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Director Hideaki Anno was smitten when his idol, Yuki Mori, called him “Anno-kun”!?
Space Battleship Yamato 50th Anniversary Selection, Program 3 talk show report
Posted at Animate Times on January 16. See the original article here.
A screening of famous episodes selected by Director Hideaki Anno was held to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Space Battleship Yamato. A talk show for Program 3 in the series was held at the Shinjuku Piccadilly theater on January 10. It was hosted by Hideaki Anno as producer of the 50th anniversary project, and featured two guests: Yoko Asagami, who played Yuki Mori, and Michio Murakawa, who worked on the manga adaptation of Yamato 2199.
Photo posted at Chunichi
Asagami is someone Director Anno admires
As soon as the talk show started, Director Anno confessed that he is a big fan of Asagami, saying, “I admire her.” He is known as a big Yamato fan, but he is also a fan of Asagami, who played the heroine Yuki Mori. At the time, when there was no home video, he recorded only the sound on a cassette deck, adjusting the tuning antenna to reduce noise, and listened to Asagami’s voice over and over again. He also revealed his feelings by saying, “I rarely get nervous, but I am today.”
Asagami recalled about Yamato, “The program started when I was a real newbie, and the first recording left the biggest impression on me. At the time, you couldn’t hear how your voice was recorded or how it sounded until it was broadcast. So I would hang out in the dubbing room every time…” She revealed that in order to learn about her voice and how the sounds were recorded, she would go to Sound Director Atsumi Tashiro and observe the dubbing.
Anno said that Tashiro was mainly in charge of selecting the music for each scene in Yamato, and said, “It’s a great selection of music. I learned how to select music from Mr. Tashiro. Yamato has a huge influence on this industry, and I think that the Yamato generation is almost entirely made up of people my age to those about 10 years younger.”
Asagami also said that when she was at a party with Leiji Matsumoto, he was greeted by several people who had become involved in space development research as a result of Yamato, and this once again spoke of the magnitude of its influence.
She also recalled that there was almost no film or color pictures in the dubbing of Yamato at the time, and Anno, who actually looked at the original schedule, referred to the harsh production environment when he said, “This was impossible.” As if to back this up, Murakawa described an event in which Yoshinobu Nishizaki, the famous producer of Yamato, was stranded in heavy snow while transporting film to Osaka on his own Harley.
Murakawa continued, “The project for Yamato started in April [1974], and the story and concept had changed completely after the Golden Week holidays in May. It wasn’t until July that they got it back on track, so they only had about three months to make it (before it aired). It’s probably an impossible schedule for a normal anime…” he said, but Anno quickly corrected him, saying, “No, it’s totally normal. I think it’s a little more relaxed now.” Murakawa got a laugh when he replied, “That’s terrifying.”
Backstage, posted on Twitter by the Yamato Production Committee
Enjoying Asagami’s debut song as a Yuki Mori character song
Looking back on the voice acting industry at the time, Asagami revealed what made her decide to pursue a career, saying, “I didn’t know anything about the voice acting industry, but I loved the manga Ribbon Knight and wanted to voice it myself. When it was actually made into an anime, it was different from the image I had in my head, so I thought, ‘I definitely want to do a voice that matches what I have in mind’.”
Voice actors at the time liked acting, but few liked anime itself, so when she saw Yuki’s picture and dialogue, it motivated her. She thought, “This picture is my favorite, and out of all the voice actors, I’m the one who will be happiest when this animation comes to life.”
Regarding Asagami’s acting, Director Anno emphasized its appeal, saying, “Yuki has a very distinctive way of laughing. In Episode 23, after taking the photo with Kodai, she laughs once before saying her usual lines, and it’s a mysterious laugh that no one can imitate.”
Photo posted on Twitter by uraumegn
In fact, for Director Anno, Yuki Mori is like his first love, the first person he ever felt affection for. When Asagami revealed a moment where producer Nishizaki praised her, saying “I like the way you say ‘kun’,” Anno strongly agreed, saying “He got it!” and he couldn’t hide his delight when Asagami called him “Anno-kun.” He was in full Yamato fan mode, repeatedly drawing laughter and applause from the audience.
One of the unforgettable memories that Asagami-san talked about was an incident that happened when all the voice actors got together for a Yamato event and boarded a ship. She mentioned how Goro Naya, who had a scary image up until then as Captain Okita, was smiling and looking happy in front of the gathered fan children, saying “I didn’t know they would be so happy.” This surprised Director Anno and the others.
When Asagami’s debut song Sad Satin Doll was played, she tried to cover her ears in embarrassment. Mr. Murakawa said enthusiastically, “This song is from 1981, but it sounds very similar to the voice of Yuki Mori in the 1974 version. At the time, there were no character songs, so I was writhing in my futon, thinking, Yuki Mori is singing this!” Director Anno agreed, saying, ‘Yes, it’s similar. It sounds like Yuki,” and the two of them got into a lively discussion as fans of Asagami.
