The Story⚡
Live-action adaptation of The Straw Hats, One Piece, launches on Netflix on the 31st of August, 2023.
Tell Me More
In 2017, Netflix made a supernatural crime thriller, Death Note, which was an adaptation of a Japanese manga created by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi. In 2021, the network also adapted Cowboy Bebop, a live-action series that was based on the 1998 Japanese anime series of the same name. Now in 2023, One Piece is joining the league of adaptation of anime and manga series.
One Piece is being produced by Netflix in collaboration with Tomorrow Studios. The creator of the One Piece manga, Eiichiro Oda, serves as an executive producer. In July 2017, the series was first announced by Hiroyuki Nakano, the editor-in-chief of Weekly Shonen Jump. The announcement was to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the manga which debuted on the 22nd of July, 1997.
As it has been announced by the streaming network, the first season of One Piece will contain ten episodes. Steven Maeda and Matt Owens are serving as showrunners. Season one, debuting on the 31st of August, 2023, will cover the East Blue story from the anime and the manga.
The series will follow the story of Monkey D. Luffy as he begins his journey as a pirate. While he was a kid, Monkey D. Luffy had eaten a fruit called the Gum-Gum fruit (Gomu Gomu no Mi), which bestowed on him the ability to stretch and bend his body when he wishes. He set out to become the King of The Pirates discovering Gol D. Roger’s secret treasure, the One Piece.
Principal Photography Location
Originally, the production of One Piece was meant to start in the summer of 2020 at the Cape Town Film Studios in Cape Town, South Africa. The announce to begin production had earlier been made in January 2020. However, the plan had to be changed as the COVID-19 pandemic and the eventually lockdown throughout the world disrupted a lot of plans.
In March 2021, production later resumed. Steven Maeda took to social media and shared the news of this development. By Aug 2022, filming was completed with cast and crew sharing pictures and videos from the set.
In a document released by Netflix earlier this year to recount its socio-economic impact in South Africa, Nigeria, and Kenya between 2016-2022, it gave five reasons for the selection of South Africa for the principal photography of One Piece. One, excellent facilities and infrastructure in place to manage a production of significant scale and budget. Two, highly skilled cast locally that can competently undertake the initiative.
Three, policy/regulatory environment that promotes investment, particularly the DTIC’s film and television production rebate geared at supporting the local industry. Four, safe and secure environment to film in. And lastly, significant skills base on construction, trade, financial services, transportation and other key crew personnel that are important for film.
Budget
In the social-economic impact report of Netflix, the company admits to spending a total of ZAR 800 million (USD 54 million) making the title. The report says that $31.5 million was spent on local/cast/extras, while $48.7 million was spent on local services suppliers (625 local suppliers with majority being SMMEs). ???The figures are confusing thought???
In Summary
One Piece is launching globally on Netflix on the 31st of August. We look forward to seeing how the film will be accepted by the audience. Trust Shock to feed you back on the title’s performance.
