Job postings for FX artists to work on the upcoming Magic: The Gathering Netflix show have appeared on Hungary-based animation studio Digic's website, giving us a tiny hint about what the series may look like.
The company, known for making trailers and cutscenes for some of the biggest video games like Elden Ring and The Witcher 3, is seeking FX artists and lighting compositors to work on Magic: The Gathering, and calls the show "a stylized fantasy series".
I'm wary of assuming too much from a single word in these job ads, but 'stylized' is a catch-all term often used to describe a recent wave of animated movies that have departed from photo or cartoon realism, in favor of more experimental animation techniques.
Pioneered by Sony's 2018 Into the Spiderverse movie, this kind of experimental, stylized animation often mixes 2D and 3D animation or plays with framerates, and it's becoming more and more common in films and series such as Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, The Wild Robot, and Arcane.
That last one seems pretty important. Being a pretty recent hit Netflix show which very successfully adapted a popular game with a wide roster of characters, we'd be shocked if Magic: The Gathering didn't look to Arcane for some tips and tricks. Like, for instance, maybe Chandra will have pink hair.
The MTG Netflix series was announced a long time ago, all the way back in 2019, and for a while it seemed to be stuck in production hell. We've no idea, to be clear, that it isn't still - but the last couple of years have at least produced more rumblings, such as a new showrunner, Terry Matalas, a teaser image, and the news that Chandra, Jace, and Ajani would be the main characters.
No doubt the finished product is still a way off if they're only just lining up their animators. Arcane's first season took three years to make from the start of production, and six years from initial development to completion. Magic: The Gathering has already had all that time, but it seems they've frittered it. It seems Wizards basically hit the reset button in 2023, which is when Matalas has confirmed he joined the project.
What are your hopes and dreams for the Magic: The Gathering show - and who should the villain(s) be? Come let us know on the Wargamer Discord. Also, don't miss our guides to Edge of Eternities and everything on the MTG release schedule.