Chapter 46 – Anime Movie

Anime movies are with years passing getting more popular and are made with even more quality. They may not be as popular as some anime shows, but those who watch them adore them. In the history of anime movies, there are a lot of gems and movies that many people grew up on. You can't mention anime movies without saying "Ghibli Studio", a studio known for creating some absolute gems in the anime movie sphere, like 'My Neighbour Totoro', 'Princess Mononoke' and 'Spirited Away'. When you also look at the entire history of the anime industry, the first Japanese feature-length animated film was created in 1944 and was made as a propaganda film for World War 2, it was ordered to be made by the Japanese Naval Ministry. That movie was said to even move to tears the great mangaka Osamu Tezuka who said that he was moved "by the film's hints of dreams and hopes, hidden under the appearance of war propaganda". In conclusion, a good anime movie can definitely be popular and bring recognition to the studio, but like everything else in life, it is not an easy task…With that said, in the journey of Kira Rowe, when it was ever easy? He will say that he isn't a risk-taker, but when the time calls to make a risky play, be sure that our boy is willing to pull the trigger.

And now was the time for him to make a decision. Yes or no, that was the question and the veteran director didn't look like he would wait long for the answer.

"Before I give you my answer, is the movie an original".

That was the logical thing to ask, as Fukunaga Kenshin didn't mention any publisher or that he made a deal with someone. He was also carrying the script or at least it looked like the script, so Kira guessed this would be an original movie. In other words, there is no source material, this will be entirely their IP.

That on the other hand has both pros and cons.

"Heh, why are you asking me when you already know the answer, stop wasting my time, are you in or not?"

A grumpy answer, something that Kira already got used to, but still he couldn't help but say to himself – 'Why are all the people I work with so weird…except Marie, maybe.'

Kira could give him the answer now but he didn't want to make a haste decision, and obviously, no matter what Kenshin said, he was the one who needed this even more than them, as they were probably his only hope in getting the story in his head animated.

So, Kira informed him of his decision.

"I think positively of your idea, but people who work for me trust me and I trust them, so I won't decide this without asking them about their opinion, I will give you my answer in an hour or two, in the meantime why don't you take a look at our studio".

It was obvious Kenshin wasn't exactly thrilled by that answer but he was experienced enough to have some patience, also he was confident enough to secure this deal, so the man just nodded.

On the other hand, Toma Yuu just muttered to his boss – "10 points", while giving him a thumbs up.

Kira didn't wait for a single second more and he called an emergency meeting, where almost everyone came, other than Joshua who had something to do at his own company and Marie who alongside Keiko Hana was showing Kenshin the studio.

Kira first told them about the situation with 'Dandadan' and even though they were disappointed they understood the situation. After that, he talked to them about Kenshin and the new possible project and about the pros and cons about animating the original.

"First are the cons, the problem is that this movie won't have its already established fan base, as it is with all those that are animating a manga or a novel, marketing is going to be key if we say yes to this project."

As for the pros…

"It is our own IP and we can do everything we want with it, also it is going to be a fresh story that no one knows anything about, so it might get more people interested in it."

Kira told them everything he knew about this topic and he let in this case his favourite scriptwriter to tell them something about his former colleague.

"As a director, I would give him 10 points, he has an excellent mind for this job, but as a leader and a boss I would give him 4 points, a really hard person to work with, he is a perfectionist."

Toma Yuu didn't try to hide anything, honesty is a big part of his character and he was clear in what kind of person Kenshin is.

"So, in the end, what is your opinion about this?"

"Young boss, I think this is a risk worth taking, but in the end it is your call."

"Umm." Kira said and looked at the rest of the crew, "What about you?"

Of course, the next person to say his piece was Yamato Shoda who for some reason looked ecstatic.

"This one thinks it would be the biggest of shame not to take this job, finally it looks like we would make a masterpiece about great Japan."

It is unknown why he would think making a move about war automatically means it will be about Japan, but hey, as long as he is enthusiastic.

After His Highness said his opinion, it was the animator's turn.

"You guys, he would ask a lot from you, are you all ready for it?"

The original trio all looked fired up and ready for action, though Ryo couldn't help himself – "Hmm this sounds interesting, but do you think I could pitch some boobas in this project".

He got ignored.

The newbie animators didn't say anything about it, they just went with the flow and it seemed the whole team was unanimous for the first time in forever, making Kira's life that much easier.

"OK, thank you for all your opinions, I agree with all of you, we are going to take on this project, prepare yourself because, for the first time in this studio's history, we are going to work on two wonderful stories."