Explore the Making of Oshi no Ko as Staff Posts BTS Documentary

Let’s be honest, we have all wondered at some point how anime is made and what actually goes into it. Well, if you still wonder about it from time to time, then you are in for a treat.  

Following the premiere of Oshi no Ko, fans of the series couldn’t stop praising the anime on social media. Many people said that the anime was the finest series to be broadcast in spring 2023, while others thought it may be one of the biggest anime ever to debut. Fortunately, the creators of the most popular anime, “Oshi no Ko,” recently released a behind-the-scenes look at the production of their hit show.

Oshi no Ko anime released a behind-the-scenes documentary on Wednesday through the anime’s official YouTube account. The video is the first episode in what is expected to be a multi-episode documentary series, which is also available with English subtitles.

The first episode discusses the series’ pre-production, storyline (referred to as “scenario ” in the film), character design, and concept art.

Although the first episode of the Osho no Ko behind-the-scenes documentary series provides a general overview of the pre-production process, there are a few highlights that stand out. One especially notable moment is producer Shimpei Yamashita, who explains why the first episode of the series was 90 minutes long.

Shimpei adds that they “all are big fans of the manga,” and as such, they “didn’t want to cut any important scenes and dialogues just to… fit the common anime format.” Director Daisuke Hiramaki went on to explain that the team sought to make the first volume a standalone episode, which is why such a plan was agreed upon early on in production.

Unfortunately, fans didn’t get an answer as to why the staff chose not to explain the trademark of the anime, the ‘star eyes,” during the documentary. Hopefully, future episodes of either the mainline anime series or the behind-the-scenes documentary will fully answer and explain this often-asked question.

Side note: I cried like a baby during the first episode even though I had read manga.

About Oshi no Ko

Oshi no Ko is a supernatural crime-solving manga series written by Aka Akasaka and illustrated by Mengo Yokoyari. It has been serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Young Jump since April 2020 and received an anime adaptation in 2023.

The story follows a doctor, Goro, reincarnated as his favorite idol Ai’s kid. Ai names him Aquamarine and his twin sister, a reincarnation of a patient at the hospital, Ruby. Ai is later killed by a stalker who was also responsible for Goro’s death. As Aquamarine swears revenge on the stalker for his mother’s demise, Ruby follows the same path as her mother to become an idol.