Why Eiichiro Oda Bet on One Piece’s Most Incompetent Director to Tackle Toei’s Impossible Project
Despite steering one of the franchise’s biggest and most talked-about hits, One Piece Film: Red director Goro Taniguchi told the 1st Aichi-Nagoya International Anime Film Festival he considers himself the most incompetent person ever.
Goro Taniguchi just called himself incompetent, and honestly, the receipts say otherwise. The director of One Piece Film: Red spoke at the first Aichi-Nagoya International Anime Film Festival in Japan and basically roasted his own skill set. It sounds wild given Red turned into a box office bulldozer, but there is a method to the self-deprecation.
'I am bad at everything'... from the guy who directed Red
At ANIAFF, in remarks reported by Oricon, Taniguchi said he doesn't have the usual specialist tools you expect from an anime heavyweight. Not voice acting, not screenwriting, not art direction, not cinematography. He even admitted he figured out early on that grinding harder wouldn't magically turn him into a top-tier animator or writer.
"I feel like the most incompetent person ever."
It's a funny confession coming from the director of one of the franchise's biggest smashes, but it also explains why Eiichiro Oda trusted him with Red in the first place.
How he turned being a generalist into the whole point
Instead of chasing mastery in one department, Taniguchi went wide on purpose. He learned enough of everything to speak everyone's language and keep the machine moving in sync. His words, not mine: don't try to beat specialists at their strongest game. Connect them.
- Sound engineering
- Photography
- Publicity and sales
- Production processes
- Company management
That broad, practical knowledge made him the person who could bridge creative and technical teams without losing the thread. Very behind-the-scenes, very useful.
The Red challenge: 10 billion or bust
When Toei Animation handed him One Piece Film: Red, they slapped a number on the wall: 10 billion yen at the box office. No Toei film had ever hit that before. Taniguchi balanced the big creative swings with production realities, and the movie blew past the target — over 15 billion yen in a short window. Globally, Box Office Mojo puts Red at $171,315,305, and it ultimately ranked as the 7th highest-grossing film in Japan. Not bad for someone who says he's bad at everything.
Why Oda went with Taniguchi
Oda backed him because that broad skill set meant the story, music, visuals, and direction would all be rowing in the same direction. Red felt new — those musical set pieces were a swing — but it still played like One Piece. That balance is the franchise sweet spot.
The marketing move most directors never touch
One particularly nerdy production detail: Taniguchi dove into marketing. That's not a lane most directors get to drive in, but he felt the standard promo plan would cap the movie at a lower number. So he pushed for a louder, more inventive campaign.
He also made the call to bring in Ado as Uta's singer — a choice that ruffled feathers internally. Oda backed him, Ado's songs became a centerpiece of the film, and Uta turned into a fan favorite fast. For clarity: Ado provides Uta's singing; the character's speaking voice is performed by a different actor. Either way, the bet paid off.
Where Red lands now
If you care about scorecards: it's sitting around 6.7/10 on IMDb, 7.81 on MyAnimeList, and a very shiny 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. One Piece is currently available to watch on Crunchyroll if you want to revisit the world that made Red possible.
Did Red work for you, or did the musical angle throw you? I'm curious where you landed.