Photo posted on Twitter by masatoshi_s00
It seems that Murakawa is also spearheading various Yamato-related projects, and there is still a good chance that 4K remasters of The New Voyage, Be Forever, and Final Yamato will be realized, along with reissues of scarce volumes from the Sound Almanac series released by Nippon Columbia. But it was said that whether they will ultimately happen depends on how much support they receive from fans.
In addition, publication of the manga adaptation by Yuki Hijiri, which was published in Terebiland, is progressing smoothly, but it seems that scattered manuscripts have not yet been fully collected, and Murakawa gave a message to fans saying, “If you have a manuscript, please contact us.”
Afterward, Murakawa said, “I feel incredibly embarrassed that last year I didn’t draw a single page of manga, even though I’m a manga artist, so this year I hope to do a lot of manga.”
Asagami added, “I’m really happy to share this opportunity with the boys and girls from back then, and also the boys on both sides of me. (Laugh) I hope this happiness will continue forever.”
Photo posted on Twitter by uraumegn
Finally, Director Anno concluded the talk show with deep emotion, saying, “My favorite scene of Kodai is in the final episode where he holds Yuki Mori’s body and protects her when the Dessler Cannon is fired. In the script, it says that when Yuki Mori dies, Kodai also tries to commit suicide, so maybe at that moment he abandoned his job as acting captain and moved only to protect her. The amazing thing about Yamato is that it was thought out to the smallest detail, and I think it’s the biggest reason why it remains so popular even after 50 years. The mecha is good, but the drama is the heart of Yamato. I was really happy to talk about it with Asagami-san, who played that role. Thank you very much.”
Hideaki Anno, Yoko Asagami, and Michio Murakawa Appear on stage
Published at Eiga Joho [Movie Information] on January 11. See the original post here.
Hideaki Anno, who was 14 at the time of Yamato‘s original broadcast, and Michio Murakawa, who was 10, were very excited to see Yoko Asagami on stage! Anno said, “I’ve always admired her. Whenever I heard the name ‘Yoko Asagami’, I’d watch her work.” He also talked about his passion for Yuki Mori and the actress who voiced her, saying, “Yuki Mori was the first character I ever fell in love with. She was my first love.”
Asagami recalled that at the time of recording, she was still a “total amateur” with almost no experience as a voice actor. “I didn’t know how my voice was recorded or how it would sound until it was broadcast, so I went to every dubbing session and watched Mitsuru Kashiwabara add the sound. I talked with him in between sessions. It’s a pity that we recently lost someone I miss so much,” she said, remembering Kashiwabara, who passed away last November.
Asagami also spoke about Starsha’s voice actor Michiko Hirai, saying, “I looked up to her with admiration. She had the aura of an actress standing in the studio, and I thought, ‘The princess has come! I’ll watch her closely.'”
Asagami said that she stepped into this world of voice acting with almost no knowledge of the industry. “I liked the manga Ribbon Knight and created a voice based on my own image, but when it was made into an anime, it was completely different, so I thought, ‘I definitely want to do a voice that matches what I have in mind’.”
At the time, Asagami was surrounded by many actors and part-time voice actors who didn’t like anime and thought of voice acting simply as a job to make a living. “When I saw Yuki Mori’s picture and dialogue, I thought, ‘When this comes to life, I’ll be the happiest person in the voice acting industry.’ I worked hard, and [Sound Director] Atsumi Tashiro saw that. As an amateur, I had no choice but to show my true colors, and when I said, ‘Kyaaaa!’ he said, ‘No one in acting could make such an embarrassing voice’.”
Anno agreed, saying, “That’s right! The acting was really good and natural. Yuki has a distinctive laugh. The way she laughed after the photo was taken in Episode 23 was amazing! It’s a mysterious laugh that I can’t imitate.”
Asagami also revealed that Producer Yoshinobu Nishizaki told her that her “Kun” was good, and Anno spoke from the heart, saying “That’s right! The ‘kun’ in ‘Kokai-kun’ is great!” When Asagami called out “Anno-kun” in the voice of Yuki, Anno was deeply moved, saying “Thank you!”
Murakawa revealed that when he tried to depict the unique dress worn by Yuki Mori in Yamato 2199, he was told, “No.” (bitter laugh) He went on to point out the changes in Yuki Mori’s character as the story progresses, saying, “She often behaved like a class president in middle school and high school, but toward the end, she asks Kodai, ‘What was this battle for?’ She says things that encourage Starsha and Kodai on Iscandar, and in the final episode, she says, ‘Kodai-kun is going to die!’ In other words, she’s expressing her true feelings for the first time, and her assertiveness as a woman and a human being becomes stronger.”
Asagami revealed, “Personally, I liked the standoffish Yuki the most at the beginning.”
Murakawa mentioned Asagami’s debut single Sad Satin Doll (1981), saying, “The touch of your voice was similar to that of Yuki Mori in the 1974 version. I was writhing in my bed, screaming, Yuki Mori is singing!” Asagami replied, “Maybe I’ll sing the theme song for the new Yamato,” causing the audience to erupt in laughter.
