How Pacific Rim’s sci-fi world was transformed into a Netflix anime

Yuki Moriyama still remembers the first time he saw Pacific Rim. He arrived a little late and ended up watching theaters with some friends who had seen the film several times. It wasn’t long before Moriyama – an art director at animation studio Polygon Pictures – was also hooked. “It’s the kind of film that, after entering it, becomes quite addictive,” he says of the direct battles between mech and kaiju.

Now, Moriyama and the Polygon team are launching their own version of the franchise. Created in collaboration with Legendary Television and writers Greg Johnson and Craig Kyle, Pacific Rim: The Black is an animated series on Netflix that explores a new period of time. It is set after the two films and takes place in a version of Australia that has been largely abandoned and is now taken over by terrible kaiju. The series had to change in some ways – but the core of heavy action that inspired Moriyama is still there. “Each battle is an unrefined and unforgiving fight,” he says.

Polygon is a prolific studio, best known for its 3D anime style. The studio worked on adapting everything from Ghost in the Shell for Star Wars for Transformers. The team still has experience with giant monsters, having created a cartoon trilogy Godzilla movies on Netflix. For Moriyama, there is one thing in particular that makes Pacific Rim stand out from the many other franchises about mechs and / or kaiju: the weight and scale of the world.

“The first thing I think of when it comes to Pacific Rim is that robots are incredibly huge and heavy and therefore move very slowly, ”he explains. “To fly these huge machines, human pilots need to make use of an unusual technology called drifting. I think it’s highly limiting for pilots, but that’s what makes the Pacific Rim universe what it is. I can fully feel the persevering strength of the human race as they fight for survival over and over again, barely surviving the kaiju every time. “

One of the challenges for The black was discovering how to translate that aesthetics of live action into anime, while also creating a distinct space in the Pacific Rim universe. The show takes place in the future, but because of the almost post-apocalyptic scenario, it is not necessarily a more advanced world. Likewise, while the films focus on well-trained pilots, The black stars two brothers who stumble on a training mech – called Jaegers at Pacific Rim universe – that they learn to fly. Put those aspects together and you will have a story with a much darker vibe.

“At the Pacific Rim world, humanity has managed to prevent the attacks of the precursors. However, there is no doubt that people are exhausted at the moment, ”explains supervisory director Hiroyuki Hayashi. “We had the idea that the social gap between the different groups would increase under these circumstances. Especially in the frontline areas left behind, people will only see advanced technology when necessary. People in Pacific Rim: The Black they are survivors who have been abandoned by the magic of advanced technology. At the very least, they are described with a level of technology closer to what we have today, except for Jaeger technology. “

Image: Netflix

Concept artist Yuuki Morita’s new creatures are the highlights of the show. But they also posed a challenge, as the production team had to find a way to make those more realistic designs work with anime visuals. “I remember trying to figure out how to apply color tones to designs within the limitations that exist with the anime style, but still maintaining the highly detailed shapes that Morita created for us,” says Moriyama.

Hayashi adds that, due to the collaborative efforts between Polygon in Japan and Legendary in the United States, the designs also have a somewhat international flavor. “It was interesting and gratifying to see that the concept of kaiju, born in Japan – although some may disagree – has diversified and developed in different parts of the world. This is what makes it really interesting to have artists from different cultural backgrounds coming together to create a single work. “

Pacific Rim: The Black is available for streaming on Netflix now, and the seven-episode series represents a way for fans to delve a little deeper into the Pacific Rim mythos – including the fans who worked on it. It is still full of giant robots punching gigantic monsters, but for Moriyama, it was also a chance to expand on the ideas that inspired him so much. “It’s nice to be able to tell a story about characters and villains who are not at the forefront of Pacific Rim universe, and that led me to a greater understanding and expansion of the world in my mind, ”he says.