VFX Supervisor Hayden Jones details how he and his team created the world of Ultraman: Rising, taking inspiration from previous iterations, and more.
Ultraman: Rising is a wonderful introduction into the world for those who do not know anything about Ultraman, and a great addition to the franchise for those that do. With Tokyo under siege from rising monster attacks, baseball star Ken Sato reluctantly returns home to take on the mantle of Ultraman.
Ultraman: Rising VFX Supervisor Hayden Jones describes how he first came onto the project, revealing that Writer/Director Shannon Tindle approached him asking two questions. 1. Do you think ILM would be interested in doing a feature animation? And 2. How much do you know about Ultraman? He admitted that the did not know much about Ultraman, but jumped at the chance to some feature animation.
“Growing up in the UK, we were Doctor Who. Ultraman never really got screened. But like all good shows, one of the best things about doing any visual effects show, is that you get to do a deep dive at the start,” Jones explains. He then goes on to say that how the technicalities of visual effects work in tandem with storytelling has always been a really interesting aspect of filmmaking for him.
“One of the things that really, really inspired me is the legacy. It felt like this whole world had been opened up. I remember, in that first meeting, Tom Knott, one of the producers, gave me, literally, a box of DVDs,” Jones details. “I dug in and watched as many series as I could, and it was like, wow, there was such a legacy here, and such a cultural heritage.”
He reveals that when starting any project, he wants to be sure to really honor what came before it. “We’re adding to it and we’re layering it in, but we’re always really respectful of where it’s been and where we can take it in the future.”
One of the aspects that the team knew they needed to get right was Tokyo. Since they could not visit the city, they looked to Google, researching street views of some streets in Tokyo. “What we wanted to do was create the feel and the vibe of where we thought the show could go. So making it colorful, getting that feeling of stylization.”
Hayden Jones wanted to make sure that Ultraman: Rising paid homage to some of the iconic moments in Ultraman as well. “There was so much richness in all of this artwork that we knew we were going to be referencing this every single step of the way.”
“We wanted to really make something that allowed Shannon Tindle and John Aoshima to have the most freedom as possible, so we didn’t want to bake anything in. We didn’t want it to only work from certain camera angles. So they could light a scene in whatever that way they wanted. They could put the camera wherever it was. They could animate the characters however they wanted, and the look of the show would would still work.” Hayden Jones explains.
Ultraman: Rising is streaming on Netfix. If you have not already seen it, be sure to check it out and see just how much detail and love went into making it as beautiful as it is.
NEXT: Ultraman: Rising Filmmakers Respond To Internet’s Thirst For Ken Sato
About Ultraman: Rising
With Tokyo under siege from rising monster attacks, baseball star Ken Sato reluctantly returns home to take on the mantle of Ultraman. But the titanic superhero meets his match when he is forced to adopt a 35-foot-tall, fire-breathing baby kaiju. Sato must rise above his ego to balance work and parenthood while protecting the baby from forces bent on exploiting her for their own dark plans.
In partnership with Netflix, Tsuburaya Productions, and Industrial Light & Magic, Ultraman: Rising is written by Shannon Tindle and Marc Haimes, directed by Shannon Tindle, and co-directed by John Aoshima.
Ultraman: Rising is now streaming on Netflix.
Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. She is also a Freelance Writer. Tessa has been in the Entertainment writing business for ten years and is a member of several Critics Associations including the Critics Choice Association and the Greater Western New York Film Critics Association.