It’s an unlikely string of words: “Samurai Frog Golf.” But the newest original short film from Marza Animation Planet delivers exactly that, and more, all with a unique 3D CG look.
The film recently made its world premiere at the annual international computer graphics conference and trade show the Special Interest Group on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques (SIGGRAPH) and is heading for a general release on YouTube September 15th.
“Samurai Frog Golf (SFG)” follows a gruff retired samurai frog, who gave up his life of conflict and melted his sword into a driver. But after one bad swing on the golf course, he and his caddie, a flying squirrel, find themselves the guardians of a baby turtle. The story is set to scenery that blends the traditional Japanese art of woodblock printing with the whimsical imagery of Van Gogh for a completely new look.
“Seeing and hearing the film up on the big screen, surrounded by thousands of people – the energy, the unexpected laughs, the culmination of all our hard work in one shared spectacle – that’s one hell of a feeling,” said director Brent Forrest of the experience at SIGGRAPH’s Computer Graphics Festival Electronic Theater. SFG was one of 25 works chosen this year from a pool of over 300 entries.
The Film’s Journey
The film is his first with Tokyo studio Marza Animation Planet, Inc., a CG animation film and series production house under Sega Sammy Group Holdings, Inc. The creative and technical support director has worked at numerous studios in his home country and in Japan, and is in his ninth year in Tokyo. But his relationship with golf began in his hometown of Toronto, Canada, where he even lived next to a golf course.
“As a young kid I remember my dad being obsessed with golf. Golf jokes, golf stories, golf lessons, they were drilled into me from childhood,” Brent explained. “I’m a huge fan of samurai serials, I love a good adventure, and there are dozens if not hundreds of parallels between the way of the samurai and the ‘Zen of golf.’”
What was the most important lesson he learned? “In golf there are a million different things you need to remember…one of the most important lessons I’ve learned is that it’s important to pick just three things and focus on those – otherwise you’ll drive yourself insane. I think that applies to the business as well.”
Brent first drew the protagonist of the film for a character design contest held by magazine Character Design Quarterly. Then he was struck with a question for the ages: What was better, a samurai who fought with a golf club or a golfer who played with a sword? Seeking input from an online forum, the former was the clear winner.
Designing the Look
Next was developing SFG’s unique look. From the beginning, Brent knew he wanted something like Japanese woodblock prints, but not simply moving ones. He wanted something that had never been done before. “With the rough idea in hand and the drive to make a new film, finding a unique and appropriate style became the top priority,” he said. That led him to bring the production team to a woodblock print shop Mokuhankan in Tokyo’s Asakusa district run by Dave Bull. There, the team learned the history of the art. The finished product was one carved from the opinions of the whole team.
Now, SFG is releasing a series of YouTube shorts “Mini Golf” ahead of the film’s premiere on the platform. All the animators at Marza were given access to the entirety of SFG’s resource library and music samples by SFG score composer David Arcus. The animators were free to make whatever they wanted as long as it was under one minute. But the most important rule was to have fun.
“What we got in the end was a grab bag of animated content that expand the world of SFG. Some shots are funny, some action packed, but all are tied together with one of the ‘Nine Iron Laws of Golf.’ The film is kind of heavy in tone, and Mini Golf helps us explore the heart and funny bone of the concept.”
Upcoming Projects
What’s next for SFG is a full series continuing the story of the retired samurai, his trusted caddie, and some unexpected company as they travel the “18 lands” of the course.
“There’s an idea I have for the finale of the show that I’m really excited to tell…There’s a mystery behind all of this, an origin to the lore that ties all the themes of golf, animals, and the absence of humans together,” said Brent. But the game only gets harder from here as Marza works to secure a co-production deal for the series.
“Putting a deal like this together is no small feat, and I’ve tried and failed many, many times over the course of my career.” Still, he and the team are hopeful. “A task like this requires a huge leap of faith, but with help from the right people, this froggy might stick the landing.”
Born in Montreal, Brent Forrest started his animation career at Red Rover studios in Toronto as a co-op student in 1999. There he learned the craft of animation from some of Canada’s finest draftsmen. He has won awards for both his animation and special effects work including a Gemini nomination for title design. Today he works as a Technical Director in one of Tokyo’s top animation studios.
Tobias Schlage
Born in Hamburg, Germany. In his years as a character animator and 3D generalist he worked in all areas of production creating extravagant visuals for film and television. Moved to Japan in 2015, to explore a new film making landscape, Tobi combined both German and Japanese film making techniques to create a unique style of grounded, emotional storytelling.
