In an industry that historically thrives on hierarchy and earning your spot as a director over years of work, one animator has been something of a bombshell. An 18-year-old animator from the Philippines has made quite the impression in the last two years.This spring, the third season of Kaguya-Sama: Love is War has been airing, and one of the ridiculously well-animated ending sequences caught a lot of viewers' attention. It portrayed a hyper-detailed idol performance by the main characters, with plenty of singing and spectacular dancing.
The New Kid
The director behind this opening was 18-year-old Vercreek, whose name has gained prominence in the sakuga community for their expressive character animation and impactful effects work. Their earliest prominent work can be found in the likes of SAO: Alicization - War of Underworld from 2019, as well as short but sweet cuts on One Piece,Wonder Egg Priority, and Deca-Dence.
Vercreek began to gain more prominence with MAPPA in 2020, when they worked on Jujutsu Kaisen and Attack on Titan: The Final Season. While not everyone was happy with the increase in CGI in AoT, the hand-drawn character animation was at the top of its game, and Vercreek certainly contributed their share.
While not in abundance, the quality of their work lent a lot to the episodes they partook in. Look at this clip from Titan. Observe the way the characters react to the smoke and how the slight screen-shaking conveys the shifting air before the airship towering above has been revealed. In addition to the character expressions and movements, the ways fabric and hair move are impressively intricate.
In the same way, observe these cuts from Jujutsu Kaisen[1][2]. Vercreek puts a lot of detail into clothes during heightened moments of physicality, notably when speed is a factor. It's not just about movement but detail as well, and shadows are a great way to add detail to the folds of clothes. When clothes aren't a factor, Vercreek uses the shadows cast upon muscles on the body.
Director Vercreek
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Realist animation for body movement can make a fight scene a visual feast for the eyes. It can work for dancing as well, or any complex motion (cooking, running, interacting with machinery, etc.). And that's where Kaguya's new ED comes barging in.
For Vercreek - at so young an age - to be the director of the opening is quite a feat. The sequence is already hilarious for all the reasons the other ending sequences have been. Seeing the cast in totally random scenarios with designs and animation styles wholly different from the main show is insane. This new ending just raised the bar.
It almost bears resemblance to those 30-second ads for Fate/Grand Order or other mobile games, where they're animated by Korean or Chinese studios with ridiculous polish. It seems intentionally "extra," which is probably the joke. On Twitter, Vercreek confessed that the team argued about "how to make Shirogane look hotter," a truly noble mission indeed.
Hope For The Industry
Vercreek's Twitter feed is awash with tons of insight and details on who worked on which parts. It's a blessing that more and more animators are active on social media to give proper credit to the artists behind so many of the anime that come out each season.
There's plenty more to say about Vercreek and tons that's already been said in interviews within the sakuga community on various forums and fan sites. The anime industry certainly comes under fire at times for the wages and working conditions. As the medium expands, these issues need to be dealt with. Simultaneously, it's important to appreciate the talent that will come to define animation in the coming decades.
Vercreek is certainly outspoken about their passion. See the below thread discussing the misconceptions about the process of producing anime.
That insatiable hunger to produce finer and grander art is what attracts people to animation worldwide. The tenacity of animators like Vercreek is a prime example of the well of energy, insight, and vision that exists in the industry. It's the responsibility of that industry to foster that passion and never exploit it.
Kaguya-sama: Love is War - Ultra Romantic is available for streaming in North America on Crunchyroll and Funimation
Source: Vercreek on Twitter / Sakugabooru.com