Right side: story synopsis, part 1

Left side: Mr. Nishizaki speaks

The preparation before Part 2 could be made

The second film went into action in early November

Part 2 of the explosively popular Space Battleship Yamato was produced in complete secrecy. The basic concept of the project was developed by the main staff in early November. The first brainstorming session was held on December 14. Meetings were held with Directors Leiji Matsumoto and Toshio Masuda, and also the scriptwriters.

Meetings were held day after day, night after night, with Producer Nishizaki playing a central role. It was common for the meetings to go on for more than 14 hours straight.

The story was decided starting with the last scene. A press conference for the production announcement was finally held on May 24.

January 6: SF research in Hawaii

The main staff left for Hawaii on January 6 to study Star Wars and Close Encounters, which are big hits in America and became a hot topic in Japan. They were discussed after screenings at the “Waikiki Three.”

Mr. Nishizaki’s impression was, “The mecha and special effects of Star Wars are certainly excellent. However, the relationship between humans and machines was not depicted in detail. With anime, it is possible to do that and emphasize the fantastic parts. With Close Encounters, I sympathized with the fact that there is a love for the universe that goes beyond love for humanity.”

Yukiko Hanai is also active as a staff member

In early February, successful fashion designer Yukiko Hanai was asked to create designs. They were completed in mid-March. It was unprecedented for a professional designer to be in charge of costume design for an anime movie.

What we will see in the movie is Yuki Mori’s sporty safari look. The costumes are unique in that they can be worn by anyone, since they are the work of a designer. The fashion worn by Yuki Mori, who is in love with Susumu Kodai, may become a trend this summer.

Recording the theme song on June 23rd

The previous Yamato featured Isao Sasaki in a star comeback. The theme song for the new Yamato will be sung by Kenji Sawada.

Julie was chosen from among many singers for the reason that “he is the one who can best convey something to young people.” From Yamato With Love in the last scene is very moving.

Right side: story synopsis, part 2

Left side:

Illustration: how animation is made

1. A single scene in the movie. This scene consists of three pictures: the person, the background, and the smoke (special effects). They are drawn separately and later combined as follows…

2. First, a storyboard book is created according to the script. All of Yamato‘s scenes are in this book.

3. Part of the storyboard, roughly drawn with frame division. At first glance, it feels like you’re watching a movie.

4. Original background drawing. From the storyboard, scenes are divided into two parts: the animation, which focuses on the people, and the background, which is drawn separately.

5. Original drawing of a person. Facial expressions and costumes (in this case, Susumu Kodai) are drawn with precision.

6. Coloring the cel. Vivid colors are applied to the back of the transparent celluloid sheet. Each step is done by hand.

7. The finished cel.

8. Special effects. Explosions, smoke, etc. are painted by a special effects specialist on a cel.

9. Smoke cel drawn with airbrush.

10. Backgrounds are painted by the staff in the art room. Special attention is paid to the color scheme of space and spaceships.

11. The finished background.

12. The finished images are sent to the filming room. Each frame is filmed with a movie camera to complete the animation.

Yamato‘s interesting Q&A with Producer Nishizaki

Q: Talking about Yamato, there were 26 episodes aired on TV, followed by two movies, including this one, and a new TV series will start soon. What is the difference between the main theme of each of them?

A: The first one was on TV. It has the setting of going to Iscandar to retrieve a radiation removal device. It depicts a man’s way of life in order to achieve his goal. But in the end, it raises the question of whether it was the right thing to fight to save the Earth. Personal love is the basis of greater love, universal love.

In the first film, through Juzo Okita, we see a man’s way of life. It emphasizes his character to show there is no greater man in the world. The theme is also the personal growth of Susumu Kodai.

In the second film, love and death are explored more closely. Would you die for the person you love the most? (What is the demonstration of love?) This will be an important theme.

The next TV series is scheduled to start on October 7, and is already in production. The theme is the same as the movie. We plan to depict this theme through the eyes of each and every person in the story.

Q: The word “Farewell” is attached to Yamato this time. Is this because of the assumption that there will be no third part? Also, do you have any plans for Yamato productions other than the movie?

A: Yes, this is the end of the Yamato movies. There will never be a Part 3. You can see that by watching the last scene.

Aside from the movie, I would love to do a musical version of Yamato in Takarazuka. It hasn’t been worked out yet, but Yamato is a very musical drama. I would like to make it happen around next summer.

Q: There are few female characters in Yamato. Yuki Mori is the only main one, and Teresa is a symbolic figure, not a familiar one. In the TV version, a nurse appears briefly. Is there a reason why there are so few women?

A: It is true that Yuki Mori is the only female. The story itself is centered on the first bridge of Yamato, so the females are limited to Yuki Mori and the focus is her relationship with Kodai and Shima.

In fact, adding more female characters had pros and cons even among the staff. We received dozens of letters from fans asking why we did not create a girlfriend for Shima. I think that having a female in a semi-leading role would have made the story too complicated. This is also the starting point for Leiji Matsumoto’s use of female characters. The nurse in the infirmary appeared only once, which was a casting mistake.

Q: I heard that Yamato is very popular with foreign audiences. Are the names of the main characters the same as in the original? Please give us specifics.

A: The second-generation name for Susumu Kodai is Jason Kodai. The others are Okita/Okita, Shima/Shane, Yuki Mori/Yuki, Starsha/Starsha, Dessler/Desler, and Gamilas/Gorgon.

Q: Some fans love Yamato, but somewhere in their hearts they are stuck on the fact that it’s a war film. In that sense, was there a part of the film that was made with certain care, like over-defense?

A: That’s what I worry about the most. First of all, there’s the basis of how humans relate to machines. It is always the human being who drives the machine. Yamato‘s Wave-Motion Gun, for example, has the power to blow up at a continent. This invincible and undefeatible power has its drawbacks. It consumes a lot of energy, so it can rarely be fired, and it can never be fired at a planet with living organisms, so they only use it as a last resort.

Yamato is not a belligerent story. The love of humanity for scientific power is always an important theme. It is important to stand against the universe, but I’m careful about excessive defense.

Q: There is a theory that you were the model for Dessler. Is it true? Are there models for other characters in the same way? Also, the names feel familiar to me, so what about that?

A: Dessler’s face is modeled on Hitler of Germany. They have something in common in that they are both dictators. And a producer is also a dictator, in a sense. I guess that’s what they say. The actor’s voice is similar to mine, and I have heard that he performs the role with me in mind.

Saito’s voice came to resemble Producer Tatsu Yoshida as we wrote it. They started to resemble each other even in the storyboarding stage.

Many of the characters have familiar names. Okita, Hijikata, and Saito are from the Shinsengumi. Hikozaemon Tokugawa is a combination of Hikozaemon Okubo and Ieyasu Tokugawa. As for Shiro Sanada, I really wanted to name him Sasuke Sanada after Sasuke Sarutobi and Juyushi Sanada, but….

This is an aside, but I received a letter from someone saying that Saburo Kato’s name is the same as the name of the bomber, but it was taken from the commander of the Hayabusa Kato Fighter Group, who was also the king of the dogfight. I happened to be a classmate of his son.

Q: Finally, where did you get the hint for a flying battleship? It is said that you came up with the idea while looking at toy ships in the bathtub…

A: That’s not true. The idea of a ship flying in the sky was in a book I read as a child. Flying battleships are not uncommon. This is a reproduction of the real Yamato in the sky.

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