“Blue Eye Samurai” is set to receive three juried awards for achievement in animation — for character design, production design and storyboarding — while competing for two competitive awards including animated program at the upcoming Creative Arts Emmys.
The Netflix-made series follows Mizu (Maya Erskine), a mixed-race girl with piercing blue eyes who lives in disguise as she seeks revenge in Edo-period Japan. “We really had to try to make this show stand out,” says director and executive producer Jin Woo, adding that she sought inspiration from “what [has] Moved me [in a] “Magic way… because there is magic in animation.”
Inspired by the distinctive Japanese puppets with sculpted heads and hands and elaborate costumes, the idea was created with a trio of black-clad puppeteers. Wu says she was drawn to them because of “the distinctive style of their movements, and how incredibly moving it was.”
She adds that they were aiming for an “East meets West” composition and look, and were also inspired by artist Hiroshi Yoshida, known for his paintings and woodblock prints. “He was a Japanese artist who was trained in the West, so he really had the fusion that we were looking for in the show,” Wu explains. “It’s just very cultural stuff that inspired us.”
Mizu's character was designed with a strong body that reflected her combat training. According to Amber Noizumi, who co-created and executive produced the series with Michael Green, “Her face wasn't going to be as brutal as you think it is, nor was it going to be overly beautiful. She was just going to be a unique person, just trying to exist in this world that suppresses and rejects her.”
Season 2 has been announced.
