It was a sweltering summer day.
Nanase Mayumi wore light blue denim shorts that revealed her fair, long legs, paired with white sneakers. Her top was a white short-sleeved off-the-shoulder shirt with a floral print, clearly showing her collarbones.
"Phew, it's so hot."
She fanned herself with her hand, bought several bottles of iced drinks, and quickly returned to the editing room.
"Senior, I brought drinks."
She opened the small bag and let Lin Zhiyan pick one first.
Of course, she hadn't just bought them for him; every staff member in the editing room got one.
Everyone thanked Nanase Mayumi as they received their drinks.
After distributing the drinks, she took the last bottle and sat down beside Lin Zhiyan. She popped it open, took a sip, and immediately asked, "Senior, is it done?"
"Yeah, just finished it," Lin Zhiyan nodded.
In animation, "editing" actually referred to the editing process.
There was also a concept called "V-Edit," which was slightly different. It was the final stage before submitting the finished product, involving adding production information like the staff list to the already edited animation.
Although the Death Note anime wouldn't premiere for another two or three months, Lin Zhiyan had already completed the V-Edit for the first episode.
What was being edited now wasn't the second episode of the animation, but its PV—the promotional trailer.
The PV was crucial for an animation, as many viewers decided whether to follow a series based on its trailer.
This was the most important part of the pre-broadcast promotion.
Lin Zhiyan hadn't actually seen the original Death Note PV. However, since this was a promotional trailer, it should be edited to maximize its appeal, without needing to perfectly replicate the original.
He took a sip of his iced drink and asked Nanase Mayumi, "Want to watch it?"
"Yes! I want to!" she replied enthusiastically.
Lin Zhiyan immediately instructed the staff to play the edited PV again.
The trailer appeared on the big screen.
It began with scenes of the Death Note's rules, followed by Yagami Light writing criminal names in the notebook, the criminals' deaths, the emergence of "killer" worshippers, Yagami Light declaring, "I will become the god of a new world," and then L deducing that the killer was in Neon and vowing to catch them.
The final scene was the climax of the second episode of the animation, showing L and Yagami Light in the same frame, uttering the same line: "I will definitely find you and eliminate you. I am... on the side of justice!"
The entire sequence was set to an incredibly intense and epic background score.
In essence, the trailer captured the core essence of the first two episodes of the animation. However, because it consisted primarily of fleeting glimpses rather than complete scenes, it didn't give viewers the impression that watching the trailer was a substitute for watching the full episodes. Instead, it left them eager to learn the detailed plot points, such as how Yagami Light obtained the Death Note and how L deduced that the killer was in Neon.
After covering the plot points, the trailer transitioned to production details, including the planning, supervising director, character designer, scriptwriter, chief animation director, music composer, background artist, background supervisor, color designer, photography director, sound director, voice actors, and so on.
Notably, all of Lin Zhiyan's contributions were grouped together, making his name appear repeatedly throughout the production information.
This was done to highlight Lin Zhiyan and facilitate future promotional efforts.
The PV was only about a minute and a half long. After it finished playing, Nanase Mayumi immediately exclaimed, "It's edited so well! If I were an audience member, I'd be really interested in the full series after watching this PV."
She shook her head. "No, even as the production manager for this animation, I'm still eagerly awaiting the finished product of the second episode."
Lin Zhiyan smiled, satisfied with the PV himself.
Not that he was particularly skilled at editing. The real magic lay in the brilliance of the Death Note anime's plot. In such cases, carefully selecting a few key cuts was all it took to create a compelling PV.
With the PV complete, the next step was to release it to the public.
In another timeline, many animation companies would upload their PVs to N Station, YouTube, and TikTok. YouTube, in particular, would attract a large audience if the PV was compelling enough, effectively promoting the series and driving traffic.
But in this timeline, it was still 2000. These video platforms and apps hadn't been invented yet—not even the world's first video website had been created.
In those days, internet speeds were generally poor. Downloading a game could take a very long time, which is why many computer games were still released on physical media, like the Phantom of Inferno that Nanase Mayumi had bought earlier.
Creating an official website for Death Note and uploading its PV there would be possible, but don't expect it to generate much publicity or drive traffic.
To truly promote the series and attract viewers, you'd need to place ads elsewhere—on television, in specialty stores for animation and otaku goods, or in places like Akihabara and Shibuya where animation PVs could be displayed.
Advertising in these places would cost money, but you wouldn't need to advertise everywhere; placing ads in a few select locations would suffice.
There was one place, however, that cost nothing and could expose the PV to a massive potential audience: Comic Market.
Comic Market, literally "Comic Market," wasn't limited to just manga. It also sold animation, novels, music, games, and even Gothic lolita dresses. It was essentially a doujinshi convention.
The "doujin" in this context doesn't refer to fanfiction. While some people do sell fan-made works, the term actually means "non-commercial" or "amateur."
This event is typically held at the Tokyo International Exhibition Center twice a year, in August and December.
After being reborn, Lin Zhiyan participated in the event several times under his own name, primarily selling illustrations. Each time, they sold out completely.
His success wasn't just due to his excellent artwork; his handsome appearance also played a role. Wherever he sat, women would flock to buy his illustrations, often requesting autographs and photos.
Lin Zhiyan registered for this year's August Comic Market. He planned to draw several Death Note illustrations, bind them into a booklet, and sell them. He also intended to bring his laptop to loop Death Note promotional videos at his booth.
Most attendees of Comic Market are anime and manga fans, making them potential customers.
Playing promotional videos in such a setting is like precise targeting, and the results should be quite effective.
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