At this year’s anime Expo, we had the pleasure of sitting down with uru-chan, the creator of the WEBTOON series « unOrdinary » and « OFR – Ice », as well as Brandon Chen, the creator of WEBTOON series such as « Just a Goblin » and « Overtime Elite ». The roundtable discussion allowed the creators to talk about their favorite anime and manga series, the influences on their work, their personal aspirations, how their work has resonated with global audiences on WEBTOON, and what the future holds for their series.
To kick off the conversation, we delved into the process of creating the worlds of their stories. uru-chan’s « unOrdinary » explores superpowers in relation to socioeconomic status, while « Just a Goblin » by Brandon Chen adds complexity to the interactions between humans and goblins. Both creators shared insights into their creative processes.
Chen explained, « I usually start with a logline to establish the concept and then build the world around the characters. As I script the story, I develop the world further, including power systems. I predefine some elements before writing, but the details come together as I write. »
Similarly, uru-chan commented, « My story began spontaneously, and I had to balance the power dynamics as I went along. I use logic and stats to determine the capabilities of characters in the world I’ve created. »
Both creators acknowledged growth in their writing and artistry over time. uru-chan admitted to learning to streamline her art process to meet weekly deadlines, while Chen emphasized the importance of intentional character development and efficient storytelling.
Chen also raised the challenge of maintaining growth and evolving storylines in long-running series, a sentiment echoed by uru-chan. Both creators continue to adapt and refine their approaches to keep their series engaging and dynamic. If there is nothing new to say about a character, then it may not be worth including them in the story. As a creator, being intentional in every aspect of storytelling is crucial. Characters and their interactions are essential in crafting a compelling narrative. When it comes to creating darker characters, inspiration can be drawn from various sources such as other series, news, and fictional villains.
Chen mentioned that writing such characters requires putting oneself in their shoes and imagining how they would behave. While these portrayals may not be entirely accurate, the goal is to make them entertaining and somewhat realistic. Drawing from different archetypes in the anime and manga space can also help in creating unique characters.
Uru-chan discussed the process of turning a character from a good guy to a villain and how research on mental disorders helped in accurately depicting the character’s transformation. She emphasized the importance of getting into each character’s mindset when writing intense scenes, sometimes taking breaks between writing different character perspectives.
Both creators shared their approaches to organization, with Chen using documents to keep track of his series and world-building details. Uru-chan admitted to struggling with organization due to the weekly release schedule but focused on character growth and personalities as her grounding point.
Chen highlighted the importance of organization when juggling multiple series simultaneously, using a world bible to stay consistent. Uru-chan also mentioned having notes to follow for her series, especially when elaborating on the structure of the world and character development.
Overall, both creators emphasized the significance of intentionality, research, and organization in crafting compelling stories with complex characters and engaging narratives. In the past, every day used to feel like a different series to me. Even now, I still approach each project in a unique way because I immerse myself in a specific zone for each one. For example, « Just a Goblin » has a different tone compared to « Angel Wings » and « Samurai No Tora. » To get into the zone for a particular series, I read a few chapters from works that inspire me and serve as benchmarks. For my upcoming series « Double Kill, » I read a lot of « Blue Lock, » « Bleach, » and « Jujutsu Kaisen » to set the tone. This preparation helps me when I start writing the script, as I already have a clear outline of the entire season. I just need to get into the right mindset to bring the story to life.
Both creators also shared how anime has influenced their work. Uru-chan mentioned how watching the « Dark Tournament » arc in « Yu Yu Hakusho » sparked her interest in action scenes, while the series « Solo Leveling » inspired her to study fight scenes further. Chen drew inspiration from « Naruto » for his series « Just a Goblin, » where the protagonist tries to achieve world peace against all odds.
When it comes to working on WEBTOON, both creators discussed the unique aspects of the format. Chen compared reading on WEBTOON to powering a screen with a bicycle, where the gutter space between panels helps control the pacing of the story. Uru-chan added that with action scenes, the focus is on the visuals, and spacing out the panels can enhance the reading experience. They both agreed that the WEBTOON format allows for more flexibility in storytelling compared to traditional manga or American comics.
Comment attirer l’attention des lecteurs sur WEBTOON
Parfois, je triche un peu en mettant des points de suspension, juste pour que les gens restent sur l’écran un peu plus longtemps que 0,2 seconde, n’est-ce pas ? Avec le format de défilement et la possibilité d’avoir un espace illimité pour l’action, les possibilités sont infinies. Par exemple, pour montrer qu’une attaque est super puissante, on peut rendre le panneau plus long que l’écran lui-même. Cela crée une indication psychologique du caractère massif de l’attaque. Pendant les scènes de combat, mettre l’accent sur l’expression d’un personnage, comme son mouvement fatal, ou quand il émerge d’un nuage de poussière, couvert de sang et en colère. En utilisant des gros plans ou en zoomant, on peut vraiment se concentrer sur un panneau à la fois.
Conseils pour les nouveaux créateurs sur WEBTOON
Pour ceux qui veulent se lancer dans la publication sur WEBTOON, voici quelques conseils. Il est important de se lancer et d’apprendre en faisant. Tout comme dans l’industrie du manga, où l’on apprend en réalisant des one-shots, on peut faire de même sur WEBTOON. En terminant un one-shot, on apprend à mener un projet à terme et on comprend le processus de production. Commencer petit et rester régulier dans les mises à jour est essentiel pour progresser. Il est préférable de commencer par des projets plus modestes avant de se lancer dans des univers gigantesques. En restant ouvert et en gardant une mentalité d’apprentissage, on peut progresser et réussir dans cet espace compétitif.
Des conseils avisés de créateurs talentueux. Retrouvez les œuvres de uru-chan et Brandon Chen sur la plateforme WEBTOON. Le contenu de cet article doit être fourni pour que je puisse le réécrire. N’hésitez pas à le partager pour que je puisse vous aider.
