Naoko Yamada is executive producer on Science Saru's Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia, which premiered on Crunchyroll on July 4 following an Annecy Festival screening. She also traveled to Mongolia for location scouting, research she discussed publicly in September 2026.
Naoko Yamada's current work is Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia, a Science Saru adaptation of Tomato Soup's manga A Witch's Life in Mongol. She is executive producer, with Abel Gongora directing episodes. The series follows a slave in 13th-century Persia and premiered on Crunchyroll on July 4 after screening at the Annecy Festival. The production consulted a cultural advisor and the team visited a mosque for the portrayal of Islamic, Persian, and Mongolian cultures.
Science Saru released a 25-minute making-of video in August 2026, with Yamada, Gongora, and character designer Kenichi Yoshida discussing how the manga's artwork and pacing were translated into animation. The video showed techniques such as erasing outline lines to keep the original hand-drawn feel. Yamada's title across the materials is consistently executive producer, while episode direction is Gongora's role.
In September 2026, Yamada described the research behind the series. She and Gongora traveled to Mongolia for location scouting, toured museums of Mongolian history, and consulted experts on Mongolian and Persian history who supervised the project. The pair did a homestay in a traditional dwelling and tried horseback riding. Yamada said the manga's 13th-century Persia and Mongolia setting and its basis in a true story drew her to the project.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the cited Yomimono stories below, each itself
sourced, then editorially reviewed. Every
fact links the story it came from.
Sep 7
Naoko Yamada and director Abel Góngora traveled to Mongolia for location scouting ahead of Science SARU's Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia, touring museums of Mongolian history and consulting experts on Mongolian and Persian history who supervised the project. The pair also did a homestay in a traditional dwelling and tried horseback riding. Yamada said the manga's 13th-century Persia and Mongolia setting and its basis in a true story drew her to the project.
Aug 28
Science Saru released a 25-minute making-of video for Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia, the series based on Tomato Soup's manga A Witch's Life in Mongol. The video features director Naoko Yamada, director Abel Gongora, and character designer Kenichi Yoshida discussing how they translated the manga's artwork and pacing into animation.
Jul 8
Science Saru's anime adaptation of the manga 'Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia' premiered on Crunchyroll on July 4 after screening at the Annecy Festival. Naoko Yamada is executive producer, Abel Góngora directs episodes. The series follows a slave in 13th-century Persia. The team consulted a cultural advisor and visited a mosque to ensure respectful portrayal of Islamic, Persian, and Mongolian cultures.