Japanese anime filmmaker Shinichiro Watanabe, known for directing Cowboy Bebop, is doing an animated prequel short film for the upcoming Blade Runner 2049.
Titled Blade Runner Black Out 2022, the anime will take place three years after the time of the original Blade Runner and will feature a large power outage on the west coast of the United States.
Watanabe is writing the script in addition to directing, while Cygames Pictures is producing the animation. Flying Lotus is composing the music, plus Kenichirou Matsuda, Ichigo Aoba, and Makoto Furukawa will lend their voices.
Below is a short video showing off some animation tests and character designs from the animated short.
Also below, arethe character posters for the main Denis Villenueuve directed main feature which opens October 6th around much of the world and October 27th in Japan.
