-Filmography
Voices of a Distant Star
(Hoshi no Koe)
From Webmaster:
The manga series of Voices of a Distant Star started on Afternoon, a Japanese monthly manga magazine, since 2004 April issue. And, the issue ran a talk article which titiled Futari no Koe (Voices of the Two Persons) between Mr Shinkai and Mr Kousuke Fujishima, the author of Ah! My Goddess! and You're Under Arrest! and a character designer of Sakura Wars.
I translated that article because I think it is difficult for foreign Shinkai fans to know what the article says, different from those on the web which can be read through an online translating. I'll delete this article if I know that is published officially in English.
Translater: Daike
Translation Help: icie http://members.iinet.net.au/~kleung1/
I (Daike) take full responsibility for this article.
Voices of the Two Persons
-Kousuke Fujishima X Makoto Shinkai-
A: Afternoon's Reporter
F: Kousuke Fujishima
S: Makoto Shinkai
What Brought You Togather
"It's great!"
"It's great!"
A: The trigger of this talk is Mr. Fujishima has said "Voices of a Distant Star is great!" the other day.
S: Wow.... I'm honoured.
F: I'm honoured to be here too. I'm before a famous creator (Mr. Shinkai) now.
S: You are a really a more senior creator than me, Mr. Fujishima. Didn't the manga series of "Ah! My Goddess!" commence around the 1980s? It was 1989, right?
F:Last year was the 15th anniversary, so it was since 1988, counting backward. I have been doing it over 15 years.
S: When the manga series started, I was a high school student. As I've known your name for long time, so I thought you were an older person.
F: I'm older than I look. (Laugh)
A: How old were you when you made Voices-, Mr. Shinkai?
S: I was 27 when I finished, and turned 28 about when it was released. I think it was a little late for a first work, but I had been working at a game company before that. I graduated from school, and worked at the game company for 5 or 6 years. I learned basic skill at the company. I often heard Mr. Fujishima's name in the gaming industry because you did works in there, including character design.
A: You've already met with Mr. Fujisawa there. (Laugh)
S: Yes, but I've known him before that, of course. Mr. Fujishima also had great presence in the gaming industry.
A: What made you watch Voices- for the first time, Mr. Fujishima?
F: I first learned about Voices- on the web. There was a topic in a forum about the film, and the members were saying "I heard it is great" or "It is great." So, I was interested in it but I couldn't see it.
A: The trailers were on the web at that time, weren't they?
S: I think they were.
F: Yes, they were. Then, I watched the trailers later. I was interested in how the story would develop in the completed film.
S: I made the film by evolving trailers by degrees. I made it bit by bit, and released 4 trailers as I went.
F: I borrowed the video tape from my friend, and I was surprised "It's fantastic!"
S: In those days, I also heard that you liked my film.
F: Yeah, I totally loved it.
Appeal of Voices of a Distant Star
Does space is painful?
Does space is painful?
A: What is your first impression of Voices-, Mr. Fujishima?
F: I felt that the space was painful. Were you anime-oriented originally, Mr. Shinkai?
S: Well, I loved them like the average person. But I couldn't watch so many of them because I lived in the countryside, and my hometown's TV station had a small number of channels. It was whilest I was working at a game company that I came to think of making an anime. It was late. I got a job at the game company when I was 22 or 23. I did DTP or art design jobs for the first few years. After that, I was assigned to making a game's opening video clip or storefront demonstration video, and I came to feel they are interesting.
F: What anime did you like?
S: I loved Sekai Meisaku Gekijou (World Masterpiece Theatre).
F: I loved Anne of Green Gables.
(Translater's Note:
Anne of Green Gables, a famous Canadian novel, became an anime in
Japan as a part of World Masterpiece Theatre in 1979. Mr Isao Takabata and
Mr Hayao Miyazaki joined it as staff.)
S: Yes, it was an wonderful anime.F: The Matthew's deathbed scene really move me to tears almost three times in a row.
S: That scene is sad.
F: That is terribly sad. That was the most tearful scene I have seen in anime.
S: That screen layout with the cherry blossom was great too, even it was for TV.
F: That was really great.
S: That work shows greatness of Mr. Miyazaki and Mr. Takabata.
F: They did great in lifestyle discription. They did it very carefully. I love lifestyle description. In that sense, I like Voices of a Distant Star.
S: Your manga often has such scenes, like crunching an osenbei (Japanese rice cracker) or having a tea. (laugh)
Degital
and Analog
"I didn't know how to make it"
"I didn't know how to make it"
S: I happened to turn on a CS, and I watched your "You're Under Arrest" recently. I guess the episode was the 1st or 2nd, but its quality was quite high.
F: That's because it's an OVA version.
S: Was that still in the analog age?
F: Yeah, that was gung-ho analog age. It was a kind of perfectly hand-made, even the hard details.
S: I thought so. But I found many elaborate effects were used. Those looks almost digital. For example, the way the light shines into. I was surprised.
F: That was a really great artisanship (of the OVA's staff).
S: I couldn't figure out how that was made.
F: Right. Such a thing would not be accomplished without that artisan because it depends on the innate skilfulness of him.
S: That light effect is made by shining a real light and a reflections, right?
F: Do you use real lights?
S: Well, I use it but I do anything by using digital skill. I can edit each pixels using many tools. In extreme case, I can make everything digitally, but I think the analog does not work like it.
F: Right. Recently, everything is made by CG. But, I feel that CG does not work well in some parts yet, in my opinion.
S: I'm doing CG by myself but even I feel a sense of strangeness sometimes too.
F: Concerned with the motion of a object, CG works good when an object is moving slowly in front of background art.
S: Conversely, slow motion is a little difficult in hand drawing.
F: That can't be done easily. When it comes to an action scene, I'm not satisfied with CG in some situations. The hand drawing appeals me strongly than CG, because it can emphasize the motion by using a deformation technique.
S: In manga, I feel you devote your affection to machines including cars.
F: I love them. Art cannot be created without the author's love, right? The same goes for everything.
S: Which do you like better, characters or machines?
F: I think characters. How about you Mr. Shinkai?
S: I love background arts.
F: Background! Surely your background art is beautiful.
S: Nothing really. On the other hand, I'm not so good at drawing characters.
F: You are unique. Many people like characters.
S: I like characters too. I'm just not good at drawing them.
F: That's okay. I love your characters. They are drawn straightforward.
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