What is Director Yoshitoshi Shinomiya trying to "overcome" with the 4D animation screen "Tokino Crossing"? Animation Industry Watching No. 46

There is an animation that can only be seen at the Shibuya Scramble Crossing: the 60-second short animation "Tokino Crossing," which is currently being crowdfunded and can be viewed on YouTube, but only tentatively. Each of the four monitors shows a slightly different image.
The "Tokino Crossing" was shot partially in live action and features the much talked about "Yane," a beautiful woman who makes people with a belly button fetish fainter in agony. The film is directed by "Kimi no na wa. and "In a Corner of the World," but has maintained a delicate distance from the animation industry. Director Shiromiya approached the production of "Tokino Crossing" with several issues in mind: art and commerce, the individual and the team, and so on.

The dilemma of participating in a film directed by Makoto Shinkai and having a "Shinkai style

─ I understand that you majored in Japanese painting at the Tokyo University of the Arts. Where did you first come into contact with commercial animation?

Shinomiya: I always wanted to make animation as my own work, but I didn't really know how to do it. At one point, I sent my resume to Madhouse because I wanted to know how animation was made in the commercial animation field. I ended up not joining the company, but I did meet Ryoichiro Matsuo, the producer of "Tokino Crossing. Later, around 2009, through a different route, I began taking on subcontracted art for a film directed by Makoto Shinkai.

─ Around that time, "Children Who Chase Lost Voices" (2011), is that right?

Shinomiya: That's right. Since my college days, I have been showing my paintings and sculptures in solo and group exhibitions. However, I could not make money from my artwork alone, so I started doing animation backgrounds as a means of earning money. As I mentioned earlier, I was interested in animation, so I did some independent short films. That is why I never thought of joining an animation art studio.

─ You made an independent animation called "Aquarium Tiger" (2012), didn't you?

Shinomiya: I received a grant from the Japan Media Arts Festival, so it may be misleading to call it an independent production. I had a strong desire to do animation as an extension of Japanese-style painting, and I wanted to do everything I could on my own. For the backgrounds, I took pictures of my own Japanese paintings that I was working on at the time and retouched them digitally.


─ ─ I heard that you worked on the poster for "Garden of Words" (2013).

Shinomiya: Before the posters, I drew image boards for "Garden of Words" when the project was launched. One of those boards was used for the teaser visual, and I also helped with the art for the full-length film. After the production reached its climax, I was asked to do the posters.

─ ─ The NHK-AC Japan joint campaign commercial "'Mottainai' will change tomorrow" (2015) has a very Makoto Shinkai-like style.

Shinomiya: Comics Wave Film was the one who gave me the job, and I also had help from staff who had worked on Shinkai's films. Perhaps that is why it looks like a Shinkai director. However, I was happy to be able to design my own characters and, above all, direct an animated film.