A couple of weeks ago, Netflix introduced animation fans to a new adult animated series based on Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell franchise. This first adaptation of Ubisoft’s popular video game franchise, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Death Watch is developed and show-run by John Wick creator Derek Kolstad and features Live Schrieber as the voice of Sam Fisher. The streamer obviously believes in the show since it renewed it for a second season shortly after its premiere.
We had the chance to chat with the animate series’ talented director Guillaume Dousse, former creative director at Denmark’s Sun Creature Studio, who also worked on the “Alternate Histories” episode of Netflix’s Emmy-winning anthology Love, Death + Robot. In the interview, Dousse discussed his involvement with the show and his role in developing its distinctive aesthetic and visual style and plans for his new studio Aesten, which will focus on producing animated and live-action projects across various genres.
Animation Magazine: First of all, congrats on the positive reception of Splinter Cell: Deathwatch. That must be quite satisfying. Can you tell us a bit about how you become involved with the show?
Guillaume Dousse: Well, it all goes back to the summer of 2020. I started as a creative director of Sun Creature, a 2D animation studio that I co-founded. I was in discussion with Netflix for quite a few years. We had this opportunity to work with Ubisoft to develop Splinter Cell, and at the time, Derek Kolstad (John Wick) was already involved. There was the literary bible, and a sense of the story and the arc, and I was essentially there to help deliver the design and the overall aesthetic of the show. I was already used to working remotely, and this offered us a great opportunity to work on the project from the studio in Copenhagen.
What was it about this project that really appealed to you? What made it a good project to develop as an animated series?
The show’s adult ambitions and mature ideas. Something that Hugo [Revon], my producer emphasized was that the show emphasized was how the show needed to please not only anime fans, but also people who were fans of -action thrillers. I grew up watching a lot of thrillers and live-action films, so I think most of the references that I presented Netflix and Ubisoft offered a sense of camera and photography. It was more about the design. Those are the references that I usually love. Something that I really like about Derek’s work was that sense of nostalgia and melancholy as we were portraying Sam, our protagonist. You want to feel the weight of the years and experiences as a former agent on the field. I am interested in what’s not written directly…you know, the silences … and how to use those empty spaces to create this character.
Who else worked on the animation for the show?
Sun Creature, my former studio, was in charge of pre-production and development. FOST Studio (The Summit of the Gods) then took over from layout through compositing. As a director, I was navigating between the studios and working closely with Ubisoft on each episode. I worked in parallel to my producer Hugo Revon. I got to talk with Derek several times and got a sense of where he wanted to go with the series.
Where do you see this new wave of adult animation going?
I think that animation is very suited to tell dark, adult, noir material. One of the great things about animation is that you can really explore different genres. You have this layer of the aesthetic and design that allow you to attempt certain things that you couldn’t do in live action. The violence, for example, would be quite unbearable. The rhythms, the quality of animation really appeals to me in this genre. The show has really benefited from being told in animation. It really stands out from live-action shows or features that have the same aesthetic.
It’s also interesting that worked on the Oscar-winning animated documentary Flee, Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s acclaimed 2021 feature which is another project that was highly elevated because it used animation to tell its story.
Yes, exactly. I was the art director for the development and beginning of pre-production until we locked the funding of that project. We faced a different set of challenges on that movie. There was the issue of anonymity of the main character, and we had to figure out ways to connect with the emotions as well, beyond just dealing with a true story.
Which animation tools were used on Splinter Cell?
It was mostly a 2D animated show so we used Toon Boom, but there was a lot of CG animation used to animate complex objects such as the vehicles and the weapons. complex objects that you were using animation, such as the vehicles, the weapons, and we build the environments in 3D to serve in layout, so we could play with the focal length as well and really plan out and mimic the kind of cinematic camera work I was looking for.
What do you like about working in this mix of 2D/CG?
What I really enjoy is that fact that you can plan out your vision into storyboards ahead of time, so that here is a lot of iterative process. You work with a group of talented artist to achieve that look. You can see the progress from the drawings and the storyboards into adding layers to the mix, brining subtlety into the acting, the characters, the environment. I directed and art directed all the episodes for about a. year and half. Two years into the process, my co-director Felicien Colmet-Daage joined me. He comes from the world of animation, and he also worked on The Summit of the Gods. His role was to lead the fabrication—which included the layout, animation and the environment. We then worked together to deliver the final picture in compositing. There was a great level of attention to detail in the posing of the characters. Overall, between the studios, I would say that we had about 250 people working on the project over the five year period.
So, a second season is already in the works. Are you on board as well?
Yes, I’m on board. I’m directing the first episode, and transitioning to welcome new directors on the show. I’m acting as a Supervising producer, essentially helping the team at Ubisoft on the writing and setting for this new season and what we want to explore. We’re working together on the animatics to make sure we stay on the same page in terms of style.
You grew up in France. How did the country’s love for comic-books and animation impact your artistic tastes?
Yes, I grew up in a suburb of Paris, but I spent nine years in Denmark, and now I am back in France again. I was a big fan of Batman: The Animated Series. That was one of the most gripping animated shows I ever saw as a kid. Another big show for me was the anime series Knights of the Zodiac. And of course, lots of Studio Ghibli films. Later, I got to discover more the anime classics such as Ghost in the Shell and so on. Some of my influences are Satoshi Kon, Koji Morimoto and Mamoru Oshii. I always wanted to draw, but I really discovered my passion for animation when I studied at Gobelins (Paris). Essentially, I wanted to work on the environments and the overall art direction of things — the framing, lighting, composition, that’s what interests me.
What kind of feedback have you received about the show now that it’s out there in the world?
I think overall, it has been overwhelmingly positive. The show did include some violence, which was brutal and visceral, but it served its purpose. I think, in general, I was very happy that the show resonated with the audience. It’s been great to finally audiences see the show after five years of working on it. Meanwhile, I’ve started a new studio called Aesten Studios, which is based in Paris and Brittany. It’s a production company focused on acquiring and working on either adapted IPs, or original projects — mostly fantasy, sci-fi, thrillers, both animated and live-action. Animation first, but I’ll want to explore different media, 3D, 2D, stop-motion, the idea is to deliver immersive, cinematic experiences —not necessarily just adult fare, but serious, mature content across different genres.
And of course, the final question has to deal with the general state of animation and the threat and promise of AI. What is your take on it?
I feel optimistic about it. I know it is a very difficult period at the moment for many people. But I hope that what is happening at the moment will bring about some new ways to tell more stories like Splinter Cell, that these beautiful adult-oriented projects will open doors to more innovative projects. My hope is that the stakeholders, the executives begin trusting the potential in adult animation. There will be a lot of questioning and figuring out ways to position ourselves. I am very curious to see where AI is going, but I don’t see AI replacing me and my peers. People are looking for human connection and stories. That will be very difficult to replace.
The first season of Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Deathwatch is currently streaming on Netflix worldwide.
