivered or when we want the storyboards. We work with the studios to determine these milestones. They vary from studio to studio, but we ensure we track all deliverables and maintain an eye on the schedule. We also provide assistance with procedural tasks like agreements, although those are not particularly exciting. We have internal tracking documents for translation and communication, making it easier to manage back-and-forth communication.
io9: What were the biggest technical or logistical challenges in facilitating collaboration between studios from Japan and Lucasfilm with Visions volume one?
Leach:Because it was our first anthology, the primary challenge was tracking all these various communications with multiple studios and people involved. The hard part was figuring out the most optimal way to work with this anthology format. After completing season one, it was much easier for us to jump back into season three.
io9: Beyond showcasing renowned Japanese animation studios, volume two welcomed diverse talent from India, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Chile, France, South Africa, South Korea, and the United States. Each brought their distinct storytelling styles-whether through 2D, 3D, or stop-motion-to the anthology. How did the selection process unfold to bring these studios on board?
Leach:I was somewhat involved in the initial stages of season two, but I didn't work on it concurrently for various reasons. I did make a few introductions, such as Rodrigo Blaas. He's a good friend of mine, and I also know Studio La Cachette. In many cases, Lucasfilm had a significant part in the selection process, handling communications with English-speaking studios.
io9: Qubic was more hands-on in helping with volume three, right?
Leach:Yes, my role was the same as the first season as a co-executive producer. Our involvement didn't significantly change between seasons one and three. We followed the same approach. It was a challenge to select which episodes to remake. We couldn't create sequels for everything. There were always discussions regarding this. [Executive producers] James [Waugh], Josh [Rimes], and Jacqui [Lopez] played an important role, and Jacqui on the Lucasfilm team, helping establish the overall direction.
io9: Are there any particular Star Wars: Visions episodes in volume three that you're particularly excited for fans to witness?
Leach:I can't reveal anything about it, but I can share that we'll be screening one of the shorts at Annecy this year. It's in competition. It's called Black. It's directed by Shinya Ohira. I strongly encourage anyone to attend if they can. I'm extremely excited about the project and can't wait for the world to see it.
io9: Looking at it as a broader picture, do you foresee anthologies becoming a more prevalent trend across the animation industry, inspiring other mainstream names to explore stories like Star Wars has with Visions?
Leach:I believe we'll likely see more anthologies from other IPs as well. Anime is incredibly popular right now and appeals to the younger generation. Traditional companies in Hollywood are trying to determine ways they can tap into this growing market. Anime-style storytelling is distinctive, and it's what the younger demographic desires.
Netflix has enjoyed success with anime. Even when I travel to Japan now and open the Netflix app, the top 10 are almost all anime. There's an extensive amount of anime readily available. It's a significant source of expansion. I expect there will be more. Anthologies are a great way to test the waters, determine what works and what doesn't, and then expand upon those ideas for something more long-form. For many big IPs, it might be a jump to go straight to a series, but sometimes they do. Anthologies allow them to explore ideas before committing to something more extensive.
Robot Carnival, Neo Tokyo, Memories-these anthologies established exceptional directors, leading to masterpieces like Akira and Ghost in the Shell. Anthologies also serve to develop emerging talent, nurturing the next generation of prominent directors. They're growing and cultivating new talent.
Towards the end of our conversation, Leach hinted that, alongside its collaboration with Lucasfilm on Visions, Qubic is teaming up with Netflix and Studio Orange (Beastars, Land of the Lustrous) to bring Scott Westerfeld's steampunk fantasy novel Leviathan to life as an anime. It's directed by Christophe Ferreira and features a score by Studio Ghibli's legendary Joe Hisaishi, who also contributed to Visions episode "The Ninth Jedi."
"It's another iteration of this collaboration model between east and west. This was a genuinely international team working side by side," Leach said. "At the outset, we invited Orange to contribute. We didn't want to hire them just as a service studio. We wanted them to be a creative partner. So, we invited them to all our story meetings, and they were able to provide feedback. We also worked with author Scott Westerfeld, ensuring he was involved in the creative process."
He continued, "[Leviathan] is authentically anime, but it also has some Western and European components."
Fans eager for updates can catch more details at a panel during Anime Expo.
Star Wars: Visions volume three premieres October 29 on Disney+.
- In the creation of the next volume of Star Wars: Visions, Qubic Pictures collaborated with a diverse range of studios including the Spanish studio, Studio La Cachette, as well as studios from India, France, South Africa, South Korea, the United States, and others.
- Despite the logistical challenges that come with facilitating collaborations between Japanese animation studios and Lucasfilm, Qubic Pictures is now teaming up with Netflix and Studio Orange to bring Scott Westerfeld's novel Leviathan to life as an anime.
- Taking inspiration from the successful collaboration model demonstrated by Star Wars: Visions, other pop culture franchises might be increasingly inclined to embrace animation anthologies in order to expand their reach and tap into the growing anime market.
