Final Fantasy Artist Yoshitaka Amano Discusses Next Big Projects

Yoshitaka Amano is a man with a seemingly endless drive. He is in high demand, so there's no shortage of ambitious projects to take on. Such a packed slate takes hard work and focus, so you'd be forgiven for thinking such hardened resolve would be paired with a serious, no-nonsense attitude. But the artist behind iconic Final Fantasy logos and character designs for Gatchaman, Angel's Egg, and Vampire Hunter D has an effortlessly cool attitude and friendly demeanor.

The storied artist was a guest of honor at Anime Expo 2023. Anime News Network had the opportunity to sit down with him to ask about his recent work and upcoming endeavors – some smaller in scale and others quite massive! He also shared details about these projects at his panel on Sunday, and between the two, the legendary career of Yoshitaka Amano came into sharp focus.

So what's Amano been up to?

He recently had a special exhibition called “GOLDEN VIEW OF THE WORLD,” commemorating his 70th birthday, displayed at Myoshinji Temple in Kyoto, an unheard-of honor for a contemporary artist. In the gaming space, Final Fantasy XVI, which debuted worldwide on June 22, once again features his iconic stylings for its logo. In the anime world, Amano is abuzz with excitement that his original creation ZAN will be adapted into an anime film.

And as if the man didn't have enough on his plate, he's embarked on his most significant project to date – literally and figuratively! The Mythology Project is a massive painted mural that, when finished, will span a mind-boggling 100 square meters!

Amano got into the world of anime when he started working with Tatsunoko when he was 15, having visited a friend in Tokyo who worked for Tatsunoko. They were working on Speed Racer then, and he had off-handedly commented about how cool it would be to work there. He brought some of his illustrations along with him and left them there. Not long after that, he received a call offering him a job.

During the panel, the host mentioned that a biography of Amano was released through Dark Horse Comics, which is only available in English and French. Why only those two languages? Apparently, Amano is somewhat embarrassed about its details and doesn't want it released in Japanese. “But anyway,” Amano added, “you can skip the stuff about me and learn about anime in the 60s, 70s, and 80s!”

The first exposure many anime fans had to Amano's work was through Vampire Hunter D, which had just reached its 40th anniversary. The author of the novel series Hideyuki Kikuchi allowed him to read the novel and illustrate whatever he wanted, which Amano said was probably his first work outside of the typical illustration work he was doing at the time. He seemed to reserve a special place in his heart for Vampire Hunter D and told the panel audience, “I've done a ton of stuff over the years, but Vampire Hunter D is one that I always find myself going back to.”

Flash forward to now, and we find Amano setting out on the production of an animated film adaptation of his own original story ZAN. Animation studio JAYMEN TOKYO announced at Anime Expo that it would collaborate with N LITE (MFINDA) and Amano himself to bring this tale to the big screen. The movie is planned for release as early as 2025.

Amano has wanted to see ZAN adapted into a feature for a long time. We asked him about his dream project coming together. Present with us at the interview is JAYMEN TOKYO and SOZO Comics producer Hiroaki Ikegami, who was crucial in getting the project off the ground, and JAYMEN TOKYO producer Kazuhiko Yusa, as well as Mariko Suzuki from M's Management Studio.

Anime News Network: ZAN was announced to be in production. I know you've been working on realizing that for a long time. How does it feel to see that coming together?

Yoshitaka AMANO: ZAN started over twenty years ago, in 1999, with the simple premise of "hero," and it was meant to involve art and video and different types of mediums. Over those twenty-some years, it's grown and developed – matured; you could say – and evolved into something a bit different.

For me, it's basically a dream come true. I never imagined things would progress this far in this short amount of time, but here we are. And to be able to announce that in America, of all places, is a very special thing as well.

How closely are you working with the production team on ZAN, and how's it been so far?

Hiroaki IKEGAMI: We're just getting started, so we've finally been able to sit down together and dig into it. He'll be working closely with them whenever different elements of the team have been established.

What steps are you looking to take to ensure Amano's distinct art style is faithfully realized in anime form?

Mariko SUZUKI Mr. Yusa and his team would submit something to Mr. Amano, and he would trace over it by hand, and that would go back and forth until Mr. Amano was satisfied with how it turned out. That's the current plan.

When Amano first set out to create ZAN, it was just a collection of images, and the story began to take shape. From there, the blossoming concept inspired more illustrations, which fueled the story, and so on. There were 300 or so works featuring abstract ideas, elements of religion, etc., and Carl Horn of Dark Horse was pivotal in putting it all together.

