FX and Method Studios Spotlight the History of Feudal Japan with ‘World of Shogun’
World of Shōgun is a six-minute fully animated piece of short form content produced by FX, in close collaboration with Method Studios. Created principally in Unreal Engine, World of Shogun was envisioned as self-contained companion content meant to immerse audiences in the enthralling world of FX’s landmark limited series. In addition to introducing some of the show’s key conflicts and central characters, World of Shogun provides audiences with a historical overview of Feudal Japan and a deeper understanding of the power struggles that springboard the series’ events.
In early 2022, FX’s marketing team began development on a plan to launch the series. Stephanie Gibbons, FX’s president of marketing, approached their Content Design & VFX team with a creative challenge, “Shogun takes place in mediaeval Japan, a rich and vast world, with historical and period specific complexities. We need to create a lush companion piece that sets the table for fans – an experiential tapestry with the context and detail they need to fully immerse themselves in the Shogun experience.” The team was eager to assist and set out on a two-year journey to create an epic and engaging entry-point for audiences to discover the new series.
The task proved to be more challenging than anticipated. The FX Design & VFX team worked with the series historians while exhaustively researching a wide gamut of Japanese history, from the social and bureaucratic structures of the Nara Period, through the end of Tokugawa shogunate. FX’s SVP, design & VFX – director of World of Shogun – Steve Viola, recounted, “Before details could be parsed and explained to audiences, every aspect concerning variances between historical fact, James Clavell’s novel, and the show needed to be considered…we had to become in-house experts. Maintaining a high level of authenticity and attention to detail was an approach set forth by the series producers – including Hiroyuki Sanada. It became a guiding principle for every aspect of the project.”
As the FX team developed the script, storyboards, edit, and visual style of the piece, they were also building out a library of CG assets, many originating as photogrammetry from the show’s visual effects team. These included key characters, sets, props, and wardrobe, which would serve as base assets and helped ensure both authenticity and a degree of continuity with the show itself.
In June 2022, as the project began to take shape, FX knew the piece would be a continuously evolving narrative, offering a perfect opportunity to tap into the power of Unreal Engine as the core production package. This also meant it was time to bring in a key visual effects partner. Steve approached Method Studios to collaborate on the project, “I knew we needed a partner who understood our brand, the intersection of design & visual effects, and had the resources and expertise to execute this piece in Unreal.”
While the FX team continued development on the script, editorial, motion design of the opening sequence and titles, a number of individual VFX shots, and finishing – Method Studios was now a major partner taking on the majority of the visual effects sequences including layout, animation, fx, lighting, and compositing. Method’s involvement early in the production process also proved instrumental as they developed innovative tools to translating FX’s signature Shōgun aesthetic into a unique creative look dev inside Unreal.
Method began look development exploring the stylistic approach that would allow World of Shōgun to fully showcase the authentic detail present in every asset, scan and CG model used, all-the-while while being visually artistic enough as to ensure a clear differentiation from the show itself. The shot work was almost entirely executed in Unreal Engine, with minimal post-processing in Nuke. Jon Noorlander, global ECD at Method added, "With its real-time rendering, world-building, and metahuman capabilities, there was no better tool for this film than Unreal." Unreal Engine's Metahumans made it possible to create photoreal likenesses, grooms, and facial animations. The epic fight sequences were done by leveraging UE's extensive mocap toolset. The stylized treatment was also developed in Unreal, using carefully considered and hand-placed brush stroke textures to nail the painterly effect. Additionally, the Houdini FX produced by Method Studios ranged from a photoreal falcon with a feather system to cloth, armour, groom, water, and fire.
“Everything about the piece continued to evolve throughout production as we kept sharpening the script to optimise our storytelling, and continually fact-checking every aspect of what we were creating,” said Dan Masciarelli of FX’s Content Design group. This necessitated that FX and Method work closely in parallel, FX mocking up newly scripted sequences then sending edit collects along to Method to repopulate with shot updates – a process made possible with Method’s Unreal pipeline. Ultimately the plan paid off and culminated in a highly successful and unique partnership between FX and Method Studios through to the end of the production process.
With a production spanning just shy of two years, this project required just about every discipline the teams at FX and Method Studios possess – and the final result is nothing short of stunning.
‘FX’s Shōgun’ premiered globally on February 27 and is Now Streaming Exclusively on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ in the U.S., Star+ in Latin America and Disney+ in All Other Territories.
