Questions of Mirai Millennium

Apologies for being so dead for a while, I am a senior now! (claps for myself)

 

I would like to ask if there have been updates on Mirai Millennium's progress as an anime? I've seen the art, I have seen the trailer, but is there anything on it that it'll be an anime? Or was it just promotion? 

 

 

 

 

@SonataAvalon  As far as I know- and the forum will correct me if I'm wrong- it never amounted into anything in terms of animation. At this point it might be considered either 'concept art' for the Smart Doll line, or an abandoned project, depending on whether you take the 'glass half full' or 'half-empty' approach. I personally choose the former, because I enjoy my Smart Dolls tremendously, and am happy so much focus goes into them. But the old cast, the old concept, has largely been shelved at this point.

Most of Danny's focus seems to be on semi-real sculpts, and not so much the lore around them. There is no mention of Mirai's world. He's semi done away with anime visuals, if not themes, and the last new 'character' we got for the anime line was North. Not connected to the old cast. The SMD team will break out some of the old sculpts once in a while for the Chaos packages and fantasy vinyl colours, and Danny has talked about updating Eiji's body off and on. No more Mirai Millennium-inspired outfits, though Kanata's glasses make an appearance once in a while too.

All in all, I wouldn't call 'Mirai Millenium' lost media, but it's an idea that never got off the ground in its intended format. Instead, Smart Doll reflected concepts for it. And continues to, if I'm not mistaken, with the scifi-military and cyberpunk clothing and accessories, the robo gauntlets / tactical gloves and bio boots, etc. Futurism and fashion combined. I don't think Danny has ever lost interest in his concepts, but his focus has shifted, and he has a business to maintain.

Huh. 

On 11/6/2023 at 2:05 PM, PolitelyNefarious said:

 There is no mention of Mirai's world. 

I expected such.

On 11/6/2023 at 2:05 PM, PolitelyNefarious said:

I don't think Danny has ever lost interest in his concepts, but his focus has shifted, and he has a business to maintain.

If he ever wants to add on, or if he wants to continue adding onto this anime.

I would be VERY interested! 

I think his ideas, concepts of the world, with all he has built, there is something of popularity in an "apocalyptic robot anime" (The Witch From Mercury, an example) these days, and with what is there. It can work. 

I do think I wanna put out a fan work story, to get his attention... ewa...

 

 

While it's not my cup of tea, I know cyberpunk is pretty popular! I'm surprised Danny isn't interested in the idea of an anime of that genre anymore.

2 hours ago, SonataAvalon said:

I expected such.

If he ever wants to add on, or if he wants to continue adding onto this anime.

I would be VERY interested! 

I think his ideas, concepts of the world, with all he has built, there is something of popularity in an "apocalyptic robot anime" (The Witch From Mercury, an example) these days, and with what is there. It can work. 

I do think I wanna put out a fan work story, to get his attention... ewa...

 

 

2 hours ago, RozenGermain said:

While it's not my cup of tea, I know cyberpunk is pretty popular! I'm surprised Danny isn't interested in the idea of an anime of that genre anymore.

What we must keep in mind is that both of these pursuits are cost ventures. It cost money to film and produce Culture Japan that was returned on with ad revenue, sponsorships, etc. Besides the initial filming and editing, we're talking travel expenses, potential licensing fees, and any / all arrangements made between Danny's team and the places and people they featured, before we even get to staff paychecks. It costs money to make Smart Doll- lots of money between base materials, sculpting, assembly, and all the prototypes and inevitable mishaps in between, then take that across the board with dolls, wigs, eyes, and clothes, plus the physical space to accommodate, all of its utilities, etc. There is no doubt in my mind that the Mirai Millennium animations were expensive; they consisted of original music (Lyrics, instrumentation, vocals, editing and processing), fully-rendered professional-grade animation, and for the main OVA, integrated external live-action footage as well. Mister Choo may be the son of a very successful artisan, and a success in his own right, but he's still a businessman. He is rich enough to chase his passions, and apparently be choosy about his consumer base, but he's not going to continue sinking costs into something that doesn't return more than what he's spending.

