"New screen project" is delayed as production system is restructured

The Kemono Friends anime website posted a note regarding the "new screen project" for Kemono Friends on Wednesday, following director TATSUKI's announcement that he is no longer working on the new anime project. The full note is as follows:

Regarding Kemono Friends, we already had the privilege of announcing a new screen project, but since then, we have been considering whether to keep using the same production system or implement a new system for a new depiction. As of now, nothing has been decided yet. With this in mind, we prioritized the same production system used in the television anime that aired from January to March this year, and adjusted it to meet viewer expectations. However, we received word from animation studio Yaoyorozu of their intent to pull out this past August, so we currently have to start from square one on a production system. Kemono Friends begins with a philosophy of animals first, and through the input of many people it has spawned games, manga, anime, and stage plays. The doors are wide open, and with the help of people who believe in the philosophy we want to spread Kemono Friends around the world. As such, it is not a project that belongs to any one person, and so for the sake of the animals Kemono Friends resumed activity again. However, there are works that Yaoyorozu, the studio that handled production, used without contacting or sharing information through the appropriate channels. In order to keep the next project going, we proposed to normalize sharing information in advance, but Yaoyorozu could not accept these conditions and declined. In part due to the conditions above, the Kemono Friends screen project will be delayed, but from here on out we will collaborate with everyone who is working on the project to protect the work and its fans, and to carry on the mission of learning more about animals. We will update as soon as possible with information about the screen project. Please enjoy upcoming Kemono Friends projects.

TATSUKI reported on Monday that, per a notification from publishing and production company Kadokawa, he is no longer working on the Kemono Friends project. Nobuo Kawakami, the president of Kadokawa's parent company Kadokawa Dwango, posted a response on Tuesday that he was "worried" about the incident and that discussions are ongoing in both Kadokawa and Dwango.

Nexon's original Kemono Friends app game launched in early 2016 and ended service on December 14 — before the Kemono Friends anime even aired. The 12-episode television anime then premiered on TV Tokyo and TV Osaka on January 10 and ended on March 28. Crunchyroll streamed the series as it aired.

The anime received an unofficial "episode 12.1." Kemono Friends is also getting a new game, a new stage play, and a "new screen project" (separate from "episode 12.1"). An official guidebook for the anime confirmed in July that a second season is in the works but it "will take some time."

Source: nlab