Bandai Namco Filmworks announced their latest animation project, Mobile Suit Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance, during Anime Expo’s industry panel on Saturday. What sets this project apart is that the entire animation will be produced using Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 5.
During the panel, attendees were treated to a preview trailer showcasing the capabilities of Unreal Engine 5 in bringing the Mobile Suit Gundam world to life. Erasmus Brosdau, known for his work on “The Lord Inquisitor: Seed of Ambition” and Origin Zero, will be directing the project, while Gavin Hignight, known for his work on Tekken: Bloodline, Transformers: Cyberverse, and Star Wars: Resistance, will be writing the script.
Actress Celia Massingham, who has appeared in DC’s Legends of Tomorrow and Ladies in Black, will lend her voice to the lead character and also performed the motion-capture for the animation. Producer Naohiro Ogata, known for his involvement in Mobile Suit Gundam projects such as The Witch From Mercury and Thunderbolt, will be overseeing the production.
The animation project has a talented team on board, with Manuel Augusto Dischinger Moura serving as the main character designer and Kimitoshi Yamane, known for his work on Cowboy Bebop and multiple Gundam projects, supervising the mechanical designs. Composing the music for Mobile Suit Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance is Wilbert Roget II, who has previously worked on games such as Mortal Kombat 11 and Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris.
Hignight revealed that the episodes of Mobile Suit Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance will be set in the Universal Century chronology, which encompasses the first Mobile Suit Gundam story and its sequels. The story will specifically be told from the perspective of the Zeon faction, focusing on the Zaku mobile suits’ cockpits. Influences for the project include Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt and Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team.
During the panel, Hignight and Massingham appeared in person to discuss the project, while Roget II made a special appearance as well. Unfortunately, Ogata was unable to attend the panel due to the finale of Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury anime airing the following day.
Bandai Namco Filmworks’ presentation at Anime Expo provided an exciting look into the future of animation with their use of Unreal Engine 5 for the production of Mobile Suit Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance. With a talented team and a unique perspective on the iconic franchise, fans eagerly anticipate the release of this new project.