Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo director Shinichiro Watanabe will have his hands full in collaborating on the U.S. live-action TV series of Cowboy Bebop, but in the mean time he will be keeping himself busy as he directs and writes the script for an upcoming short Blade Runner anime.

Titled Blade Runner Black Out 2022, the anime short is set in the year 2022, between the original Blade Runner film and the upcoming Blade Runner 2049. According to Cinema Pia, the story will revolve around massive blackouts on the West Coast of the United States, which leads to a food shortage crisis. A scientist develops a new artificial farming method to halt the crisis, but this means the abolition of the "Replicant Prohibition Act". Sony Pictures Japan has provided a sneak peak that shows off concept art and animation tests.

In the clip, Shinichiro Watanabe states that he has two major goals in directing this anime: "Paying the ultimate respect to Blade Runner, and not simply making an imitation of it."

The Sony Pictures Japan YouTube channel will stream the anime on September 26th.