 

The thing about animation is that it is also expensive. Period. Since we're talking anime, minimum is usually $100,000 per episode, average is between $140,000 to $180,000. An average thirteen episode season may cost around two million, can go up to at least four million, and possibly beyond. And in the day and age of streaming services, your only hope of making back what you earned on that, let alone more, is attaching yourself to a streaming platform that will pay you a percentage of ad revenue, sinking even more money into advertising after they take their chunk, and then praying that enough people will watch it and stick with it to make it all worthwhile.

Ever wonder why so many shows are getting the axe quickly now? Between streaming platforms, the bid to keep viewers invested and actively subscribed is intense, way moreso than TV subscriptions ever were. And with every streaming service bleeding customers, they are quicker to cut their losses on shows they don't feel do well enough, and invest in something they hope will do better instead. Pure ruthlessness through the commodification of art. Some people like VivziePop and Tracy Butler, who have worked their way up in the artistic community and spent years building their reputations, have successfully networked with other artists and professionals within the entertainment industry to create their own animations on YouTube. At least as expensive, very possibly moreso. But Danny would be starting from the bottom up in that world. He has a decent audience to be sure, but he's still niche enough that trying to make that expensive of a venture break even would be a massive gamble.

Meanwhile you can make a lot of Smart Dolls for $100,000 to $180,000 if you can sell them fully painted with eyes, a wig, underwear, stand, and tote for between $350 and $550 a pop. That's not even counting the Chaos section or option parts. And while they are a luxury good- even moreso if you deliberately weed through your consumer base- it is still an easier system. Instead of depending on the consumer's flights of fancy, they are presented with a simple choice: Buy the doll / accessory / part, or wait, knowing that there is limited stock, and risk it selling out. There aren't hundreds of thousands of anime vinyl doll companies for the customer to choose from; there are maybe five or nine at most, and only two other 'mainstream' ones. Advertising can be infinitely cheaper since it's not a mainstream toy; Danny has made numerous videos of his own, and keeps an active social media presence, but whereas he doesn't have proficient influence in the animation community, he does have a good-size audience on social media. People buy his dolls, they review them and catalogue their exploits with them on their social platform of choice: bam. Free advertising. Don't have to pay $$$$$$ for a splashy clipfest ad on top of your other costs. Make sure to run promotions once in a while that reinforce this behavior, provide the most influential ones with spotlights on your own site and occasional products to review, and your work is done.

 

Now I am not saying 'don't make fanart'. By all means, if you like Mirai Millennium that much, you should! Danny clearly loves to see people enjoying his stuff, and why wouldn't he? It can't hurt to remind him you enjoy his original characters. I'm still hoping he'll bring back Eiji/Crimson and Classic Chitose as regular sculpts, even though I know the chances are small. What I am saying is, don't expect an anime. As fun of an endeavor as that would be, it is unrealistic, unless one is prepared to lose millions of dollars. Understandably that isn't a chance many people can take, except in the mainstream entertainment industry, where billion dollar losses happen every year. 

However, that doesn't mean that nothing will come of Mirai Millennium. Like I said, I think Danny is still exploring his ideas and interests, but Smart Doll is the medium he uses to do it. Just between last and this year, along with re-releasing the flight suits, the Smart Doll team produced a number of futuristic parts and accessories including grey skin, a tech-paneled headcap, mecha armor-style boots, robotic hand gauntlets, cyberpunk glasses, and dolls with a special metallic paint application developed just for them that mimics circuitry lines. While I can never say for sure what he may do, there is a good chance that snippets of his world and inspirations will continue to pop up in the Smart Doll line, even if the visual representation emphasis has shifted to the semi-real sculpts. Maybe someday, if the mood strikes him, he'll commission short loop animations like the 'Culture Japan Girls' video again, and expand a bit on the lore ideas. It doesn't mean that he will, as he seems to have left that era... but then again, it doesn't mean that he won't. If anything, Danny is a man of mood, and whatever he does, the interest has to strike him.