Flying Lotus to soundtrack a Blade Runner anime

Shinichirō Watanabe, the director of beloved anime Cowboy Bebop, is set to direct Blade Runner 2022 Black Out—an animated prequel for the upcoming Denis Villeneuve live-action Blade Runner 2049. Where 2049 stars powerhouse Ryan Gosling as a novice blade runner for the Los Angeles Police Department, 2022 will center around a huge power black out on the West Coast.

Flying Lotus revealed yesterday that he is composing the short film’s soundtrack. “Doing something with Watanabe was a dream of mine. Cowboy Bebop is one of the greatest!” he wrote on Twitter. “I was watching the old blade runner every night earlier in the year and they hit me up to do this project on a rare rainy day n la … When I saw a rough cut of 2022 the temp music was from my past albums. Seeing Blade Runner imagery set to my music was a beautiful feeling.”

Shukou Murase (Mobile Suit Gundam Wing) will serve as animation director. The release date for 2022 has yet to be determined, but a short behind-the-scenes video can be seen below.