The involved artists, Chengxi Huang (alias Seki Ko), Pakho Cheung, and Jiahao Zhang, are known on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter). They worked on specific sequences representing approximately 30 seconds of key animation, shared among the artists. The fully animated scene can be seen in the final episode of Season 4 of Wakfu. A video demonstrates their involvement:
- 0:00 – 0:10.5 : Chengxi Huang
- 0:10.5 – 0:23.3 : Jiahao Zhang
- 0:23.3 – end : Pakho Cheung
These scenes were finalized and redrawn by French teams at Ankama, but their involvement highlights a practice rarely highlighted.
Gear Studio is a well-known name among animation enthusiasts. Founded by Chengxi Huang, the Chinese studio has worked on projects such as ROAD OF NARUTO, Digimon Adventure: LAST EVOLUTION Kizuna, and Boku no Hero Academia 4. Chengxi Huang is particularly renowned for his work on the animated cinematography of Black Myth: Wukong, awarded the Best Action Game of 2024 at the Game Awards.
Catsuka points out that while international collaborations are widespread in the animation industry, particularly in the American realm, they are infrequently communicated. In contrast to a French-Japanese collaboration, for example, the Chinese artists’ contributions to Wakfu were not mentioned in the season 4 generics. Only Ankama and Caribara Montreal are listed. This absence of credit has sparked questions about the status of this collaboration, which may have been undertaken personally by the artists. This hypothesis is reinforced by existing small professional connections between some Ankama animators and Chinese artists from previous professional experiences. It also raises questions about the recognition of international contributions in the industry.
Gear Studio’s contribution appears to have focused on “key animations.” These key frames determine significant scene movements and serve as reference points for intermediate steps. For example, to animate a character raising their arm, key frames illustrate the arm along the body, the end of the movement, and some intermediate positions. This allows teams to plan details and animation fluidity.
It is worth noting that the Roubaix-based studio has already collaborated with renowned international studios. Among them is the Japanese studio Lerche, known for producing the animated adaptation of the French manga Radiant for NHK. Another noteworthy collaboration is with Studio 4°C, which contributed to the production of the animated film Mutafukaz.
⚠️ This article was written based on the initial article published on Catsuka and then enriched with information from various databases. If important information is missing, please notify us in the comment section or contact us via email at contact(at)krozmotion.com.