Here is a complete synopsis of the live-action Yamato movie combined with stills from various sources. This synopsis gives EVERYTHING away, but is broken up over six sequential pages, so you can opt to bail out at any time. Proceed at your own discretion. This website bears no responsibility for your choice.
Rather than reporting on news and promotion, Monthly Animation magazine took an investigative approach: thoughtful essays and interviews with prominent industry figures that went far beyond their current projects. The August 1980 issue featured this short essay by the always-insightful Director Toshio Masuda.
Published August, 1980 during the release of Be Forever Yamato. Animation director Tomoharu Katsumata described the division of labor on the film, the beginning of his pre-animation career at Kyoto Studio, and the emergence of live-action sensibilities in the world of anime.
Published August, 1980 during the release of Be Forever Yamato. The most prolific member of Yamato‘s writing team, Fujikawa talks about the development of the characters and the delicate balance between reality and abstraction in animation.
Published August, 1980 during the release of Be Forever Yamato. Director Toshio Masuda discussed his contributions to the first two Yamato films and the appeal of the series to young viewers.
This 1993 interview included five staff members; three veterans and two new participants who had came on board for the first round of development on Yamato Resurrection. The project was discussed in a fair amount of detail, and was remarkably consistent with the film that finally emerged 16 years later.
The first word breaks in August 2008 of Yamato’s return to the big screen after a 25 year absence. A report is published at Variety.com (in English!) and brief test footage appears.
Roots of Resurrection: A look back at the early genesis of the film in 1994 when a documentary introduced the people involved and the conceptual art that emerged from the first round of development.
After the first footage is screened at Yamato Party 2009, it is released on a promotional DVD and subsequently exhibited at major events such as Comicon International. Read about this and a profile of the film’s character designer, anime veteran Tomonori Kogawa.
A record of events from August and September, 2009. Serious promotion begins as a flyer is released to theaters, the official website goes live with artwork, data, and a trailer, and the first products appear.
This is a work-in-progress with the goal of assembling as complete a timeline as possible of live-action movie events and products. Data will be added and revised as new information becomes available. As the entries on this list receive coverage elsewhere on this site, links will be added to help you find them.
A record of events and products in the fall of 2009. The official website expands, the voice actors speak to the media, and Yoshinobu Nishizaki gives his first interview to Animage magazine.
Merchandising gets off the ground, the “Perfect Revival Exhibition” opens, a promotional press kit appears, an exhibit opens at the Tokyo Anime Center, the Yamato Crew website goes live, the first print coverage begins, and Nishizaki makes his first personal appearance at the November sneak preview.
The movie opens in December 2009 and the merchandising machine explodes with food products, magazine coverage, a major clothing line, live exhibits, TV specials, the first-ever Yamato app, music releases, and exclusive products that accompany the film itself in theaters. All this and much more!
A record of events and products from January through April 2010, including new apparel, figure announcements, a customized PC, CD singles, and the first word of home video releases. See it all here.