Horn said the original manuscript for ZAN hasn't been published anywhere before, including in Japan. Most of the time, on a project like this, he receives the assets in digital form, but all of ZAN's assets were physical. It was a rare and exciting opportunity to handle non-digital illustrations for once.

Horn goes on to say that editing the book was a process in and of itself. “It features themes like rediscovering one's true identity and their connection to the cosmos and esoteric concepts taken from Buddhism and other religions. There's a version of New York where the sun never sets, with the buildings at strange angles. It was a cool experience trying to interpret it all.”

Horn offered a one-sentence elevator pitch of ZAN: "It's like Dante's Inferno meets Ocean's Eleven.”

During the panel, the production team shared a few thoughts on the project. They're all excited that things have finally crystallized to become a real project. Yusa commented that he is honored to be a part of it but is also very nervous and feeling the heat. But he will personally have a lot of fun on it, so it will be something everyone can enjoy, and he can't wait to bring it over to audiences outside of Japan.

N LITE MEDIA is another collaborator on the project, and producer Shin Kodayama was also at the panel. Koyamada, well-known to Western audiences for his role alongside Tom Cruise in The Last Samurai, stated how excited he is to work on the project. Having grown up watching and loving anime and being a fan of Amano's work, he was beaming. He shared that ZAN is based on an art book from Amano that featured over 300 illustrations, and developing a story from the elements present in those works has been an interesting challenge.

Naturally, the conversation shifted to Final Fantasy and Amano's indelible mark on that franchise. He was well known as an artist for the fantasy elements in his work, and in 1987 SquareSoft approached him to work on the first title. Since then, he's been involved with each numbered installment of the long-running franchise, and the recently-released Final Fantasy XVI is no different.

Anime News Network: Your work on the Final Fantasy series, and of course the logos, is iconic, to say the least. Is there anything you wanted to share about your process for the Final Fantasy XVI logo? Are there any hidden details? Or perhaps any less obvious themes you want fans to look for in the logo?

Amano: It's as you see it right now, but if I were to say things about it here, it might ruin things for fans who are still enjoying the game. So part of the fun of playing through the game is that you might see things in the logo in a new light.

I worked with Square-Enix producer Naoki Yoshida on the logo to make sure it was something special, and it went very well. We also worked together on a special poster for FFXVI that hasn't been revealed yet that I'm excited for fans to see.

As it turns out, Amano's work on Final Fantasy led to a special, one-of-a-kind opportunity with a Zen Buddhist temple. Not just any temple, either – The Myoshinji Temple in Kyoto is widely regarded as the most important Zen temple in the world. How is Final Fantasy related? Simply, the monks in residency there are huge fans. Documentarian Gen Iwama recently took footage at the temple and suggested that they have an artist make some kind of contribution. Who? None other than the legend himself, Yoshitaka Amano. Iwama is creating a documentary on Amano's life and will cover the artist's upcoming 'Mythology Project' work.

Thus the "GOLDEN VIEW OF THE WORLD" exhibit was born. In the hundreds of years of the temple's history, there's never been an artist allowed to display anything at the temple, until now. When he was asked to do it, Amano had only seen the temple space one time. He ended up painting a giant pillar in multiple sections. He painted it in his studio and then had to assemble it on-site at the temple.

At the panel, they showed footage of the work displayed at the temple, which can also be viewed at the official website.

Anime News Network: You're famous for your stunning work with watercolor and ink. Are there other physical mediums you like to work with?

Amano: I like doing sculpture work and oil-based painting. That question reminds me as soon I get back to Japan, I have to get to work on an oil-based piece.

Carl Horn chimes in to mention that Amano has done a sculpture for ZAN – “Panther,” the steed ridden by the titular character Deva Zan. Done fully in CGI, it's a life-sized panther measuring about 4 meters long. It's currently in his studio in Moto-Azabu. Every time his friend Michael visits, Michael tries to hop on it, to which Amano will say jovially, “Hey, cut it out!”

Amano told us he was recently looking at some of the work the late artist Kim Jung Gi had done on an iPad and became interested in trying it out. He's dabbled in some digital illustration methods, but he's just having fun with it. It's not for any of his official work. He says his daughter has been introducing him to different digital media for producing art.

During the panel at Anime Expo, they showed a few clips of Amano's work transposed into 3D, adding incredible depth and making his intricate detail work seem practically tactile.

The digital illustration world has seen a shake-up with the introduction of machine-generated tools like Midjourney, so we asked Amano to share his thoughts on it in our interview.

Anime News Network: We've recently seen the advent of so-called "AI" and machine-learning technology, and it can produce convincing examples of art that could fool someone who doesn't know how to spot the real McCoy. What are your thoughts on this type of machine-generated artwork and tools like it that can emulate even your distinct style?

Amano: If that means I don't have to sit down and do the work, then they can go for it.

The interview staff erupts in laughter. That's not the answer you'd expect from an important figure in the art world.

Amano: It's a different artist. Maybe not 'Yoshitaka Amano,' but 'Yoshitaka AmEno.' Conversely, I would be OK with looking to it for inspiration in some way.

Suzuki told us that his official site is set up for fans worldwide to be able to submit illustrations, and sometimes they receive Amano "works" that are AI-generated, which they sadly have to turn away.

Amano: I think and hope that I have a very delicate touch to my work that would be difficult for AI to emulate. It might produce something convincing, but it would have to catch up. I would still be able to discern what's the real thing. I'll have to maybe try it out myself to see how it would do, but I haven't done so yet.

I want to draw new things, and drawing the same things over and over gets dull, so if AI could do that for me, that might be a good option. The trick is, how do you use it resourcefully and not as just a rip-off?

As more of a tool, then?

Amano: Exactly, yes. But then, if you know people really like it, I can just say, "Yeah, that was totally me."

The room once again bursts out laughing. Amano smiles wide, maintaining his cool composure.

Is there one of your past works that you wished audiences would pay more attention to?

Amano: Not really. The results speak for themselves, so if people didn't enjoy something, it must not have been enjoyable.

It's clear from his demeanor that he's not offended by the notion of any particular work of his being disliked, and he also doesn't mean this in an arrogant way. Quite the opposite, he comes off as easy-going and infallibly chill.

What do you turn to these days when looking for inspiration? Are there any particular stories, music, or games? Or do you find yourself looking to something more personal?

Amano: I was asked this at another convention as well. They said, "What's your inspiration?" and I had to say, I'm not really influenced by anything because I have a backlog of twenty-seven thousand things I want to do in my heart, and until I catch up to getting those done, I don't have time to be inspired by outside things. That doesn't mean I'm not taking inspiration from anything; it's more that I'm so far behind on what I want to do. I just have to keep drawing and drawing.

The exhibition at Myoshinji Temple is one of many ambitious projects Amano has undertaken recently. During the panel and shared with us in our one-on-one conversation, Amano and his associates revealed something called The Mythology Project.

Amano shared that on a recent trip to Berlin, he visited the Pergamonmuseum, and upon seeing the displays and thinking about the grand scale of the Parthenon, he was inspired to create a similarly grand-scale piece. This effort, when finished, will span a massive 100 square meters and feature the embattled figure of Greek mythology. Painted over 16 segments; it's the biggest project he's ever worked on.

And apparently, it doesn't even have a home yet! Amano's team openly mused: “We're wondering where you could even put it. Maybe Shinagawa Station? It's really quite something.”

During the panel, Iwama was introduced and took the opportunity to record live footage of the crowd giving Amano a round of applause. It quickly escalated to what you could sense was a well-deserved and heartfelt standing ovation from the entire room.

Iwama shared that his coverage of The Mythology Project will be a part of an overall documentary about Amano himself. Once some of the buzz had died down, they debuted a dramatic teaser trailer for The Mythology Project. What can be seen in the footage is only a single one of the 16 segments that will comprise the complete work.

Amano expressed that he's pouring his heart into it and was at Anime Expo to absorb the positive energy from fans to pour that into his work. “It's a battle of titans.”

Though it will feature the familiar figures of Greek mythology, he shared that even Panther, ZAN's steed, will appear.

During our one-on-one interview, we touched on the project a bit.

Anime News Network: Related to [digital illustration methods], what project do you think you learned the most from, and what did it teach you? Is there anything about [The Mythology Project] that feels like a new challenge or new skill that you're looking forward to learning from?

Amano: Once they told me they would be shooting this for part of the documentary, I thought, "Oh, I'd better get going on it!" And I didn't think I could do it. It's all these titans of mythology, and it's such a massive scale. What you see [in the visuals] is just 1/16th of it. With Mr. Iwama's documentary being in progress, I'm definitely putting things to work.

One of the things I notice when I'm drawing, or painting is that without even thinking about it, elements of my previous work will suddenly appear. Something from a long time ago will come forth in this new piece. I'm consciously thinking about drawing new things, but in those new things, the past will sometimes emerge.

I had doubts because it's such a big project, but half of life is simply getting out of bed, so once I put pen to paper, it all went fine.

Amano concluded our interview with the same affable nature with which it began:

Is there anything that took you a long time to learn that you wish you'd learned earlier in your career?

Amano: There is... Hmm, well, actually, no, not really!