Is Artemis, the guest heroine of "Danmachi" the Movie, a natural clunker?　Or is she ......?　Interview with Maaya Sakamoto as Artemis

The movie version of the well-known "Danmachi" abbreviation, "It's Wrong to Seek Encounters in Dungeons," will finally be released in theaters on February 15, 2019.
First, let's review the worldview of "Danmachi" for a moment. In the underground city of Orario, which flourishes around a vast dungeon, a boy named Belle comes to the city to become an adventurer in search of encounters with girls. The story begins when he joins the familia (adventurer's party) of the beautiful goddess Hestia. The story is an otherworldly fantasy that centers on these two, and describes the events of their adventures with the other members of the familia and other familiars in Orario. The romantic-comedic interactions between Belle and Hestia are also one of the highlights of the film.
The theater version of "Danmachi" is a story written by the original author, Tono Omori (who wrote the script, not the original story), and is more like a "new episode of the original story by anime" than an original anime story. Incidentally, the story is not directly related to the original novel or TV series, so even beginners can enjoy it.
On the day of the festival, Belle pulls out a mysterious spear stuck in a crystal. The goddess Artemis is looking for someone who is strong enough to pull out the spear, and in response to her wish, Belle, Hestia, and the others set out to defeat a ferocious monster that even Artemis is unable to handle. Artemis is an old friend of Hestia's, but unlike the manly girl Hestia knows, Artemis is strangely natural and clumsy ....... Artemis is played by Maaya Sakamoto. We asked Sakamoto Maaya about Artemis and what it was like working with Minase Inori, who plays Hestia, in the recording studio.

A girl of the pure and orthodox type that I haven't played in a long time.

─ What was your first impression of Artemis when you saw her?

SAKAMOTO: She is a young, cute, and very pure girl. When I first saw the character design, I thought that she was the type of character I had not played in a long time (laughs). (Laughs). She looks cute on the outside, but I wondered if she was really a bad guy with a dark side. I read the script all the way through and found that she was a good girl right up to the end (laughs). (Laughs) Recently, most of the roles I've played have been characters with more strength, or characters where it's hard to tell whether they are male or female, so it's been a while since I've played such a role as an authentic, pure girl. I wondered why she wanted me to play this role. I felt pressure not to betray their expectations.

─ So you were offered the role of Artemis?

Sakamoto: Yes. Artemis is very innocent, especially when it comes to love. That kind of cuteness stands out, but as the story progresses, we learn that Artemis has a very dignified side to her, and that she has a big mission to carry out. So, I would say that there is a gap in the character's image, or a balance between the two, that she is not just innocent and cute. I was playing Artemis with the hope of expressing her mixed personality.

───This theater version is a story written by the original author, Tono Omori, isn't it?

Sakamoto: That's right. So Artemis is a new character that no one really knows, so fans of the work may wonder what kind of girl she is. I thought she might be a little mysterious. I guess you could call it a bit of a sacred atmosphere. It's not mundane, it's ...... very God-like. We don't know what he is thinking or why he appears at first, so there is a lot of mystery to him. But she is surprisingly clunky and friendly. Her relationship with Hestia is particularly interesting: they are old friends, but Hestia is puzzled by the fact that Artemis, whom she hasn't seen in a long time, is so different from the Artemis she knew before. It was as if Artemis was the joke and Hestia was the comic relief.


─ It seems that Artemis's friendly attitude toward Belle makes Hestia jealous of her.

SAKAMOTO: For fans who have been watching "Danmachi" for a long time, I think they might feel like a "bothering insect" who suddenly intervened between Belle and Hestia (laughs). (Laughs.) I think they would probably watch the movie on Hestia's side, jealous of each other. (Laughs.) I felt that she would probably be jealous of Hestia and watch the movie with her. But I was conscious of not making Artemis a character that is just a mockery, as the author of the original story said. She has her own firm feelings about Belle, so it sounds strange to say "......" (laughs). I think you can tell that she has no evil feelings toward Belle, but is just facing her straight ahead. I am sure that in the latter half of the story, you will come to like Artemis as well.

───What did you do to make her "cute without being obvious"?

SAKAMOTO: How could I make her look less snobbish, especially when seen by women of the same sex? I tried to find a way to make it look less snobbish, especially when seen by women of the same sex. In Artemis, there is really no calculation. I didn't want her to look like that kind of girl, and she is very cute, so I didn't want her cuteness to look like it was deliberately created. I tried to create a "naturally cute" look (......), but I knew it would be very difficult to do so. And as I said before, I was nervous because I haven't done many roles like this recently. But I was good at playing Artemis in the past (laughs).

──So there are scenes of the old Artemis that Hestia knows.

SAKAMOTO: She appears in a recollection scene. She may have been a bit of a slut in her own right (laughs). But as for me, I am more used to playing such roles (laugh). ......, if anything, it was a scene I was able to play without worrying about it.

Watch out for the dance scene between Belle and Artemis!

─ What was it about playing Artemis that appealed to you and made you sympathize with her?

SAKAMOTO: I thought she was a great character because she had a lot of depth when you could see the gap between the two. For example, in battle scenes, he leads the others and takes the lead in battle. In such scenes, I feel that she is a very dignified and dependable woman. There is a scene where she and Hestia are talking, and although they are both gods, I could see that inside they are just ordinary girls. I think every girl has experienced sleepovers, but in the scene where they are talking before going to bed, I feel like they are close friends (like normal girls). There are many sides to this character, and the more you get to know her, the more you understand her appeal. She also has very strong feelings for her familia. I have to protect her! She has a sense of responsibility to protect them. I guess you could say that she has a kind of loneliness that only a person who stands at the top and organizes things can feel. It may not be the same as empathy, but the fact that Artemis is holding on to these feelings that only she can understand, and living with them without blaming anyone else, is what made me fall in love with her.


─ ─ From what you say, it seems that Artemis is not just a natural clunker.

SAKAMOTO: I can't go into details, but she has a rather sad side to her. If you watch the whole play, you will understand that.

─ What were some of the other memorable scenes in which you played Artemis?

SAKAMOTO: The scene where Belle and Artemis dance together. But there is no dialogue, so I didn't do anything myself (laughs). (laughs) The dance scene is one of the highlights of the show, and it is quite long. At the time of recording, the picture was not yet finished, but it was a very beautiful scene even in its unfinished state. I felt that the scene was more romantic than when I read the script, when I saw the movements and expressions on the screen!　I felt that it was a really romantic scene. So I'm looking forward to it because I'm sure it will be wonderful. The scene just before that is also a scene where Belle and I are talking together in a quiet atmosphere, and she looks sexy and cute as a woman. But more than the interaction in that conversation, I felt that the dance scene that follows it, which has no dialogue, is more eloquent and conveys the feelings of the two. I thought it was a wonderful direction to show the touching of feelings without using dialogue.