Some updates on the anime that I'm working on with JC Staff titiled Mirai Millennium - Mirai Suenaga's story finally starts to get the anime treatment. We are currently working on the OP which I'm going to use as the OP to Culture Japan Season 2.
JC Staff is taking care of the animation and I'm looking after the rest - backgrounds, effects and editing. This saves a huge amount of cost in anime production which I'll go into detail one day.
Kazunori Iwakura is responsible for the anime character design for Mirai Millennium who has worked on the following titles - copy paste from ANN.
Ai Yori Aoshi (TV) : Character Design, Animation Director (OP, ED)
Ai Yori Aoshi ~Enishi~ (TV) : Character Design, Animation Director (OP, ED), Key Animation (OP; ep 1)
Alien Nine (special) : Storyboard (OP), Unit Director (OP), Animation Director (eps 1-3), Creature Design, Key Animation
Angel of Darkness (OAV) : Character Design (ep 1)
Aoi Kioku - Manmō Kaitaku to Shōnen-tachi (movie) : Key Animation
Aria the Scarlet Ammo (TV) : Character Design, Animation Director (OP/ED; ep 12)
Art of Fighting (OAV) : Character Design, Chief Animation Director
Big Wars (movie) : Animation, Assistant Mechanical Designer
Burn Up Excess (TV) : Mechanical design
Daphne in the Brilliant Blue (TV) : Character Design
Digimon Adventure: Bokura no War Game (movie) : Key Animation
Digimon: The Movie (U.S.) : Key Animation
Eiken (OAV) : Animation
Genesis Survivor Gaiarth (OAV) : Key Animation (MAGIC BUS; ep 3)
Gunparade March (TV) : Mechanical design
Hayou no Ken: Shikkoku no Mashou (OAV) : Key Animation (ep 2)
Juu Senshi Garukiba (TV) : Animation Director
Kimikiss pure rouge (TV) : Character Design, Animation Director (eps 1, 3), Key Animation (ep 6)
Living for the Day After Tomorrow (TV) : Animation Director (eps 2, 11)
Loveless (TV) : Character Design
Master of Mosquiton (OAV) : Key Animation
Nabari no Ō (TV) : Character Design
Nekketsu Saikyo Gozaurer (TV) : Animation Director
Ojamajo Doremi # (movie) : Key Animation
Okusama wa Maho Shojo (TV) : Animation Director (ep 10)
Orphen: The Revenge (TV) : Storyboard (OP), Ending Animation (ED 2)
Otome Yōkai Zakuro (TV) : Key Animation (OP)
Revolutionary Girl Utena (TV) : Key Animation (ep 1)
Rune Soldier (TV) : Character Design, Chief Animation Director
Samurai Shodown: The Motion Picture (special) : Character Design, Animation Director
Seikimatsu Darling (OAV) : Character Design, Animation Director
Sky Girls (OAV) : Character Design, Animation Director
Sky Girls (TV) : Character Design
Slayers Great (movie) : Animation Director, Golem Design, Key Animation
Slayers Return (movie) : Key Animation
Sweet Blue Flowers (TV) : Chief Animation Director (assistant; ep 9), Animation Director (eps 3, 8)
Toaru Kagaku no Railgun (TV) : Animation Director (ep 9)
Toradora! (TV) : Chief Animation Director (eps 20, 22), Animation Director (eps 13, 17, 25)
Uragiri wa Boku no Namae o Shitteiru (TV) : Animation Director (eps 8, 13), Key Animation (ep 23)
Voltage Fighter Gowcaizer (OAV) : Chief animator
Winter Garden (special) : Key Animation
I'm developing the look and feel of the Mirai Millennium with Pinakes. I discovered his talents after he done some fanart of Mirai which he posted over at Figure.fm and have hired him to work on the anime.
In this scene, Mirai looks over the metropolis as her hair waves about in the wind. Everything in this backdrop is on separate layers which will be parallax scrolled.
Scrolling classroom scene. The screen is an alpha channel which we will use to show some video.
Initial classroom rough.
Classroom is modeled in 3D Max. This was the initial design.
Ceiling turned out looking typical Earth initially ^^;
Full classroom scene.
Still work in progress but these are the frames where Mirai is in her Solar Marine uniform swinging the Millennium Blade. Blade details and glowing hilt are drawn on overlay frames.
An anime OP is not an anime OP without the walking scene ^^;
49 frames are used to make up 4 seconds of footage for this particular cut where Mirai turns around to face us, blinks and smiles ^^
An up n coming scene.
Larger version of this in Pinakes gallery.
And this is the school that Mirai and Kanata attend. Still work in progress.
Mirai's school in the Autumn. All of these backdrops will be distributed as wallpapers when Mirai's site is fully ready.
I love the Winter version.
There is a poll embedded in this article.
Hero image for the girls in their Solar Marine uniform. JC Staff are currently working on the anime version for the poster - should be in time to display at Anime Festival Asia 2011.
JC Staff will also be working on the anime version of this poster too which I'm going to try to get the monthly anime magazines to run.
Am working to get the site revamped with a new design to coincide with CJ Season 2 and the Mirai Millennium OP. If you are reading the site via RSS or the free email subscription, you may want to come and have a gander at the new design.
Tis the first time we are using embedded fonts for the menu. Go to Google Web Fonts and use them for free on your site too.
Instead of Mirai's stuff being on one page, she gets her own portal page where everything will soon be in sections - cosplay, merchandise, itasha, wallpapers, photoshop files etc.
Currently available here - only half finished though ^^
Whenever you are on a post related to Mirai, the top navigation menu will change to all things Mirai related. The header logo will change so that users can navigate to Mirai's top page. If you hover over the logo however, you can get back to the Culture Japan top page. You can also use the breadcrumbs in the top left corner to navigate back to the Culture Japan top page too.
The comments section has been revamped. When you hover over a photo annotation icon in the comments section, an overlay will appear to show you which photo was annotated. Once all changed have been made here, the theme will be ported over to figure.fm with a few tweaks.
Am continuing to use the web design services of Rob who has also helped me work on the Love Plus site for Konami. I also discovered his talents over at figure.fm ^^;
Many folks who are involved with the Mirai Millennium project are readers who have demonstrated their interest and made clear what their skill set is. If you are interested in being involved then all you have to do is do the same. Folks who end up working on the project will not only be compensated with $$$, but also have the chance to travel depending on the task required.
I recently brought a reader over to Japan to help out for a few months - you may have seen him in previous A Week in Tokyo posts ^^; He approached me and demonstrated his skill set which was something that I required and have been working with him ever since.
Back to the anime, will post the colored cells when they come back in a couple of weeks and should have the scenario ready for you to read by then.
For folks who are wondering about Chinka - mentioned it before but will do so again. Chinka was originally not my IP and while I'm still involved with the project, the team Hibuse are the folks who own and are responsible for the Chinka OVA.
Mirai Millennium however *is* my IP and my baby - I will do everything I can to make it a reality ^o^
