Blade Runner Black Out 2022, as it's known, will be directed by none other than Shinichiro Watanabe. For all those out of the loop, he's the legend behind Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo.

As you can tell by its title, the anime short will serve as a prequel to the upcoming film, with the action taking place during a power outage, according to NetLab. The brief video above also offers a closer look at its test animation, concept art, and some actual footage.

"The work that has influenced me the most in my anime profession would be, of course, Blade Runner," says Watanabe in the video. That's high praise. But, Ridley Scott's sci-fi classic left its imprint all over pop culture, so it's no surprise its reach extends to Japanese animation. Anime studio Cygames Pictures is producing the short, and Shukou Murase (Halo Legends, Mobile Suit Gundam Wing) is on hand as character designer and animation director. Plus, electronic mastermind Flying Lotus will be in charge of the score.

You can watch Blade Runner Black Out 2022 in full on the Sony Pictures Japan YouTube channel on September 26th.