With the release of Episode 12, the anime YOUR FORMA has reached its long-awaited narrative peak unveiling the chilling truth behind the Nightmare of St. Petersburg. In a candid interview, director Ozaki reflects on the creative decisions that shaped this psychological sci-fi thriller, from bold storytelling choices to the emotional heart of its characters.
To mark the pre release of Episode 13 of YOUR FORMA, we had the pleasure of speaking with Takaharu Ozaki. Exclusive interviews with the cast and creative team are being published on AnimeTV after episodes 1, 4, 6, 8, 9, and 13.
Official Trailer:
Episode 12 finally revealed the full story behind the Nightmare of St. Petersburg. Could you share what you focused on the most while crafting Episode 12?
Ozaki: As Episode 12 finally revealed the truth behind the kind Chief Napolov’s true character, in the scene where he changes, I wanted to make the contrast in his personality stark. We wanted to show the violent, depraved, abnormal side of him that he’d kept so well hidden by emphasizing his facial expressions and behavior. We didn’t want to just have him randomly explode with anger, but rather, build a creeping sense of fear for our audience as he reaches an emotional peak. Koichi Yamadera, the voice of Napolov, also understood our intent well and gave a brilliant performance. I’m grateful to him for that. I also paid focused on ensuring the climax of Napolov’s arc in Episode 12 would connect to the turning point for Harold and Echika in Episode 13.
I’d like to discuss the production process behind the anime of Your Forma, as this adaptation actually starts from Volume 2 of the original novels. What was your reasoning behind this decision?
Ozaki: When I was initially approached about adapting Your Forma as an anime, only Volume 1 had been published. Back then, I was really eager to adapt it from the start of the story. But then after we entered production, Volumes 2, 3, and 4 were published, and the plot of the novels became more and more interesting. Figuring out how to bring such a story together for the anime was quite challenging for us.
I had extension discussions about this issue with the staff, but then our head writer Kazuyuki Fudeyasu proposed, “If we start from Volume 2, we might be able to cover the relationship of Echika and Harold and the mystery of the RF Models all within one single case.” What’s more, Volume 1 of the light novel had already been adapted into a manga. So, we decided to make a bold choice, narrow down our themes, and start the anime adaptation from Volume 2. I personally see Your Forma as one cohesive work made up of several parts, so I hope viewers of the anime who are interested in the story of Volume 1 will also check out the original novel and manga adaptation.
On the artistic side of things, could you please tell us what points you paid the most attention to for the visual design of Your Forma’s animation?
Ozaki: I based the character design on the illustrations in the original novel and wanted to strike a balance of staying faithful to the original art style while also adapting it to one that could be smoothly animated. When it came to building the visual world of Your Forma, we were particular about creating a hyper-contrast in color and saturation between the Brain Dive world and the “real world.” In the “real world” we aimed for a modern look, staying away from bright, rich tones and keeping the colors on the desaturated side. But conversely, for the Brain Dive scenes, we intentionally brought the saturation up to an extreme level. I wanted to make a real impression on our viewers by showing them such a striking, colorful world.
For animating the Brain Dive scenes, did Kikuishi-sensei have any particular notes?
Ozaki: No, Kikuishi-sensei generally left the artistic decisions to us. We used the illustrations in the original novel as a starting point and then incorporated our own ideas to develop the designs further. The world of Brain Diving was created by combining two key aesthetics: the electric world of classic cyberpunk, and a fantasy dream world where one’s innermost thoughts are shown as visuals. We thought it was important to fuse electric elements with organic ones to capture the sense of “depicting the inside of a person’s brain.” After all, isn’t a human brain always firing electrical signals? That inspired the concept of electrically connecting to another person’s brain. The quick tempo of the music also matches the speed at which the scene unfolds, conveying the atmosphere and emotions portrayed within the Brain Dive subjects’ hearts. I’m very grateful to our composer for their work.
Up until Episode 12, the story has covered four major cases. Could share some insights and any behind-the-scenes stories for each one?
