"Huh? The new short film arrived that quickly?" Yanister stood in his office, looking somewhat surprised as he faced the old butler in front of him.
Although Edward had previously said he would send over a new short film, Yanister genuinely hadn't expected it to arrive so soon.
"It had already been in production beforehand, and it was just completed recently," the old butler replied, a touch of pride on his face. After all, Young Master Edward was now the pride of the Stone family, and as the family's steward, he too shared in that sense of honor.
Yanister took the disc, then went over to insert it into the player for a test screening.
The League Chairwoman had issued a strict directive requiring the broadcast of at least one non-horror short film. Though Yanister was just a man doing his job, once the Chairwoman had spoken, he naturally had to comply. Doing a preliminary check was only reasonable.
The old butler didn't stop him, either. He was also curious to see what exactly Edward had entrusted him to deliver this time.
Very quickly, with a stirring blast of music, a Pyroar appeared on screen, roaring powerfully beneath the bold letters of Ghost Films Production. Then, the film's title came into view.
"This animation style..." Yanister blinked. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with it, yet he couldn't quite put his finger on a strange feeling it gave him.
For some reason, the visual tone felt completely different from the previous horror short that Edward had delivered. Not in a bad way, but the shift was certainly noticeable.
Soon, the screen displayed a new scene. A Persian emerged from somewhere, his eyes fixed on a Spearow locked inside a cage. Just then, a Rattata walked into the frame, stretching lazily before noticing what was going on. What followed was a rapid sequence of chase scenes with no dialogue whatsoever. Yanister, before he realized it, had already sat up straight, fully engrossed.
The old butler, meanwhile, watched with a more technical eye.
The short contained several highly exaggerated practical effects. For example, in one scene, the Persian falls onto a clothesline, and as his body drops, he's hilariously sliced into segments by the line.
This was filmed in a very natural way with no signs of editing or post-production tricks, suggesting that the shot was likely achieved using multiple Ditto Pokémon forming the visual effect. Plus, the segmented Persian wasn't portrayed in a scary way, so it came off as funny instead of disturbing.
"But didn't Young Master Edward say it was supposed to be called Meowth and Rattata? Why is the lead a Persian instead?" The old butler felt a twinge of confusion. Moreover, this Persian had even been specially painted a strange shade of blue, which looked a little odd.
Though puzzled, the butler kept watching. After all, the storyline was surprisingly engaging.
When the blue-painted Persian came flying down from the sky, legs spread, and managed to split a giant tree cleanly down the middle, the entire office erupted into spontaneous laughter. And with that, the short film quickly reached its end.
"This is perfect. This short film will work just fine!" Yanister was visibly relieved. Unlike the previous ones, this short didn't carry any horror elements whatsoever. In fact, it felt downright wholesome in its absurdity. Though it was filmed in live action, it gave off a surreal, exaggerated vibe that made it feel less "real" in the psychological sense, which only enhanced the comedic effect.
The soundtrack was also excellent—elevating the humor of each scene. Yanister found himself chuckling throughout.
Even though there were no lines spoken, that was exactly what made this kind of short perfect for Pokémon viewers, who generally responded better to visuals than dialogue.
"Mhm, I'll leave it in your capable hands then, Mr. Yanister," the old butler said with a smile. He pulled out his device, ready to report back to Edward that the short had been successfully delivered and received.
At the same time, Edward was sitting in his director's chair, watching the very same short film that had been sent over by Ada from the Hoenn branch of the company. Ada had also included a note explaining why there had been a change in casting.
The reason? Meowth's height is typically just 0.4 meters, while Rattata stands at 0.3 meters—only a 0.1-meter difference. That small disparity didn't quite capture the comedic contrast in size necessary for the classic cat-and-mouse dynamic. So, Ada decided to use Meowth's evolved form, Persian, instead.
"That really was my oversight," Edward muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose. He had originally thought Meowth would be a good fit visually for a Tom-like character, but he hadn't considered the issue of scale.
Nevertheless, Edward was still very satisfied with the finished short. The final result felt very much like the animated content he had in mind—bright and vivid with high color saturation, mimicking the feel of a live-action version of an animated show.
The music and sound design were also excellent, and Edward genuinely enjoyed the entire short. The nostalgic vibe was reminiscent of the old Tom and Jerry cartoons he remembered.
Edward replied to Ada's message with a simple, "Very good," before receiving a follow-up message from the old butler about the film's handover. He gave a quick acknowledgment and put his phone away.
Meowth and Rattata—or perhaps now more fittingly Persian and Rattata—had met his expectations. Edward decided then and there to continue producing shorts in this style. A classic animation from his previous life deserved to be shared with the people of this world.
Whether it would be a hit on the PoképokéTV video site was still uncertain, but Edward wasn't particularly concerned. He wasn't watching the site stats himself—Ada would be keeping an eye on that. After all, this was Ada's first official directorial project.
"Boss, Miss Hana is already getting her makeup done," Zoroark said as he walked over. They were currently filming the hospital scene, which required a middle-aged woman to play the role of a corpse—specifically, the mother of Mizuno Mimiko, who would become the first victim in One Missed Call.
Of course, that was just the plot for the first film. In the second film, it would be revealed that Mizuno Mimiko was merely the first victim of another ghost named Lili, who was actually the true origin of the curse. However, Edward wasn't particularly fond of the second film's storyline, so he hadn't planned to include it in his version.
"Okay," Edward nodded. Then something occurred to him, and he called Zoroark back.
"By the way, give Miss Hana a stunt actor's bonus," he added.
The scene they were shooting required heavy prosthetics and full-body makeup to make Hana appear like a long-dead corpse—burned and partially decayed. It was a physically demanding and uncomfortable job.
So, giving her a stunt actor's subsidy was entirely fair.
"Understood," Zoroark noted it down. Soon after, Edward saw the fully made-up Hana.
She now looked nothing like a living person. Her skin appeared as if it had been scorched and partially rotted away. The sight made anyone feel uncomfortable just by looking.
But Edward was pleased. This was exactly the kind of ghostly appearance he had envisioned.
In the storyline, the character Yumi would initially believe this woman to be the culprit behind the One Missed Call deaths, but it would later be revealed that she, too, was merely another victim.
(End of Chapter)
(AN: This short used the first episode of the old Tom and Jerry series as a visual reference.)