The combined forces of the creative/production teams at FX Networks and the crew at Method Studios use Unreal Engine and Houdini to conjure a fully-animated six-minute film to set the stage for the period drama series Shōgun.

Steve Viola, SVP, Design & Visual Effects at FX Networks: “This full CG short film is a piece of companion content that we concepted as both a primer and a deep exploration into some of the historical and cultural context underpinning FX’s epic new series.

“The vast majority of sequences were created using Unreal Engine — brought to life through a collaborative partnership between our internal FX Design & VFX group and Method Studios.”
 
 

 
Client: FX Networks
Director: Steve Viola
Writer: Dan Masciarelli and Steve Viola, Synderela Peng
Producer: Dara Barton, Richard Hassen
EP: Stephanie Gibbons, Steve Viola, Synderela Peng, Dara Barton
Art Director: Synderela Peng
Editor: Dan Masciarelli
Design/Concept: FX Design & VFX

VFX/Animation By: FX Design & VFX, Method Studios
VFX Producer: Richard Hassen (FX), Claire Dorwart (Method)
VFX Supervisor: Jean Chiu (FX), Jon Noorlander (Method)

Motion Capture: Animatrik Film Design

Sound Editing: Dan Masciarelli (FX), Gavin Little (Echolab)
Sound Mixing: Gavin Little (Echolab)
Voiceover By: Maya Aoki