Ozaki: Each of the four cases take a different form, but they all express the same theme. That theme is, “The ties between people.” Each case explores the theme in a different way. For example, in the first case, Lexie and Furman with their one-sided love serves as an example of how those kinds of ties can end in pain. The next case focused on the ties between family members, with Biga and Danel’s relationship as parent and child, and Raissa and Hughes as brother and sister. The tragedy there lies in how these relationships were destroyed by external forces. Then there’s the next case of Sozon and Harold’s, who began as strangers before growing closer over time. Finally, there’s the ties that Echika and Harold share in their relationship. Each of the voice actors gave a truly amazing performance perfect for their character.
One behind-the-scenes story that left an impression on me was Echika’s voice actress, Kana Hanazawa, saying to me, “I’m scared of next week,” during the recording for Episode 11. Episode 12 contains a brutal scene where Napolov attacks Echika, so I figured that was what she was referencing. But hearing her say that out loud made me realize Hanazawa was truly empathizing with Echika’s emotions. Though these characters may be fictional, I am truly grateful to these voice actors for putting so much work into bringing them to life.
Thank you so much. And lastly, please share a message with the fans who are waiting to watch Episode 13!
Ozaki: Episode 12 serves as the action climax, while Episode 13 will be the emotional climax of Harold and Echika’s relationship, and this was a deliberate choice for the story.
Simply put, while we were in the scripting stage for the anime, I was quite worried about how Episode 13 would turn out. I wasn’t sure where we should put the dramatic peak, and worried ending the series this way was a mistake. But our ideas expanded as we moved from scripting to storyboarding, and in the end, we decided it was best to center the final episode around Echika’s greatest “weapon” of all: her bond with Harold. Personally, I am quite satisfied with this ending. The anime adaptation of Your Forma made it this far thanks to the support of our fans, and above all else, because of how truly amazing the source material is. Your Forma has become a very special series to me. This final episode revolves around the Nightmare of St. Petersburg, and the decisions our protagonists must make to persist in their convictions. As for how it ends…well, I hope you will tune in and find out for yourself. Thank you.
RELATED: AnimeTV Launches Daily Author Comment Series for YOUR FORMA, Starting June 11
Streaming platforms:
- North America: Samsung TV Plus
- Central and South America: Bandplay, Anime Onegai
- Europe, Middle East, and Africa: ADN, aniverse, Anime Generation, Anime Key
- Asia: Bahamut, MyVideo, CHT, Hamivideo, Bilibili, TVING, Wavve, Watcha, U+tv, SK Btv, Genie TV, Home Choice, D’LIVE, SKY LIFE, B’flix
CAST:
Echika Hieda (CV.Kana Hanazawa)
Harold W. Lucraft (CV.Kensho Ono)
Bigga (CV.Nao Toyama)
Ui Totoki (CV.Aya Endo)
Ivan Lukich Fokine(CV.Nobuhiko Okamoto)
Darya Romanovna Chernova(CV.Ayaka Nanase)
Lexie Willow Carter (CV.Chiwa Saito)
Benno Kleemann (CV.Yuu Hayashi)
Sozon A. Chernov(CV.Jun Fukuyama)
Lexie W. Carter(CV.Chiwa Saito)
Raissa Germaine Robin(CV.Hisako Tojo)
Kazimir Martinovich Shubin(CV.Tomokazu Sugita)
Kupriyan Valentinovich Napolov(CV.Koichi Yamadera)
STAFF:
Original Work: Mareho Kikuishi
Original Illustrations: Tsubata Nozaki
Director: Takaharu Ozaki
Series Composition & Script: Kazuyuki Fudeyasu
Character Design: Chikashi Kadekaru
Music: Tatsuya Kato
Animation Production: Geno Studio
Production: Project YOUR FORMA
Official synopsis:
In 1992, a pandemic of viral encephalitis shook the world. The medical technology that saved humanity evolved into “Your Forma”—an invasive information device implanted into the brain. In this world where every sight, sound, and even emotion is recorded, investigating major crimes means diving into the collective data, a job reserved for special detectives called “Electronic Investigator.”
Echika Hieda, a prodigious “Electronic Investigator” assigned at an astonishingly young age, stands isolated by her exceptional talent. Her newly assigned partner is Harold, a blonde, blue-eyed humanoid “Amicus.” Together, this unrivaled duo will expose every hidden secret.
©2025 Mareho Kikuishi/KADOKAWA/Project YOUR FORMA
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