Newtype exclusive interview: Jellyfish Can't Swim in the Night Ryōhei Takeshita and Composition Writer/Screenwriter Yūki Yaku

Where are these drifting jellyfish headed?

A jellyfish dives into the big unknown blue and begins to swim! Illustrator Mahiru Kōzuki quit drawing after having her artwork ridiculed. Idol Kano Yamanouchi left her group Sunflower Dolls after causing a scandal. Kiui Watase stopped going to school, living a double life as a Vtuber. Mei “Kim Anouk” Takanashi struggled in school due to her mixed German heritage and shy personality, devoting herself to supporting her idol. The paths of these four broken-hearted girls converge in the night, and together they form the anonymous artist, JELEE. With Mei's musical composition, Kano's lyrics and vocals, Mahiru's illustrations, and Kiui's video editing skills combined, the songs they create traverse the seas of the world wide web to reach listeners across the globe.

Jellyfish Can't Swim in the Night is an original anime series directed by Ryohei Takeshita and written by Yūki Yaku. The story centers around four girls who want to pursue their passions without the pressure of conforming to media standards, inspired by the recent rise of online artists who don't reveal their names or faces. JELEE's music is provided by composer 40mP, artwork provided by illustrator Hamunezuko, among collaborations with many other creators. JELEE's music is featured in the endings of episodes 3 through 5 as well as other dramatic points throughout the story to demonstrate the girls' growth not only through the plot, but from a creative perspective as well.

In the midst of their growth journey, the girls are met with a big challenge. The producer of Sunflower Dolls, the idol group of which Kano was once the leader, comes to Mahiru with a work proposal. The producer is none other than Kano's mother, and she wants to use Mahiru's artwork to promote Sunflower Dolls' new song. If Mahiru accepts her offer, there's a chance she won't be able to work on JELEE's new music video that's scheduled for release at the end of the year. Having performed their first online-only live concert without an audience and gained over 100,000 followers on social media, what lies in store for JELEE now? Will they choose to live as creators, or will they each walk their four separate paths? When rocked by such a great wave, just where will these jellyfish wind up?!

Interview with director Ryōhei Takeshita and composition writer/screenwriter Yūki Yaku:

A work propelled by high enthusiasm.

─I understand that you two have known each other since before Jellyfish, correct?

Takeshita: Yes. I held a seminar called “The Making of the Eromanga Sensei Anime," and Yaku was kind enough to attend.

Yaku: I'm a big fan of the Eromanga Sensei anime. I'm not usually the type to attend seminars like that, but I thought if it was for Eromanga Sensei, then I wanted to go. It was there that I gave Takeshita and the other staff a copy of my light novel, Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki.

Takeshita: That's right. And from there, we started communicating through direct mail on social media.

–What were your impressions when you saw director Takeshita's plans for an original anime?

Yaku: When I heard the project was about creators who "seek approval via the Internet," "can't help comparing themselves to others'' and "discover their true passions," I thought to myself, "This is right up my alley." I felt like he was presenting me with a project that I could definitely write. Not to mention I liked the atmosphere of Takeshita's works so much that I'd even attend seminars on them, so of course, there was no way I could pass up the opportunity!

Takeshita: Yaku gave me a copy of his book, and once I read it, there was just something in my mind that told me I wanted to work with him someday. And there was also a part of me that wanted to come up with an original work that would pique his interest.

Yaku: And he succeeded.

–What were some interesting or difficult aspects for the two of you in regards to working on an original anime?

Takeshita: When directing an adaptive work, I mean a work with source material, we shape the characters from our own feelings, but the original author's ideas within the story must still be respected as law. Making an original anime, on the other hand, is really interesting because we can decide all the correct answers for ourselves.

Yaku: I usually write light novels, so I'm pretty much always writing on my own. However with anime, everyone's sharing their opinions and considering the work from all these different angles, and doing so continuously just about every week over the span of one or two years. That was such a stimulating experience for me. We would spend a week rewriting the script and then brush it up at another meeting the following week. Doing that over and over so many times taught me new perspectives that I never would have considered before, and I truly think I gained so much experience from it.

Takeshita: Having meetings with people who were just as passionate as we were was really exciting. It was a lot of fun.

Yaku: I agree. We made a group chat on LINE messenger, a popular Japanese messenger application for our meetings, and even before meetings I would be on the phone with Takeshita…

Takeshita: I would also come to Yaku's workplace sometimes, or the two of us would go out for dinner after script reading sessions and discuss more there.

Yaku: I've always been really enthusiastic when it comes to creating, and sometimes I worry that my enthusiasm is too much and that I might end up pushing others around. But Takeshita was able to match my level of enthusiasm, so I was really grateful for that.

–How do you two feel about social media and streaming?

Takeshita: I always felt that Yaku's stories are very relevant to the current generation, with believable depictions of social media and the like. Yaku is pretty social media-savvy himself, so I thought it would be great if I could incorporate that strength of his into our work.

Yaku: I consider myself fluent in social media, and I'm often looking at the way people talk online and via social media and learning how people behave. It's one of the places where I conduct my fieldwork. I suppose it then translates into my work as a result.

–It sounds like social media is an essential part of your work, isn't it? What is a moment that stands out to each of you working on this anime that made you think, “This is really interesting!”?

Takeshita: Well, the script Yaku wrote is interesting, and the storyboards I draw myself also have to be interesting if I'm going to move forward with them. And Junichirō Taniguchi's character designs are also very cute. But there was a part of me that worried about how viewers would perceive the finished product when it all came together as one. We did some editing at the uncolored stage, added in some voices and music, and when we watched it together with the team, everyone was happy with it. At that moment I felt relieved in a way as director, and decided I should trust my gut more.

Yaku: For me, there were two points. One was coming up with the plot. The plot for the first episode took me about four times the usual amount of work. When I finished it and everyone told me it was interesting, I felt that if I could keep up that momentum until the end, then it would definitely become an interesting anime. The second moment was when I watched the first episode in its completion. I did feel that the script was compelling, but I wasn't sure how it would turn out as an animation. I had no idea how the night-time atmosphere or “street” feel would come across on film. When I saw how Takeshita and the team had created such a wonderful atmosphere with their elaborate compositions and skillful portrayal in the finished product, that was when I really felt how good it was.

–Please share your impressions and feedback from working together on this project.

Takeshita: Creating an original animation comes with many challenges. There were times when we demanded high-level work from the staff and pushed them to their limits, and there were also times when our opinions clashed in the middle of script readings. But every time we got through it as a team and managed to complete it. What makes me happiest as a director is the fact that we were able to make something everyone could be satisfied with and proud of.

Yaku: I agree. I'm glad I was able to be a part of it.

This interview was originally published in Newtype's July 2024 issue.

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