There’s a seldom-heard name that belongs in the lineup of those who created Yamato: Head Writer Keisuke Fujikawa. As an alumni of Keio University’s Department of Literature, he was profiled in the online Keio Student Newspaper in a biographical account that itself reads like one of Fujikawa’s own heartfelt stories.
This collection of music-based conversations includes a look back at Yamato music history with Akira Miyagawa from Showa 40 Man magazine (February 2023), and the feelings of talented musicians who performed with him in twin concerts, interviewed in Sarasate magazine (May 2023).
Isao Sasaki’s voice was the first anyone ever heard when they met Space Battleship Yamato, and he still belts out that theme song as no one else can. Two days before his first-ever livestream concert, a pair of interviews with Sasaki appeared online, and as usual he had plenty of stories to tell.
As a key contributor to the two biggest anime franchises of all time, Yamato and Gundam, “Yas” possesses a unique vantage point and a fascinating career. He was extensively interviewed for two major books that were published in 2020, both of which are excerpted here.
Volume 8 of the Star Blazers/Yamato fan club magazine turned the spotlight on fightercraft and the pilots who fly them. Among the many features under this heading was a fresh interview with Mecha Designer Junichiro Tamamori, who now turns his formidable talents toward Yamato 2205.
From the pages of Star Blazers/Yamato fan club magazine: Character designer Nobuteru Yuuki has been part of the Yamato remake universe right from the start, providing the visual DNA for classic and new characters alike. This interview catches up with him at the start of Yamato 2205.
Artist Masahiko Okura is among those whose creative passion was ignited by Yamato, which he brought to the saga itself from Final Yamato all the way through 2199. In this interview from Ship’s Log issues 6, he shares personal memories going all the way back to his first viewing.
Countless young artists were inspired by Yamato in their youth, but only a few rose to the ranks of those who would keep it alive as adults. Masahiko Okura is one of them, having contributed from 1983 to the present day, and as you’ll see in this interview, he hasn’t lost an ounce of passion in all that time.
As the writer of Yamato 2202, Harutoshi Fukui has consistently had the most to say about it in one insightful interview after another. Inevitably, there had to be a last one. It was published over two consecutive issues of the official fan club magazine and brings an era to a thought-provoking close.
As the Executive Producer of Space Battleship Yamato saga, Shoji Nishizaki is by definition the primary source for all information about the state of the franchise. He gave this interview shortly after Yamato 2202 Chapter 7 closed in theaters.
From Hobby Japan #599, March 2019: in his final solo interview for Yamato 2202, Director Nobuyoshi Habara spoke passionately about his time with the saga, which he began as a fan of the original TV series. He also shared previously-untold stories about the making of Chapter 7 and some of his favorite moments in the series.
Two comprehensive interviews with Writer Harutoshi Fukui and Director Nobuyoshi Habara were published with the premiere of Chapter 7. Both covered similar material in slightly different ways, so both have been combined here.
As Yamato 2202 Chapter 7 approached, another wave of staff/cast interviews started slowly and then exploded along with the March 1 premiere. Hiroshi Kamiya (the voice Klaus Keyman) was there at the beginning and the end. Here we present his first and last interviews for the final chapter of the series.
A flurry of interviews accompanied the premiere of Yamato 2202 Chapter 7 in February and March, 2019. Various online news services asked cast and staff members for their impressions as the latest chapter in the legendary Yamato saga came to a close.
From Animage magazine vol. 488: with Yamato 2202 Chapter 7 approaching, Daisuke Ono (Kodai) and Hiroshi Kamiya (Keyman) sat down to give their first impressions of the ending as actors, and their thoughts on which Yamato characters they would take on their own personal missions.
From Animage magazine Vol. 489: having completed his work on Yamato 2202, Klaus Keyman’s voice actor Hiroshi Kamiya was one of the first to talk about the full experience. In this thoughtful interview, he shares his learning process and relationship with his unique character.
From the Yamato 2202 Chapter 6 program book: in this interview, art director Yoshio Tanioka describes the process for creating a visual world, and what it takes to translate the artistic style of Assistant Director Makoto Kobayashi into all of the lavish, detailed, and stunning background art seen on screen in Yamato 2202.
It is a little-known fact that Yamato 2199 Director Yutaka Izubuchi got his start very early when he participated in both Yamato III and Final Yamato as a fresh-faced newcomer. Here, he discusses his earliest experiences as both a fan and a staff member.
In this meeting of the minds, 2202 Director Nobuyoshi Habara compares and contrasts his work with that of Megalobox Director You Moriyama. Both tasked with reviving classic anime of the 1970s, they have much to say on many levels.
If there was an anime pantheon, Tomonori Kogawa would surely be in it. His contributions to the art form have been foundational and his influence as a mentor has been multi-generational. Here he candidly discusses his work on Yamato and many other classic titles.
Ryusuke Hikawa, the original Yamato superfan, is a prominent voice in SF/anime fandom in Japan. This interview with him was published Showa 40 Man magazine Vol. 41 (Crete Publishing, January 2017) and places Yamato’s rise into a context seldom seen elsewhere.
Kazutaka Miyatake is a man of few words, but his pen speaks volumes. As the primary mecha designer of Series 1 and Farewell to Yamato, his work has dazzled us and set an industry standard for over 40 years. He reveals much in this interview with Showa 40 Man magazine, including the design genesis of the Comet Empire itself.
In the month of January, Yamato 2202 writer Harutoshi Fukui took the lead in media interviews. Here we bring you interviews from two separate magazines that each brought something unique to the discussion. [2 pages]
From Ship’s Log #16. In Yamato 2202, Daisuke Ono and Houko Kuwashima appear as Susumu Kodai and Yuki Mori. We asked them about their enthusiasm for the new series. Hopes and fears…we bring you the passionate message of these two people who faced the recording with various feelings.
From Great Mechanics G, Winter 2016 issue. This quarterly magazine consistently delivered the most in-depth and knowledgeable 2199 coverage, and they picked right up where they left off in this extended conversation with Yamato 2202 writer Harutoshi Fukui.
Direct from issue 15 of Ship’s Log, the Yamato Crew Premium fan club magazine, we bring you a fresh interview with the phenomenally-talented illustrator Makoto Kobayashi. It touches on his previous involvement with the saga leading up to a description of his duties on Yamato 2202 and a hint of things to come.
From Ship’s Log #14: Nobuyoshi Habara’s first interview in his capacity as the supervising director of Yamato 2202, in which he discusses his work on Resurrection and 2199, his time as a fan watching Yamato on TV, and his intentions for the new series.
In issue #14 of the fan club magazine Ship’s Log, Producer Furukawa and Exec Producer Nishizaki talk about something you rarely hear in anime production: the process of rounding up primary staff members. In this interview, they welcome aboard Character Designer Nobuteru Yuuki and Composer Akira Miyagawa.
