Popular pirate adventure anime One Piece has put out 20 seasons and numerous films over the past twenty years. Even with so much released under the franchise, the series has remained a fan favorite over the years with consistent viewership, and it appears those viewers have a new short film to look forward to.
A Japanese press release recently announced the One Piece series will be getting something a little different: a new "short" movie, but with a blend of animation and live-action. Not a lot of detail was released about the movie, however, it was announced that a "famous" director would be overseeing the live-action sequences while multiple anime directors from the show will be working on the animated parts. It was also teased that the short film may release directly to YouTube instead of airing on television, meaning that fans all over the world should be able to experience it upon its release.
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No release date or names of the cast and crew were officially announced yet, but more information should be coming around early September. Even though the One Piece film is being referred to as short, the length is undetermined. With all of the information given, it stands to reason that the film may be slightly longer than the average short (spanning from 3-20 minutes) while still remaining shorter than a feature-length movie. The announcement also came with a new cover teased on the Weekly Jump anime magazine.
The general premise of the One Piece series follows the main character Monkey D. Luffy as he sets off on a journey to find a treasure known as the one-piece, which will proclaim him King of the Pirates. While building his crew, which he calls the Straw Hat Pirates, Luffy meets a number of friends who join him. After acquiring a ship, called the Going Merry, the crew encounter peril and trouble at every corner of their journey, from bounty hunters to corrupt governments. Each season of the show deals with different aspects of this journey and other adventures.
It is unclear what part of this journey the short One Piece film will deal with. A blend of animation and live-action is sure to bring a new exciting element to the franchise, and maybe it could even lead into a feature-length film of the same style.
Which characters and settings of One Piece will remain animated and which will be live-action in the film is also unclear. However, the film will undoubtedly add another level of depth to the endless journeys of Luffy and his Straw Hat crew.
One Piece anime series is available to stream on Funimation.
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Source: Dualshockers