Kill Aoharu

**Kill Aoharu** (キルアオハル, *Kiru Aoharu*) is a one-shot manga series created by Tadatoshi Fujimaki, which was published in Weekly Shonen Jump on December 20, 2021, as part of the January 2022 Issue. Notably, the production process of this manga utilized Unreal Engine, a powerful game engine.

Assisting Tadatoshi Fujimaki in this project was Saito, a technical artist from Epic Games Japan (@shiba\_zushi on Twitter). Drawing from his previous experience as a manga artist, Saito played a crucial role in introducing and working with Unreal Engine for the creation of "Kill Aoharu."

During this collaborative effort, Saito conducted an interview with Tadatoshi Fujimaki to delve into the reasons behind incorporating Unreal Engine in "Kill Aoharu" and to highlight the various benefits of using this advanced technology in manga creation.

## Interview with Unreal Engine

***Thank you very much for your time today. Without further ado, what was the reason for incorporating Unreal Engine in "Kill Aoharu"?***
**Tadatoshi Fujimaki:** Up until now, I primarily worked on manga using traditional analog methods, with digital tools limited to small illustrations. However, I had been thinking about trying to create an entire work using a full digital approach that also utilizes 3D elements. It was at that time when Saito-san, a friend of mine since our early days as manga artists, recommended Unreal Engine to me.

Unreal Engine is completely free for use in illustrations and manga creation, and it comes with an abundance of rich content like Megascans and the Marketplace. The editor itself is highly refined. I had already been using Unreal Engine in my manga creation, so I recommended it to him for this project, especially since it was his first time experimenting with 3D.

In practice, those strengths proved to be incredibly useful in the manga production this time. For example, we used assets from the Marketplace for scenes like the school, chemistry laboratory, and the enemy's hideout. It was a post-battle scenario, so we arranged the layout to scatter objects and enhance the visual appeal, but we didn't make significant changes beyond that and utilized the various assets as they were. I presented the layout to my assistants, who then purchased and arranged the assets. The freedom to adjust the layout is undoubtedly one of the advantages of working with 3D.

***By the way, would you like to know which specific assets were used?***
For the classroom, we used "Japanese School Collection," for the chemistry laboratory, "Realistic Lab. Laboratory Equipment," and for the enemy's hideout, "Virtual Palace Interior" and "Old Cabinet Furniture." The ability to easily obtain high-quality models that matched our vision from the Marketplace was convenient. There were many other assets available, and it made me feel like they could be utilized in manga of various genres.

The car enthusiast assistant who helped us this time mentioned, "It's a bit disappointing that there are no actual model assets for cars." Although it may be difficult due to rights-related issues, those with a keen eye for detail might prefer assets that closely resemble real-life models.

Indeed, it's a challenging issue. Megascans and assets from the Marketplace have flexible usage rights and user-friendly licensing formats, which prevent the sale of content without proper rights. While Epic doesn't provide guarantees for everything, this means that even beginners can feel at ease using 3D assets, including a large selection of free assets.

Unreal Engine also supports importing various model data and LiDAR data, which means one possible approach is to perform simple scans using devices like an iPhone for use in projects.

That sounds incredibly useful. By conducting 3D scans during interviews, one can create safe assets, and unlike photographs where additional angles would require another round of interviews, 3D can resolve that issue. Alternatively, for assets to be used in various scenes, commissioning their creation could also be a good option.

***What benefits did you experience when actually using Unreal Engine in your production?***
One of the remarkable aspects of Unreal Engine is the ability to freely manipulate the camera in real-time. Regardless of wide-angle or telephoto settings, it allows you to explore angles that would be challenging to capture in actual photographs, making it easy to adopt compositions that are normally difficult to use. Especially concerning the fisheye effect, the capability to freely move the camera in a fisheye state is fantastic. I believe this is something that may not be easily achievable in other applications.

On a personal note, one thing that struck me while using Unreal Engine is that I wished I had it during the serialization of my weekly series, especially during "Kuroko's Basketball" (laughs). It has been incredibly useful for scenes like classrooms this time, but I think Unreal Engine is truly powerful when you have a single scene depicted from various angles, such as a basketball court during a game.

Moreover, the freedom to adjust the field of view and angles not only aids in the actual drawing process but also helps in understanding perspective. Since the image changes correctly in real-time, it becomes easier to convey how perspective changes to those who are not accustomed to drawing backgrounds.

I also found it advantageous that the barrier to entry was very low. Not only for myself but also for the assistants, most of whom had little experience with 3DCG software, after a 2-3 hour lecture from Saito-san, they were able to start production after about 10 hours of learning. This time, we adopted a method of learning while actually trying out various features, but having specific documentation or manuals tailored for manga artists could further expedite the process.

***We definitely want to support and incorporate Unreal Engine in the future! Now, could you please explain the manga production flow using Unreal Engine?***
Certainly! Let's use the scene where the protagonist, Ichiro Wanibuchi, jumps into the classroom as an example. First, as with conventional manga production, we start from the "name" (rough draft) and then proceed with the underdrawing, adding rough sketches of backgrounds, and so on. During this process, we had the assistants search for assets that would fit the scene.

## References

 "Interview with Unreal Engine". — Read the rest on their website.