By the way, when it comes to the new Yamato, Anno was vague, saying, “I’ve been told not to say anything about that yet,” but he gave new information about the Space Battleship Yamato Complete Records Exhibition, which was recently announced to commemorate the 50th anniversary. “It’ll be held at Seibu in Shibuya,” he said.
As part of a publishing project to commemorate the 50th anniversary, it has been announced that Murakawa will create a Space Battleship Yamato art book. Murakawa expressed his enthusiasm, saying, “I will do my best so it can be released in time for the exhibition in March.”
At the end of the event, Asagami said with a big smile, “I’m happy to share this opportunity with the boys and girls of that time today.”
Anno said, “My favorite scene of Kodai is when he holds Yuki to protect her when the Dessler Cannon is fired in the final episode. At that moment, Kodai has abandoned his job as acting captain, and he does this just to protect Yuki. It may have been what he really thought at the time. The incredible thing about Yamato is that it was able to depict such minute details, and I think that’s the biggest reason why it’s still so popular even after 50 years. Mecha is great, but the heart of Yamato is the drama, and I was happy today to speak with Asagami-san, who acted in it.”
He expressed his joy and emotion as the talk event came to a close amid warm applause.
Hideaki Anno is nervous about voice actress Yoko Asagami, the voice of his beloved Yuki Mori!
Published at Eiga.com on January 11. See the original post here.
A talk show was held on January 10th at the Shinjuku Piccadilly theater in Tokyo, hosted by Hideaki Anno, with Yoko Asagami, the voice actress of heroine Yuki Mori, and Michio Murakawa, the manga artist who worked on Yamato 2199.
Since first encountering Yamato in his second year of junior high school, Anno has been an unrivaled fan for 50 years, and this screening included original TV Episodes 23, 24, and 26.
The guest of honor was Asagami, beloved by Yamato fans as the eternal heroine, and currently active as a storyteller, under the name Shunsui Ichiryusai. Anno, who seemed unusually nervous, smiled and said, “She’s my idol,” and commented, “There was the first voice actor boom. If I saw the name Yoko Asagami, I would always watch her, like in Paul’s Miracle Strategy.” Asagami immediately responded, “I’m Pakkun!” providing the voice of a fairy character that appears in it. Anno was delighted, saying, “Thank you!”
After that, Anno spoke passionately about Yuki Mori, the character Asagami played in Yamato. Asagami laughed, “You listen a lot.” Anno’s eyes lit up as he replied, “Yes, I listen a lot! I’ve been listening for 50 years,” and he admitted, “I rarely get nervous, but I am today.” He seemed to be savoring his joy.
Space Battleship Yamato sparked an unprecedented anime boom in the 1970s. Asagami said, “There are a lot of people who were brought up on Yamato.” Anno replied, “There are a lot of people in this industry who were brought up on Yamato. I think the generation of people who grew up with Yamato is pretty much the same as mine, and the generation below that is also pretty much the same.”
Furthermore, Asagami said, “There are also a lot of people in the space research field who like Yamato. When I went to a party with Leiji Matsumoto, I saw a lot of people from the space research field surrounding him, with their eyes shining as they said, ‘I watched it when I was a child.’ I feel that those who watched it at that time found something they liked and studied it. And they are doing their best to contribute to the world today, taking care of the Earth and the universe, and cherishing the dreams in the anime.” Anno also continued, “It really is an amazing anime. Even after 50 years, it still has such a big impact.”
Looking back on the time when she played Yuki Mori, Asagami said, “I was still an amateur. I had no choice but to show my true colors. When I was making a squeal, I just made the sound I thought I should, and Atsumi Tashiro told me, ‘There’s no one in the acting world who can make such an embarrassing sound’.” To which Anno replied, “That’s right…” and nodded deeply, showing complete empathy. “Your acting is really natural and good. Your way of laughing is distinctive. The way Yuki laughed after taking the photo in Episode 23 was also good. I can’t imitate that laugh. It’s such a mysterious way of laughing.”
Asagami said, “(Producer) Nishizaki said, ‘I like the ‘kun’ in Kodai-kun’,” to which Anno replied with a big smile, “He got it!” Applause erupted from the audience in empathy. “Yes, the ‘kun’ is great. It’s distinctive. I’m totally smitten,” said Anno, and added firmly, “I think Yuki Mori was the first fictional character I fell in love with. In that sense, she was my first love.” Asagami said shyly, “Thank you,” to which Anno replied, “I think there are probably a lot of boys like that. All over the country. There must be tens of thousands.”
Murakawa added, “But Yuki also has a lot of female fans.” Asagami smiled and said, “Those who support my storytelling saw Yuki working hard in a male-dominated society and said, ‘I want to be like that’.” Anno also said, “I think Yuki Mori is a character that women like too. And above all, Ms. Asagami’s voice is great. In my mind, Yuki Mori and Asagami’s voices are a set.” She answered, “Anno-kun…” Her appeal made Anno very embarrassed. The venue was in a frenzy.
Photo posted on Twitter by S. Meijin