{"id":26040,"date":"2019-01-09T23:43:40","date_gmt":"2019-01-10T07:43:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/?p=26040"},"modified":"2019-01-15T10:47:30","modified_gmt":"2019-01-15T18:47:30","slug":"361a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/361a\/","title":{"rendered":"Yoshio Tanioka interview, November 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"1901icon\"<\/p>\n

From the Yamato 2202<\/em> 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<\/em>.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

How do you incorporate the world view of Makoto Kobayashi\u2019s design into art? That is our challenge.<\/h2>\n

An interview with Art Director Yoshio Tanioka. From the <\/em>Yamato 2202 Chapter 6 program book, November 2018<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> Originally, you were the art director on Ark of the Stars<\/em>, right?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> Actually, I helped with the art on episodes 11 and 15 of Yamato 2199<\/em> before that. That\u2019s what gave me the edge for Ark of the Stars<\/em>, and it continues in that form for Yamato 2202<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> How did you get involved in 2199<\/em>?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> Even among the higher-ups, I heard talk of how they got into the industry because they liked Yamato<\/em>, and so I figured \u201cWhy not give it a try?\u201d and sent word to them. We talked about helping out a few times, and by chance the schedule allowed me to work on episodes 11 and 15.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> I\u2019ll ask a basic question. What do you specifically do as an art director?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> First of all, it\u2019s the work you see on screen other than characters and mecha, the part that doesn\u2019t move. In other words, it is the job of creating the backgrounds. In animation work you don\u2019t just do animation, you\u2019re also responsible for the parts that don\u2019t move. At first the art director creates an image of that, entrusts it to the art staff, and then checks what comes out. You do revisions if necessary, then deliver it. It\u2019s also the job of an art director to manage the schedule and the quality of the backgrounds. The work is divided up in our company, since there\u2019s a section that is responsible only for the design that underlies the background. It\u2019s also the job of an art director to perform checks on what comes up there.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> How far have digital backgrounds come along?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> It\u2019s all digital now. For example, the first bridge of Yamato<\/em>. There are lots of meters and it\u2019s complex and some places appear frequently, so a 3D model has already been made at the design stage, and we use that data for the background and do what is needed to color and finish it. You can only do that digitally.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> Does Assistant Director Makoto Kobayashi have a big presence in the 2202<\/em> background art?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> Mr. Kobayashi\u2019s design presence on 2202<\/em> is huge. The general overview is that Kobayashi\u2019s designs are the \u201cworldview\u201d depicted for the camera. He writes memos for how he wants us to use the design, so it\u2019s like a manual is attached. How do we get all this into a background? That\u2019s our challenge. In other words, how do we respond to the points we get from Mr. Kobayashi? That\u2019s a major feature of the artwork in 2202<\/em>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> How exactly is design different from art?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> For example, Mr. Kobayashi gives us a drawing, a panoramic view of a whole city. However, what we actually see is the background scenery from a car, so it becomes something closer to the scale of a human being. So how do we express Mr. Kobayashi\u2019s taste when the camera comes into town? How do we give it the same impression as the whole view? That\u2019s always our challenge. While reading one of Mr. Kobayashi\u2019s published books or looking at a model, it\u2019s always a challenge to somehow reflect his taste in the background.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> It\u2019s sort of like taking a live-action approach to anime.<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> Mr. Kobayashi\u2019s works are three-dimensional. I think that\u2019s because he makes models and is involved in 3D work, so his designs let you feel what must be on the other side. So even if you change the angle, it holds together. That\u2019s very helpful to our work. I first became aware of Mr. Kobayashi when I was in elementary school. I liked models and bought Hobby Japan<\/em> magazine. Mr. Kobayashi had a serial in those days, and I was amazed to see it. I immediately imitated it. Something influences you a lot when it touches you at an impressionable age. Therefore, I never thought it would be possible for us to work together in this way now.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> The city empire that finally appeared is a transcendent design.<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> Mr. Kobayashi drew many parts of the city empire. The art side is responsible for detail. While incorporating the taste of what was previously drawn by Mr. Kobayashi, we inflate our imaginations to finish it.