Movie 4 Production Diary

[Patches]

Since it just started and should be pretty easy to keep up with, I'll see if I can translate the entires of the Movie 4 Production Diary as they appear. Oh, I should note that all the staff are simply assigned a nickname, usually a letter. I'll write the blog posts in blue and italicized so they'll be easy pick out from random commentary as you scroll through here.

Remember that I am by no means fluent in Japanese and people tend to use odd grammar when blogging, so there are bound to be errors and misinterpretations throughout this thing.

Purification of the staff

At the Igusa Hachiman shrine near Sunrise studios, we of the staff prayed for happiness and the success of the movie.
Although the hot sun was blazing down on us in the afternoon, the entire fifty-person staff were able to participate.
The TV series is in the past, and though it looks like there will be a second round, right now it's time to start the movie. By the way, when researching youkai and the occult, it's generally a good idea to purify the main staff before doing that.

In 20 minutes, the peace was gone. After that we took a commemoration photo with everyone.
Those two guys working with S-pro on the movie publicity were late. They didn't make it for the purification, but they were there for the photo.

S-pro of YTV announced that they would be making an insert song for this movie.
I say insert song, but unlike the one in the second film, because this one is actually sung by a cast member as part of the story (though, it's not like we'd have someone of Inu's group sing), the way we're going about publicizing it is a bit different.

Jul 22, 2004

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Stumbling from the start

Since the continuity wasn't finished today, I started messing with this (the production blog). The staff didn't look all that happy, but if it's like what happened that day when I could get away with 15 minutes, from then until the day we peacefully release the movie, I think all I can do is just write in here.

Well, I'm saying that, but I have a business meeting scheduled for tomorrow evening, so I won't be able to, and it looks like it's going to be an all-nighter... Boo hoo....
Once the business meeting is over, of course I'll write in here.
H-kun's bitter face comes to mind, so I think it's going to be one of those days.
(... though, he's been like that since day one...)

Aug 25, 2004

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Kikyou's armored form

Today, the character designer's rough of Kikyou's armored form was accepted over animation supervisor H-san's. That gives me a good feeling. However he made it, it's going to be fun to work with.

In reality, I'll have to go to tonight's meeting without the continuity being done, so tomorrow evening's going to be long.
(Hey, everyone in A-company, sorry)
Thus, tonight's another all-nighter. I say all-nighter, but I'll get two or three hours of sleep. At my age, I just watch my efficiency go down the drain by the day. Boo hoo...

All-nighters remind me of the last steps of the first film. At that time, it was just one thing after another and I was on the verge of a total breakdown. I think I only slept 10 hours that entire last week... This time around is like then...

I know I'm starting to rant, but from now on I plan to write about introducing the staff one by one, or talking about meetings at the studio or publicity events. Since Takahashi-sensei also participates in the studio meetings, they'll be enjoyable.

Aug 26, 2004

.... Kikyou's armored form? I'm guessing Midoriko-like armor, but... ... the hell? Anyway, more to come later.

[panoramacon]

By the way, when researching youkai and the occult, it's generally a good idea to purify the main staff before doing that.

LOL! You sure don't want those monsters leaping off the page and possessing you or anything ;D

and though it looks like there will be a second round

So the series is going away but it looks like will be back

P

[Patches]

Here's some more!

D-part continuity done

It's one day late, but the continuity check of D-part is done.
It's been a week since I've shown my face in the studio.
My once-empty desk is steadily becoming buried, but the tension coming from everyone is promising.

From 8:30 to 10:30 there was a meeting at Sunrise's head office with the producer/supervisor, F-san of A-company.
F-san helped me out with the first film. He left me with a great impression, especially with the angsty facial expressions with the fight between Sango and the mind-controlled Kirara.
He's a really gentle and honest guy, and I'm really happy to be working with him again after three years.

And that was hardly half of today's meeting. Only four months left until the premiere date, and the numbers are getting me vaguely worried. In any case, I've got to keep up the pace until it's over.

