Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash – The Witch of Circe opened in Japanese theaters on January 30, 2026, and is enjoying strong box office success, officially grossing 2.24 billion yen, surpassing the total of the first installment. This milestone comes before the film’s international release.
Director Shukou Murase recently spoke with Mantan Web about his creative process while working on the second film, explaining that he created V-cons (animatics) using 3DCG production software such as Cinema 4D before beginning the actual storyboards.
“Through working on Chapter 1, I came to realize that thoroughly creating guide models (such as indicating exactly where bolts are placed or how thick certain parts are) greatly contributes to achieving realism. If you base your art production on reference objects with half-hearted, mediocre detail, the end result can only be equally mediocre. To avoid that, I made a conscious effort to build solid models, even if some of that work might end up being wasted.
Additionally, Cinema 4D excels at lighting and does an excellent job of realistically reproducing sunlight. Simply by paying proper attention to lighting, you can achieve a very realistic image, so I kept exploring ways to improve that precision.
As a result, however, the V-con ended up taking far more time than planned, which meant keeping the staff waiting. This made me painfully aware that I need to rethink my workflow and approach. Because of that, I think the production method for Chapter 3 will change again.”
Murase went on to discuss how his “live-action–like” approach to directing has been shaped by influences outside of anime. Those familiar with the director’s previous works, such as Ergo Proxy and Genocidal Organ, will recognize this quality in his style.
“I’ve more or less stopped watching anime. Since I’m working on animation and direction myself, there are very few cuts that feel like they’re completely working, and I end up feeling that something is off. Even when I watch other anime, I find myself questioning it, thinking, ‘Should it really be done like this?’ So it becomes difficult for me to watch.”
Instead, the director said he now mostly watches live-action works, something he believes has naturally influenced his visual approach.
“Because of that, the fact that I mostly watch live-action works now may be influencing me. I’m also not particularly good with the stylistic beauty or camera work that are unique to anime. I’ve been thinking about how to incorporate realistic lighting into animation, but that’s difficult as well. In the end, we can only push as far as possible during the compositing stage, but there are also timing issues with when all the materials come together, so it’s hard to devote enough time to it.
As one possible solution, we tried determining the lighting in advance using 3D software and then using that as a guide while building the scenes. However, it’s difficult to incorporate that approach into the standard anime production workflow. Still, in terms of communicating a clear visual image, I think it could be a good method.”
As for the development and release timing of the third film, Murase confirmed that the scenario and ending have already been decided, providing a simple update:
“There were some things we changed while making the second chapter, so some adjustments will be necessary, but the basic direction and structure are already decided. As for production, we are trying to move forward while resolving the issues we encountered during the second chapter.”
Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash – The Witch of Circe, also known as Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway – The Sorcery of Nymph Circe, is the second installment in the Hathaway’s Flash film trilogy. The film is directed by Shukou Murase and written by Yasuyuki Muto, with Pablo Uchida, Naoyuki Onda, and Shigeki Kuhara serving as character designers for the films.
The mechanical design team includes Hajime Katoki, Kimitoshi Yamane, Nobuhiko Genba, and Seiichi Nakatani. Hiroyuki Sawano returns as the music composer, with theme songs performed by SennaRin and Yoohei Kawakami, along with “Snooze” by SZA and “Sweet Child o’ Mine” by Guns N’ Roses.
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