At Anime Expo 2024, it was an exciting time for Frieren fans, as Nobuhiko Okamoto (voice of Himmel), Keiichiro Saito (director), Yuichiri Fukushi (animation producer), and Daiki Harashina (monster designer) took the stage to talk about the series. Okamoto kicked off the panel by exclaiming, “Frieren doesn’t usually do events at all! The fact we’re doing an event this big is [special].” In response, fans cheered for the rare opportunity to hear some insight about the show directly from the creators and talent.
Taking a closer look at some of their favorite scenes, Harashina was up first. Although one may have expected him to choose a fight scene, his choice was a quiet one in which Fern secretly follows Frieren while she’s shopping for sweets. He explained that this seemingly mundane scene is one that depicts their evolving relationship as they become closer.
Fukushi chose a scene in which Frieren visits a field of beautiful blue moonweed flowers, planted for Himmel. “I applied this odd pressure on myself that I had to make this the best possible I’ve ever produced” he began. “We were very fortunate we got an animator by the name of Aoi Ohtani. From the color to the animation and the music, I think everything they brought together for this one particular scene just pulled the whole episode together, so I’m really happy with how it came out.”
Okamoto’s selection brought tears to some eyes in the audience. The scene features Frieren reminiscing about when Himmel placed a ring on her finger. “[That scene evokes] this weird emotion where you feel like your heart is clenching,” he started. “You can really see how Frieren and Himmel’s emotions are almost running in parallel, and the imagery and everything just really grabs your heart.” He continued, “When I play the scene, I say Frieren many times. And I have a lot of different emotions when I say Frieren in this scene. At times, it’s like I’m addressing it to my mother, daughter, older sister, younger sister, friend, lover. And it almost feels like a proposal, when I try to get all of that emotion. And of course, I will never know how Frieren felt in that moment. Staring down from up in heaven, when I see Frieren searching so desperately for that ring, I wonder if maybe those emotions were reciprocated.”
Saito wrapped up with the beginning, selecting the first scene from the first episode when viewers are first introduced to Frieren and the Hero Party as they finish their quest. “Whenever I direct a series, I think that first hook is really important,” he began. “And Frieren, unlike a lot of other anime, starts after the adventure is over. This scene served as both the prologue and epilogue at the same time. I also wanted this scene to explain Frieren’s character and background, along with Himmel, Eisen and Heiner, all at once.” He concluded, “The key frame director, Kanazawa, did a really good job to bring all the most important key frames together. I remember the storyboarding phase. I went bak to it and thought about it really hard, but I think it came together at the end, and it felt very satisfying.”