Aug 27, 2004

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Anime comics volume 2

I picked up the second volume of the anime comics for last year's film, "Sword of World Conquest".
This year it seems like they delivered fewer to the studio than usual, so I feel kind of bad for some of the staff here who didn't get one.
Even while they're getting worn out, I keep cheering them on.
Even though I was the only one who got both volumes last year.

While I was flipping through the book, while it turned out well all-around, I did notice a mistake.
However I say it, drawing Inu-papa last year was a huge task.
Although Inuyasha is simple enough, what sort of character would the father have to be to have Sesshoumaru harbor such a complex over him?
When discussing with the supervisor M-san, it looked like he'd made him a little more wild than the original draft given to us by Sensei.

The result was as you see. I don't know if he turned quite the way I wanted, but...
(This time, the assistant director O-kun has taken over directing)

As for the father's face, Takahashi-sensei herself wished for us to not show it very much, so it took the form you see.
Personally, I wanted to show his face a little more when he appeared at the end.
I have pictures of Inu-papa without the fog (mist filter), but due to those restrictions, I'm not allowed to release them. And he has a nice face, too...

Aug 28, 2004

He actually called Papa "Inu-chichi" in that blog, but... "chichi" can be translated as "papa", so nyaaaah. I'm just all giddy about a whole entry devoted to the staff dude talking about t3h papa. Now I need to track him down and raid his house to find those un-obstructed images....

::yawn:: Well I'll call it quits for tonight. There's still two more entries before I'm caught up, but I can work on those tomorrow. Until then, enjoy the insider tidbits!

[therhoda]

I'll go with you patch.

You have to wonder why Takahashi okayed letting them use him but didn't want a lot of his face to show. Not as if just the little bits we got didn't spark a Inu-papa fan club. ahhhh!

[Patches]

But wait, there's more!

The autumn breeze blows and...

The effect of a typhoon is rather refreshing.
After it being hot as hell, it's refreshing that it brings a bit of coolness, but now we're all shivering in cold from the autumn wind.
Winter is coming closer, and whether we like it or not, the schedule looming over us gives us those chills.

We're running late this year, too.
At the beginning, there was a lot of excitement about the announcement of the production of the fourth film, so I wonder if that had anything to do with starting late.
Even without that, the 11 months working on the scenario were quite trying.
Although I think it would have been good to get the scenario done sooner, when the entertainment industry doesn't pay you or give you the go, there's no method about it.
So I wonder what we'll do for the next (fifth) one?

Aug 29, 2004

----

This and that on Monday...

From the afternoon until after working at home, I was in the studio at three.
Because of that, we're half done with A-part continuity check.

Continuity is usually done by multiple people.
If I had my way, I'd do it myself, but I can't do anything about the tight schedule, and they wouldn't forgive my sloppy handwriting.
This time there are four people. Two of them are first-timers.
One of them, N-kun, is associated with "Crest of the Stars". He helped me direct the Inu dramas for the second film.
He's really energetic. He's got a big voice. He likes hot food. He himself is hot. Tough. Easy to offend. He loves working for the animation company and has a lot of enthusiasm. He's really friendly and has a lot of connections with other animators.
As the senior supervisor of the OVA and TV series, I told N-kun he's really pushing himself this time.
Thanks to that, we've developed some super action scenes for before and after the main title. Because of the level of the production staff, I'm eagerly anticipating it.

Tonight, I'll give them the preparatory materials for the main title CG.
If we're getting that far into the production, it should turn out quite well.
The one who's mainly in charge of the opening and ending is F-chan, who is the studio's resident CG operator. By the way, she's really duitiful and has wonderful manners.
Together with the aforementioned N-kun, our studio workers are top-class.

Aug 30, 2004

La. There's still one more entry that was added today, but I'll get to that later.

[HMPrune as guest]

Cool updates - it's like being an 'insider'.

However, I'd like to hear more about 'the second round' of the anime.

