You don't have to be a hardcore manga or anime fan to be familiar with the viral ‘food jutsu’ TikTok trend exploding on everyone's For You pages of late – perhaps you didn't even make the connection.
Similarly to the Justin Bieber drink trend, which uses a remix of his hit song “Baby” and sees empty-handed punters miraculously manifest alcoholic beverages, the ‘food jutsu’ trend inspired by Jujutsu Kaisen (or JJK for short) and other anime like Naruto, uses a combination of sharp camera cuts to create a mesmerising optical illusion.
If you still have no idea what I'm talking about, here are some examples:
TikTok content
TikTok content
TikTok content
What is the ‘food jutsu’ TikTok trend about?
Set to the earworm that is aptly named “Delirious”, a score written by Japanese composer Yoshimasa Terui, the ‘food jutsu’ TikTok trend is influenced by the anime show Jujutsu Kaisen – an adapted manga series that follows a high schooler who is overcome by an evil spirit after eating a severed finger (yup) – as well as Naruto, Chainsaw Man and others.
The TikTok trend itself draws upon fight/combat scenes from these series, using what are called domain expansion hand symbols, a sorcery technique that brings one's innate domain (kind of like their personality and inner-self) into the real world. Rather than bend realities, however, social media users simply use the martial arts techniques to conjure up drinks and snacks.
How to perfect the ‘food jutsu’ camera transitions
You'll need at least two people to do it, because even if you've got a trusty tripod, it involves a helluva lot of juggling and you'll want to remain frozen in the pre-drink/food pose before your pal places the glass/plate in your hand.
To pull of the sharp camera cut and get that jolted effect, try moving the camera/phone instead of your drink to avoid spillages. You'll still need to move your body a bit to give the proper illusion.
Here are the best tutorials to walk you through the process:
