The film has been nominated for an Outstanding Animated Program Emmy. Includes bonus animatics to watch and storyboards to study.
The anime-style ‘BLACK’ short by Shinya Ohira is featured in Volume 3 of Star Wars: Visions, now streaming on Disney+.
‘BLACK’ tells its story from the point of view of an Imperial stormtrooper during the Battle of Endor, right as the Death Star is being destroyed. In almost psychedelic flashbacks, the stormtrooper revisits haunting visions of the surrounding wars. All this is set to a surprising jazz soundtrack.
Ohira-san—known for his work on Akira, Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirited Away, One Piece, The Boy and the Heron and Batman Ninja—employed his trademark moving camera animation style for ‘BLACK’, with the whole film playing out almost like a single scene, often moving back and forth into the mind of the stormtrooper. Indeed, Ohira-san wrote, directed, storyboarded and served as a key animator on the short.
befores & afters got the chance to ask Ohira-san about how the short came to be, how he approached the animation style, and whether he’d like to return to something in the animated Star Wars universe (hint: he’d like to go for something cute and cuddly).
b&a: Congratulations on ‘BLACK’. How did you come up with the story?
Shinya Ohira: I focused on the war aspect of Star Wars and wanted to portray the life of a soldier. By making a Stormtrooper, who is often expendable, the protagonist, I aimed to express the craziness, cruelty, brutality, and heartbreak of war.
b&a: Can you talk about your pitch to Lucasfilm and what things you talked to them initially about and any feedback you received from them?
Shinya Ohira: At first, I envisioned it as a very short piece, more like a music-driven promotional video, about three minutes long. With no dialogue, just visuals. When I pitched to Lucasfilm that I wanted to make it in that PV style, I was told, ‘It needs to have a proper story.’ And also they wanted at least eight minutes. So I went through a lot of trial and error.
b&a: How did you go about writing a script or a story outline that didn’t have much dialogue? Did you write a script, and did you also do concepts or storyboards very early?
Shinya Ohira: I wanted to depict the life of a single Stormtrooper who fought in many different places, expressing the tragic emotions and scenes he experienced. So I created a variety of stages. In total, I made nine scenes.
Basically, I wanted each scene to play out in long takes with very few cuts, with both the backgrounds and the characters constantly moving. So I assigned a different animator to each scene, and each of them built their own unique sequence.
b&a: What are the big challenges with always making it moving compared to something that’s maybe more still?
Shinya Ohira: Since the animators had to draw everything themselves, without relying on background artists, everything had to be animated in hand-drawn cels. It ended up being an enormous amount of work.
b&a: What were the different techniques that animators used, i.e., paper on pencil, working in the computer, and otherwise, to do their scenes?
Shinya Ohira: Most animators worked digitally, but for the latter half I asked an animator who is currently working at Studio Ghibli, and that portion was done by hand using traditional methods. I work analog too.
So I had to print out the digitally drawn material and then make corrections by hand. We had to go back and forth many times. That was probably one of the most stressful parts.
b&a: How many months did you work on this project for?
Shinya Ohira: I don’t remember exactly, but from when david production first approached me, it was probably just under two years. The actual production period itself was probably around six to eight months.
b&a: There is a scene right at the beginning, the opening of the film, where it feels like there are pencil lines forming as a ship goes to the Death Star, almost like it acknowledges there’s a hand-drawn aspect to this, or it feels like a consciousness is coming to the stormtroopers. Can you talk about that very beginning of the film and what you wanted to do with those very first shots?
Shinya Ohira: It starts with an image of an inner brain, something like neurons. From there, the visuals of war emerge from inside the brain, then the image shifts to the Death Star, and afterward returns to the self-conscious…back inside the mind. Then the viewpoint moves toward the eyeball. That was the visual flow I had in mind to express what was being seen.
b&a: I love the look of the close-up eye imagery and brain imagery. What did you learn about creating eyes imagery and close-up brain imagery from this project?
Shinya Ohira: As for the imagery inside the brain, I looked at medical books and I also searched for various live-action movies and other references to help creating the image.
b&a: I really love the use of jazz music. It’s a really nice contrast. How did you come up with that approach?
Shinya Ohira: Since the visuals depict the madness of war, I wanted to create contrast by using bright, carefree music instead. Something that makes you want to dance, specifically swing jazz. At first, I had ‘Sing! Sing! Sing!’ in mind. By pairing those cheerful rhythms with insane visuals, I thought it would create something even more psychologically sultry and slightly unhinged.
b&a: My favorite parts of ‘BLACK’ are where we go into the Death Star trenches. What’s your favorite part of the film, if you are able to pick a favorite part?
Shinya Ohira: The scene I most wanted to show from the very beginning was Scene 2. The part you mentioned, where it goes into the trench and returns to the eyeball. The sequence after that scene is what I consider the true centerpiece of this work.
b&a: What has the experience been like for you seeing this out in the world, for example, millions of people watching it and also having it shown at Annecy? Can you talk about your reaction to others’ reactions to the film?
Shinya Ohira: When the film was nominated for the Annecy (Annecy International Animation Festival), I went there. The students from Gobelins in France were incredibly friendly and came up to talk to me. It made me feel that aspiring animators from all over the world had taken a real interest in my work. Most of the feedback and comments were about how interested they were in the creation of the animation.
b&a: Finally, would you like to explore more of the Star Wars universe in animation in the future?
Shinya Ohira: If they have work for me, I’d be delighted to do it. I recently went to see The Mandalorian and Grogu in a theater. Grogu is absolutely adorable. I’d love to focus on fun, humorous characters like that. I’d love to make something with C-3PO or a similar character as the lead and tell an entertaining story. So I’d be very happy to work with them again.
b&a: I would also like to see you do something very cute and cuddly like that as well. That would be amazing.
Shinya Ohira: I guess…people probably think I’m good at depicting dark, eerie worlds. But by drawing cheerful, upbeat characters instead, I think that contrast with my usual style could make the resulting work even more compelling for viewers. I’d really love the chance to be involved.
All images and video courtesy of Lucasfilm Ltd.