[Patches]

Okay, here's the last one, and then I'm all caught up. At least for today. He seems to make posting a daily habit.

A-part continuity check complete

I was in the studio this afternoon at 12:00.
Usually at this time there aren't that many people here.
Today I was with the married couple, M-san the production clerk and S-san the animator (I kept having to do continuity work for the husband during the second film), so it was just the three of us. That and the other version of N-kun was having a breakdown in the conference room (Ah, you had to stay here again).

This studio is one of the most famous and spied on, so the hours tend to be flexible. There are a lot of people with extraordinary nocturnal habits.
Since we'll eventually become the city that never sleeps, my greeting is always, "Good morning!"
At night, after I've adjusted my face, it's also, "Good morning!"

In the evening I go to the nearby family restaurant and make dining my job.
(I do lots of work at the local hot pot and coffee shop)

At night, I was on the phone with X-company's M-san (you probably know without me saying that he was the animation director until last year).
The conversation was dragging on and I was looking for an excuse to do something else, but I decided against saying, "Help, I am possessed!"
In that case, I've heard a lot about ghosts, so I wonder what it's like to be possessed?

I finally finished the A-part continuity check in time to catch the last train.
Tomorrow's a meeting with the director.
That should take about an hour. Then the two home guys from the four continuity guys should be done.
All that's left is my own discussion of expenses with the above-mentioned S-san.

Aug 31, 2004

Dude, I am so using the "Help, I'm possessed!" excuse when getting out of my next conversation.

[Patches]

... He's becoming less and less succinct. Ah well.

Watching the CG demo

In the evening there was a directoral meeting with the photographer A-pro about the second half of A-part.
After that we were shown the CG (Computer Graphics) cut demo that was done at this point.

First is a waterfall. The setting this time is a solitary island on the ocean.
A location with a huge waterfall flowing down.
Though we want to match the animation to the original, the greatest task is combining the 2D (animation and background) with the CG. We have to take the coloring, light angle and intensity, and camera angle of the scene into consideration and tweak it little by little.

Next are the fireflies. A symbol of a surrealistic and beautiful scene covered in countless fireflies.
In order to make this realistic, in August the staff went to Tatsuno city in Nagano to collect data on real fireflies. (Unfortunately, I didn't get to go)
The board for the backgrounds (which I use for every scene) with the fireflies on it is really quite beautiful.
This is already in the fine-tuning stage.

Next is the fluid surrounding Kikyou.
Though it hasn't been fully developed yet, the viscosity and transparency of the fluid are there.
At present, we're in the process of deciding on the feel of the fluid, but the current demo is almost there.
3DCG has a habit of muddy movements, so the background and color compatability with the 2D is considerably suppressed.
However, this is the complexity that comes with animation, and it's a hurdle we still have to pass.

At the end is a wall of crimson flames.
We were going for an image that looked like the surface of the sun pictured on the July issue of National Geographic.
We're about at the point where we've got it looking like the source image.
I'm looking forward to seeing the final product, since it is quite intense.
I get hot (warm) just looking at it.
It'll be a step up from the trailers that are currently circulating in the theaters.

I'm certain when I see the final production, it will be quite uplifting.
Even if the schedule is rigid, everyone around here is brimming with energy.

Sep 1, 2004

Just as a side note, I hate the word "morau". -_-

[ManonLeChat]

Patches said:

However I say it, drawing Inu-papa last year was a huge task.
Although Inuyasha is simple enough, what sort of character would the father have to be to have Sesshoumaru harbor such a complex over him?

Inuyasha doesn't come off so well in that statement! ;D

Patches, these translations are AWESOME. Thank you for doing them! Armoured Kikyou, Kikyou in waterfall, singing cast members (but not Inu-tachi, does Jaken get his own aria?)? This is great!

And Second Round of TV series, yay! (I only wish he sounded more sure of that than he does ).

[Patches]

ManonLeChat said:

Inuyasha doesn't come off so well in that statement! ;D

^_^* I think that means that creating a character based off Inuyasha's reactions to him would be easy, because Inuyasha doesn't HAVE any reactions to him.