<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> Does Mr. Kobayashi draw scenes, too?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> He draws some key parts, like the city empire, and planets, and a shot of the Saturn area. We pick up those images and spread them around to other shots.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> What kind of communication do you have with Mr. Kobayashi?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> It\u2019s rare for us to meet over everyday work. (Laughs) We first met at the time we were discussing art for the first two episodes, and after that we\u2019ve interacted throughout the production. I chew over his detailed memos, such as written concepts and how to use them, then I do color images for Director Nobuyoshi Habara, then I finish the art boards. I decide on the direction for a background while talking with the director about color and lighting.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> As an art director, please tell us about the highlights of this work.<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> From an artistic point of view, it\u2019s not a play of words and characters. I think a scene that explains something with a visual (background) is cinematic and interesting. For example, in the scene where the 11th planet first appears in Chapter 2, there is ice in the sea, and some of it is melted, tracing the path of the artificial sun. Just by showing that in a visual, it explains what kind of environment the planet has. I think it\u2019s cool not to over-explain it. In the scene where Teresa appears in Chapter 5, the background changes as the story situation advances. It\u2019s fun when shots work like that.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> Is science-fiction your favorite genre as a creator?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> I\u2019ve liked Studio Ghibli\u2019s anime since I was a kid, and it\u2019s fun to draw Japanese scenery. But science-fiction is great. Both have good things, and I think it would be good to go back and forth with them. (Laughs) I like the works of Ridley Scott, and I like to reflect that atmosphere in the art I make.<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> By the way, what was your first encounter like with Space Battleship Yamato<\/em>?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> When I was in kindergarten, at 3 or 4 years old, the first thing I saw was reruns of Yamato III<\/em> on TV. Since I was born in 1980, I wasn\u2019t part of the realtime generation. There were a lot of opportunities to touch upon it with reruns and on video, and it was amazing. It couldn\u2019t help but look cool through the eyes of a child. A ship flew in space, and there were fascinating things in its design. I wanted to hold onto the majestic figure of Yamato<\/em> in some other way than a video recording, so I started drawing pictures. My original experience with Yamato<\/em> was to draw it. (Laughs)<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> It was amazing, wasn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> After that, a new work called Yamato 2520<\/em><\/a> was made when I was in junior high. Because I touched on Yamato<\/em> again at an impressionable age, I sank deep into the Yamato<\/em> swamp. (Laughs) When I watched all the works again, I could always tell that it was making cutting edge visuals. Because the visuals progressed, you could see it at a glance. I was really inspired by Syd Mead\u2019s visuals on 2520<\/em>, and after that I also saw that he had participated in Aliens<\/em> and Blade Runner<\/em>. Those movies absorbed me.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> When did you first see Farewell to Yamato<\/em>?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> I think it was around the time when I was in kindergarten, but I saw it again when I was in junior high. I\u2019ve seen it many times since then. Farewell<\/em> may be the one I\u2019ve seen the most. I think it was also the first anime that made me cry. In that way, Yamato<\/em> has become the point of my life.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> When did you choose the work of fine arts over drawing?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> The year I entered art college, the seniors in the fourth level decided to make an anime as their graduation project. I got to participate through an acquaintance, and I was asked if I wanted to do backgrounds, and it was a lot of fun to try. I\u2019m not suited to draw the same picture over and over many times. (Laughs) With a background you can take more time on a single piece, and there\u2019s a sense of accomplishment since it spends a long time on screen. It gave me the opportunity to get interested in art.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interviewer:<\/em><\/span> What is the significance of this work to you?<\/p>\n

Tanioka:<\/em><\/span> It\u2019s a strange feeling, being involved in a work I\u2019ve known since childhood. Honestly, the child is father to the man\u2026 [your childhood shapes the adult you become] or maybe not, but in making music or drawing pictures, the prototype for my current sense of aesthetics lies in Yamato<\/em>. Being allowed to do this in this way, I feel I want to respect both past productions and the staff who brought me on board for this. <\/p>\n

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