From the TV anime "Kabaneri of the Iron Castle," which will start in April 2016, comments from Haruhiko Mikimoto, character designer, have been released.
Kabaneri of the Iron Castle" is a new original anime that was announced at the "Noitamina Project Presentation 2015" held in November 2014. It is a steampunk action series set in the island nation of Hinomoto, where steam engines have developed, and depicts boys and girls boarding the armored steam locomotive "Kouetsujo" to fight against the "Kabaneri," or living corpses with hearts of steel. Haruhiko Mikimoto of "The Super Dimension Fortress Macross" fame is the original character designer, and WIT STUDIO is in charge of production. The cast includes Yu Hatanaka as Ikoma, the heroine Mumyo, Ayaka Sembongi, Shobu, Marei Uchida, Toshiki Masuda, Kurusu, Yuki Kaji, Kanae Oki, Yuna, Mariya Ise, Ryota Osaka as Sugari, Kensuke Sato as Kibi-do, and Mamoru Miyano as Mima. Mamoru Miyano for Mima.
Comments from Haruhiko Mikimoto, the character designer, have now arrived. Mr. Mikimoto spoke passionately about how he decided to participate in the project because of Mr. Araki's charm and how he is inspired by him as a designer. The character draft book "BOOK OF PAINTINGS HARUHIKO MIKIMOTO" will be sold at the Noitamina Shop booth at Comic Market 89 for a limited price of 1,000 yen. The price is 1,000 yen. Note that the book will not be sold for general distribution.
Comment from Haruhiko Mikimoto (character designer)
When I was asked to be a character designer for this project, my first thought was, "I wonder if my drawings are good enough..." (laugh).
When I was approached, the worldview had already been created by Director Araki and Mr. Moriyama (Hiroshi), who drew most of the image boards, and the background, characters, and cabanes were all cool and attractive. I wondered if I could put my drawings on it.
I was wondering if I would ever have the chance to participate directly in animation work again... and this was even more so when I was vaguely thinking about it.
But when I met with Director Araki, I was fascinated by his straightforward and unpretentious way of speaking, and he showed me many of my illustrations and drawings taken from manga as references for character images, some of which I myself had forgotten. I was so moved that I felt as if I could entrust my character to her and let her cook it as she liked.
In the process of character creation, the director would often give me sharp suggestions on areas that I had drawn in my own patterns, and I would often say, "I see," which stimulated me again as a designer. I was also surprised that the director asked me not to make the characters too shiny and modern. In my illustration work, I am often asked to pay attention to a little bit of modern style... and although I cannot dexterously respond to such requests, I do try to make the characters sparkle a little (laugh), but I have also looked back at my old drawings, and in the end I have settled on a natural look. In the end, I think I settled on a natural look.
It has been a long time since I had my own characters animated, and I am still searching for the best way to make them look like my own characters, using as a reference the pictures drawn by Mr. Ehara (Yasuyuki), an animation character designer. I am still searching for the best way to make my character look like my character.
Anyway, it is a very powerful work!
It is not proper for me to say this, as I am not directly involved in the work, but the creators who gathered under the supervision of Director Araki took their time and put a lot of ideas into the work. I would be happy if my character drafts are one of them.
Please watch the broadcast and enjoy the work to the fullest! And please support us!
