An interview with Kenjiro Tsuda, who plays Hyakunosuke Ogata, from the anime "Golden Kamui" has arrived!

An interview with Kenjiro Tsuda, who plays Hyakunosuke Ogata in the popular TV anime "Golden Kamui" has arrived.

Golden Kamui" is a popular comic series serialized in Weekly Young Jump by Satoru Noda. Set in Hokkaido at the end of the Meiji Era, the story follows the adventures of a former army soldier, Saichi Sugimoto, and an Ainu girl, Ashi (Ri-pa), who are after Ainu buried treasure. The Ainu culture, customs, and cuisine are realistically depicted in the film, making it a work that can be enjoyed as historical entertainment as well.

The TV animation version is directed by Hittoshi Namba, director of "Fate/Grand Order -First Order-," with series composition by Noboru Takagi, director of "Kuroko no Basketball," and character design by Kenichi Onuki, character animation director for "Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron Blood Orphens. Production will be handled by Geno Studio of "Slaughterhouse" fame.
⇒ Spring 2018 Anime

The following is an interview with Kenjiro Tsuda, who plays Hyakunosuke Ogata.

Official Interview]

--What was your impression when you read the original work?

　I felt that the characters and the story were thick and energetic, which I have not seen in other works. I also felt that it was somewhat out of the ordinary, which I found interesting in its own way. Anyway, all the expressions are powerful and the amount of passion is amazing. I think one of the reasons for the power of the story is that it is set not in the present day but in old Japan, deep in the heart of Hokkaido.

--What was particularly impactful for you?

　I would have to say the richness of the characters. Tsurumi in particular is amazing (laughs). Even the main character Sugimoto has scars all over his body. I think this kind of appearance also contributes to the richness of the characters. Also, the story is about skinning people in order to get gold, so the setting is also very powerful. People have become savages, and they slaughter animals as fast as they can, but they also skin people in the same way. There may be no difference between skinning a bear and skinning a human being in the land of Hokkaido. It's gruesome, but very interesting. The fact that unnecessary humanism has been stripped away is one of the charms of this work, isn't it?

--What were your feelings when you were chosen to appear in this film?

　The story and the characters seemed very interesting, so I was very happy to be able to participate in such a work. I was so excited!　I was so excited.

--What was your impression of the character Ogata?

　I have the impression that he is very cool-headed. He never shows his emotions. Of course, I think he has a lot of emotions going on inside him, but they don't come through in a tangible way. I felt as if we were having a conversation, but it wasn't really going anywhere. I would say that the temperature was just a little lower than that of a normal human conversation.

--He was talking, but I couldn't tell how much feeling he was putting into it.

　That's right. In episode 9, there is a scene where Ogata is talking with Tanigaki, but it is hard to tell what he is thinking (laughs). (Laughs) In fact, Tanigaki wasn't sure where Ogata was coming from. As the story progresses to a certain extent, it becomes clear that this is his position, but from the beginning it is very difficult to tell the difference between his true intentions and lies. I think this mysteriousness is what makes Ogata so appealing. Moreover, his characterization matches his suitability as a sniper, which requires a cool head, and I found that interesting as well. On the other hand, he also has a somewhat slovenly side, which makes him an interesting character in many ways.

--What did you think of Ogata's reappearance in episode 9?

　I thought it was a very typical reappearance of Ogata. When Tanigaki comes back to Huchi's house where he is being taken care of, Ogata is there. But I don't know the purpose why he appeared there. After that, I thought he left without incident, but in fact, that itself was a fake and he was shooting at Tanigaki from the outside (laughs). I think this sequence of events is very interesting.

--When you first read the original story, did you expect Ogata to become a character with such a strong presence?

　Not at all. When he first appeared in the movie, he seemed to be a bit of a dog (laughs). (Laughs) After fighting Sugimoto and falling down a cliff, he didn't appear for a long time after that. I think that the anime viewers must have been surprised to see him back after a very long absence during the recording of episode 9.

--Did director Namba (Hitoshi) or sound director Akutagawa (Hitoshi) give you any orders regarding your acting?

　I have the impression that they left it to me. Basically, I acted without hesitation. However, when I read the original story, I noticed that his facial expressions changed from frame to frame, and I could see his face looking a little happy. In such cases, I consult with Director Namba and try to respect the nuances of the original work. During the recording of the second episode, there was a case in which I over-expressed myself a little too much and was asked to make it more like this. Ogata is a character who is all about balance, and he is not the type of character who can be spontaneous with his energy, so I had to be rather subtle in my work. However, that doesn't mean that I had to be extremely sensitive. I am a human being, so it is interesting to see the emotions that arise, so it is a matter of how much of that emotion I can add to the base of the character.

--Do you plan your performance well in advance of recording?

　Do you plan your performance well before recording?　I just have a rough idea of what I'm going to do. I think the final performance is determined by the overall balance of the scene, so I ask the director to judge the scene from a bird's eye view. There are cases where a simple expression is fine when looking at a scene in isolation, but when looking at the overall flow of the scene from a bird's eye view, a little more dynamism is needed. In this sense, I try to leave more room for acting.

--The cast of this film is quite distinguished.

　The story is quite bleak, but the recording sessions are very lighthearted and cheerful. I think the atmosphere is very good. The senior cast members seem to be enjoying themselves, and I feel that the cheerfulness and simplicity of Mr. Kobayashi and Ms. Shiraishi, who play the main roles, is spreading to the site.

--Were there any scenes or lines that were important to you in expressing the essence of Ogata?

　There are not many appearances yet, but in the most recent episode 9, there is the line "We're hunting Tanigaki," which was bolded in the original story. In Ogata's mind, it is a hunt for Tanigaki's life. When I played the role, I was conscious of the cold-heartedness and brutality that oozed out of the character. In episode 9, Ogata speaks more than ever before. When he first appeared in the episode, he had almost no lines, so when we recorded it, it felt like the first time (laughs).

--I am looking forward to seeing how Ogata will stir up the story in the future. Finally, do you have a message for your fans?

　Thank you for watching the TV anime "Golden Kamui. I am finally able to reappear as Ogata, and I coolly brush my hair up in the video (laughs). I would like to continue to create the character of Ogata to meet your expectations or to betray you in a good way with a slightly oblique approach. I hope you will continue to enjoy this interesting, epic, and gruesome story.


Production Information] (*Honorific titles omitted)
TV animation "Golden Kamui
TOKYO MX: Every Monday from 23:00
Yomiuri TV: Every Monday from 25:59
Sapporo TV: Every Monday from 25:44
BS11: Every Monday from 25:00
BS11: Every Monday at 25:00～ ・Jidai Gekijo Dedicated Channel: Every Friday at 25:00～ ・FOD: Every Monday at 23:00

FOD: Every Monday at 23:30

(C) Satoru Noda/Shueisha, Golden Kamui Production Committee
(C) Satoru Noda/Shueisha