The official report of the talk event featuring the staff of "The Land of Jewels" has arrived!

An official report from the staff talk show held at HMV & BOOKS SHIBUYA on December 23 (Sat.) from the TV anime "Treasure Land" has arrived.

The "Land of Jewels" is a popular comic series written by Haruko Ichikawa and serialized in "Afternoon" (Kodansha). Set in the distant future, in a world where creatures that once existed have become "jewels" with immortal bodies, this action fantasy depicts a fierce battle between the "moon people," a mysterious enemy that comes from the moon, and the jewels, The TV anime adaptation was decided in May 2017 and aired from October to December 2017.
⇒ The popular comic "The Land of Jewels," written by Haruko Ichikawa, will be adapted into an anime this fall! Directed by Naohiko Kyogoku, character design by Asako Nishida, production by Orange

On Saturday, December 23, just before the broadcast of the final episode of the TV anime, an official report from a talk show featuring the staff and comments from the guests arrived at HMV & BOOKS SHIBUYA in Shibuya, Tokyo.

Official Report】 【Official Report
TV animation "The Land of Jewels" staff talk show

The popular comic "The Land of Jewels" written by Haruko Ichikawa is serialized in Kodansha's "Afternoon" magazine.
On Saturday, December 23, just before the broadcast of the final episode of the TV anime, a talk show featuring the staff was held at HMV & BOOKS SHIBUYA in Shibuya.

The moderator, producer Katsuhiro Takei of Toho, and producer Sumiken Wakei of Orange, the production company that handles the animation production, took the stage and began with a talk about the initial planning of the "Land of Jewels" anime. Producer Takei started planning the animation in 2013, and Orange began production in 2015. The work that has been created over a long period of time is finally reaching its final episode.

When Mr. Waki first heard about the project, he said, "I thought the challenge of drawing the characters in full CG was interesting. Orange is a site that specializes in CG production, but I had just moved here from an animation site that specializes in drawing, so at first I learned how to create CG at various companies in order to study CG production," he said, revealing the difficulties of working on a work with an approach that was new to him as well.

As for the highlights of the final episode, which will finally air, Takei said, "The opening music has a slightly different twist to it. Also, you can hear the voice of Paparazzi played by Rumi Park for the first time, so please look forward to it. A yellow arrow came out of the body of the moon person who came in the first episode, and that is a piece of Heliodor. In the last episode, you will see a precious scene in which Heliodor appears, so please pay attention to it," she said with high expectations.


Next, Mr. Junmasa Terui, producer of the opening music, took the stage.
Mr. Takei commented on the selection of Mr. Terui, "Music is especially important in "The Land of Jewels," and I wanted the music to be impressive and symbolic of the work. I had decided to ask YURiKA, who is expressive and can sing any song, to sing. I was interested in Ms. Terui's activities, which go back and forth between idol songs and avant-garde rock music.

I felt that "Jewel Land" is also a cutting-edge manga with catchy characters and drama, but the expression itself is cutting-edge, so I felt there was a connection to that creative viewpoint," said Terui. The main anime was created with a conscious effort to provide information in an easy-to-read manner, but I dared to create the opening and ending themes based on the concept of retaining the flavor of the original work. Usually in my music, I try to make the erased parts of the story stand out by erasing the musical emotion and human touch.

Mr. Terui also talked about the concept behind the creation of the song, "At first, the sounds and words are scattered like fragments, but then they all come together in the chorus," and how the title logo appears as the scattered fragments come together. The title logo appears in the middle of the song.

The artist YURiKA, who sings the opening theme song, appeared on stage at this point.
When she first heard the song, YURiKA shared her initial impression, "Up until now, most of my songs have been cheerful songs that expressed the image of myself as perceived by the people around me, but this song has a unique atmosphere, and I was worried at first whether I would be able to sing it well. During the recording session, "I not only played the drums, but I also collected sounds by hitting various objects in the studio, such as ashtrays and spray cans," she said, describing the fun she had during the recording.

Kiyoyuki Amano of Kayac, the video director who created the impressive opening video, also took the stage.
This was the first time he had worked on an opening video for an anime.Mr. Kazuki conveyed his concept of making a flat picture look three-dimensional using camera work while maintaining the image of the original comic book cover, and Mr. Amano, who specializes in video programming, created a video that came very close to that image.
At the event, the video storyboards from the initial stages were shown for the first time, showing the triangular polygons coming together to form the title logo, the impressive camera work showing the jewels one after the other, and other valuable storyboards that will lead to the final version of the video.