I'm still gonna raid his house for the Papa art...

[Patches]

Scenario conference

At the beginning of the year, we'd begun collecting scenario ideas after the theatrical release had ended.
At that point, there was no definite story, just some conversations on what the next movie should be about.
I'll call it the plot conference.
The participants were three people from YTV, two people from the publisher S-company, three people from Sunrise, the scriptwriter (scenario writer) S-san and artist T-san, and me.

At the outset of the conversations, the scriptwriter S-san wanted to settle on a rough plot idea, and we changed the scenario numerous times after who-knows-how-many meetings.
Around the beginning of March, we had the first draft, and even though we continued to have scenario meetings, at that point we were able to present it to Takahashi-sensei (for some reason I only use a real name with her).

At these scenario meetings there were various opinions thrown around, which became quite amusing.
Since we had ten people throwing out ten flavors of ideas, it was a great task for scriptwriter S-san to finally pull all those ideas together.
It was still a valuable asset to ask for Takahashi-sensei's thoughts directly. That's the joy of it.
We had no obligation to use Takahashi-sensei's input, but she sure has great persuasive power.
In the end she ended up leaving a lot to our leisure, but I could feel the greatness of the author's caliber.
(said another way, it almost sounds like my responsibilities are boring)

After piling on revision after revision, although we had the finished draft in the middle of April, considering the circumstances of this year, we were running a month late.

2004/09/02

Why did he change his dating format? ... Oh well. Seems like the running theme in this blog is "OMG we're running late!!!!11"

[B-chan]

At these scenario meetings there were various opinions thrown around, which became quite amusing.
Since we had ten people throwing out ten flavors of ideas, it was a great task for scriptwriter S-san to finally pull all those ideas together.

I can already imagine those scenario meetings...

"Let's make it on an island!"
"Let's have Kikyo with armor!"
"We should have Fluffy back too!"
"Hey and we need to have someone sing!"
"What about a typhoon? Haven't done one of those."

And S-san going

[echolalia]

B-chan said:

<snippage>
And S-san going

Most... appropriate use of... rolly-eyed smiley... ever! Heheheheh. =)

Personally, the highlight of that last blog entry was the phrase "ten flavours of ideas".

Ten flavours of ideas?

Dude. Dibs on strawberry!

Clearly feeling silly today,
-echo!

[Patches]

echolalia said:

Personally, the highlight of that last blog entry was the phrase "ten flavours of ideas".

Ten flavours of ideas?

Dude. Dibs on strawberry!

Actually, that was my doing. The blog actually said "ten colors", but "color" can also be used to mean "type" or "flavor".

[Patches]

Just as a note, this blog tends to get updated around 2:30 Eastern Time every day, so my translations will obviously come no earlier than that.

Art board

I was working at home this afternoon (on the last half of C-part and stuff).
There was a meeting at 9:00 at night over the art board for A- and D-part.

The art board is the background image print for every scene.
The movie consists of various scenes (settings).
The art board is the drawn concept of the director's vision of location, time, weather, and lighting for each scene.
If the director OK's the art board, then we go off to work on deciding on the styles for the corresponding cels (characters).

The art supervisors are the leading company figurehead I-pro's I-san, and I-pro's connection, N-kun.
I-san has been here close to 20 years now, and is someone I've been working with since I first started at the company.
At that time, I was just some rookie in my early 20's, but I-san had already set himself up as a hard-working art supervisor.
At that point I didn't have a very good feel of where I wanted to be going in the world, but as the years passed up to now, I wanted to go against the power of influence, and to make a long story short, I still don't have a feel. It kinda sucks.
When making a movie, people can have similar opinions, and while I think it's good to build up strong connections, as I figured, I should be able to figure out the mistakes I made in my younger years.

"What cute eyes. He tickles my maternal instinct," says T-san from the Inu production department.

2004/09/03