The video was also shown in a version that had been rearranged several times but had not been adopted, including a video showing noise in the arms and legs of Hoss, who appears at the end of the opening scene. According to Amano, "In the film, Hoss is broken and regenerated. This version was not shown to the public because it would lead to spoilers, but it showed the trial-and-error process that went into the making of the video, which is filled with many details and particulars. This version has not been released because it would be a spoiler.

YURiKA commented on the finished opening video, "I am just so moved by it. The vividness of the gemstones and the sense of floating were wonderful," she said of her impressions when she saw the video.


Amano was also involved in the production of the opening CD jacket and commercials, which were elaborately created by making jewel-shaped motifs out of styrofoam and illuminating them with various images using project mapping.
In addition, Mr. Amano suggested a countdown site to coincide with the appearance of Antaak in episode 7. Since the broadcasting time differs among the four broadcasters, the site was divided into four separate screens, and each time a new screen was opened, the site would be opened to show the appearance of Antaak.
Mr. Amano came up with ideas not only for the opening video, but also for various aspects of the work.

Next, Ms. Tomoko Yamada of Chicols, who is involved in the package design of the Blu-ray & DVDs now on sale, took the stage. She usually works mainly on book design, and this is her first time working on anime package design.

Ms. Yamada presented her Blu-ray & DVD package proposals for the competition, including a gorgeous package made of transparent layers, which she said "I came up with the idea without regard to the cost, because there is no way I could make something like this. He also presented a variety of packaging ideas rich in design, such as a mineral case proposal that can be reassembled with your favorite characters out of it. The third proposal, a jewelry box idea, was then adopted as the current package design.

The corners of the package were cut off and the design was created in the image of a jewelry box, and the area to be stamped with foil was also adjusted many times.


The concept behind the illustrations for each volume was the image of "expression through light and lines." Mr. Yamada said, "I felt that it would be interesting to mix realistic and manga-like expressions, and this was the theme of the design for this issue.

While working on the package design for this project, he also mentioned that there was a time when he wondered if it needed to be treated in a way that would make it stand out as a package in addition to its innovative expressions. At that time, those around him said, "It's interesting that it has never been seen before," and he added, "I felt that the entire site was challenging everything. I felt that my concept was valued all the way through to the end.

As for the booklet, he said, "I wanted to show a lot of beautiful setting pictures, so I wanted to organize and show the charm of the world in a limited number of pages. The shape and length of the swords held by the jewels and other detailed settings are very interesting, and I am planning to include important material from the story in the BD & DVD volume 3 onward, so I hope you will look forward to it," he said, drawing cheers from the audience.

The event ended on a high note with behind-the-scenes stories about the work, which included not only the main animation, but also the music, opening video, packaging, and all other aspects of the work.

The following are messages from the guests to the fans.

＜Mr. Takei
Thanks to the staff who gathered here with their love for the original work and spirit of challenge, we had a lot of fun making this film. I am very grateful to the staff for their love of the original work and their willingness to take on new challenges, and I hope you will continue to support us on the Blu-ray and DVD releases.

<Mr. Waki
I had a lot of fun working on the TV anime "The Land of Jewels" during its production. Many of us tried our hand at something for the first time in this work, and I felt that it was fun to work with people like that on an anime. I think everyone's motivation to take on challenges led to the quality of this work.

<Terui> "It was an honor to be involved in this wonderful work.
I am honored to be involved in such a wonderful work. There is still a lot to look forward to in the final episode, so please pay attention and watch it.

<YURiKA> "I am also a fan of the original work.
I am also a fan of the original work, and I am happy to sing the opening song for this wonderful work that many people have created with love.

<Mr. Amano
I am happy to be involved in this wonderful work. I have never done an opening for an anime before, but I am glad that I was offered the chance and that I was able to make it.

<Yamada
I love this work, so I am happy to be involved as half a fan and half a staff member. We are working from the same perspective as the fans, so I hope you will look forward to the future Blu-ray and DVD releases as well.

The first volume of the TV anime "The Land of Jewels" Blu-ray & DVD is on sale now, and episode 8 "Untouchsight" will be rebroadcast on BS11 on Saturday, December 30 at 23:00!　You can also listen to the staff commentary in the secondary sound, so please be sure to tune in.

Event Outline]
Date: Saturday, December 23, 2017
Venue: HMV & BOOKS SHIBUYA
・Guest:
　Producer: Katsuhiro Takei (Toho)
　Production Producer: Sumiken Waki (Orange)
　OP Music Producer: Junmasa Terui
　OP theme artist YURiKA
　OP Video Director: Kiyoyuki Amano (Kayak)
　Videogram Package Designer Tomoko Yamada (Chicols)

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