Long interview with Kiyotaka Kawada, sound effects technician! (The "inside man" of anime and games No.35)

In this 35th installment of our writer crepuscular series, Kiyotaka Kawada is a sound effects technician. Along with dialogue and music, sound effects are the "sounds of animation," and sound effects engineers are the ones who create them. Mr. Kawada comes from Swara Productions, Inc. and has created sounds for all genres of drama. He has created the atmospheric gyroball sound of Goro in "Major," the beautiful natural environment sound of "Mushishi," the eerie blooming sound of "Curse of the Curse," the dream-filled magic sound of "Little Witch Academia," the tense robot battle sound of "Galactic Machine Attack Squad: Majestic Prince," the drooling sound of "Emiya-san's Today's Meal" and the Cooking Sounds...... anime fans will immediately think of them along with the images. In recent years, "Magical Girl Site," "An Angel Descended on Me! , "If I'm cute, will you like me even if I'm a pervert?" and "YU-NO: The Girl Who Sings Love to the Ends of the Earth" to name a few. In this exclusive interview, we asked Mr. Kawada about his career, creative theories, and the background behind the creation of sounds for his masterpieces, and learned a great deal about the world of sound effects and its charms that are rarely mentioned in other media.

A professional who creates "sounds other than dialogue and music

Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to talk to us. This is the first time we are going to talk to a sound effects engineer in this series.

Kiyotaka Kawada (Kawada): My job is to create sounds other than dialogue and music. Specifically, I create sounds of daily life, such as footsteps, clothes, and dishes; environmental sounds, such as birds and cicadas, wind and waves; action sounds for punches, slashes, and magic; and for animation, comical movement sounds and facial expression sounds for eyebrow and eye movements.

In addition, there are sounds of comical movements and facial expressions that accompany the movement of the eyebrows and eyes.

Kawada: In the industry, we call this "touch," but even in live-action, we often add it to variety shows and comical dramas.

Kawada: What is the most rewarding moment for you?

Kawada: I enjoy it when the sound fits in with the picture, or when the sound follows the action that the picture is trying to achieve.

─ Which works have influenced you in your creative process?

Kawada: I am a rather acquired anime fan. I don't really have an "I was shocked by this work when I was a child! I didn't watch "Mobile Suit Gundam" (1979-80) or "The Super Dimension Fortress Macross" (1982-83) on TV. I started getting interested in anime in junior high and high school, and in the beginning, I rented and watched slightly older OVAs from the anime section of the video store. I rented and watched a few old OVAs from the anime section of the video store, like "Megazone 23" (1985), "Bubblegum Crisis" (1987-91), and "Aim for the Top!" (1988). I also liked to watch anime based on Hideyuki Kikuchi's works, such as "Makai Toshi (Shinjuku)" (1988). I am from the countryside of Oita, so there were not many up-to-date titles in video stores. Before I entered the industry, I watched "Nadia of the Mysterious Sea" (1990-91) and "Neon Genesis Evangelion" (1995-96).

I "have to be able to do" any genre.

Kawada: Do you have any criteria for participating in films?

Kawata I will do anything. I think you have to be able to do anything. We are not creating the roots of a tree, but rather the branches and leaves of a tree, rather than the central trunk. The people who make the trunks and roots of trees probably have a certain "I must have this! But when the roots have been established to some extent and the trunk is ready, if they say, "This tree can't be made" when they are making the branches and leaves, they won't be able to get the job done.

Kawada: So you have no problem with so-called "age-restricted" works, such as erotic or grotesque works?

Kawada: We will do our best. I enjoy working on works that have a clear direction, because I can enhance the work with sound. On the other hand, the hardest thing for me is when people say, "I don't care what kind of work it is as long as it has sound," regardless of the genre.

Kawada: Is the timing of when you decide to participate in a film the same as when you work as a voice actor or composer?

Kawada: In the past, the order of selection for effects was rather backward in the sound section. The pattern for recording and dubbing is one per week for regular TV productions, but we would do recording in the morning and dubbing in the afternoon, for example, recording three episodes and dubbing one episode in the afternoon. Since there were so many actors, we often had to decide on the actors and then the effects, and since there were so many actors, we would either accept offers of "this day of the week, this time of day, if you are free" or ask the company for "someone in the company who can fit our schedule". However, the situation has been changing for a while now, and since the number of effect persons is small, if you make an offer that says, "We can only do it here," you may not get anyone, so we are now able to make the offer earlier.

Kawada: I think you still need time to prepare for the project.

Kawada: In my case, if there is an original work, I want to see the taste of the original work and consider whether or not sound location is necessary, so I tell them that I want to receive an offer as soon as possible and have time to study it. If I get in touch with the original work and find myself in a situation where I think, "This film won't work unless we do specialized sound location shooting," I may not be able to make it if I make a last-minute offer.

Sound location in Odaiba

What kind of works did you receive direct offers from directors and sound directors?　You often participate in the works of director Keitaro Motonaga and sound director Yasunori Ebina.

Kawada: I had the opportunity to work with both of them on "Amaenaideyo! (2005-06). (2005-06). They seemed to like my work then, and I am still being asked to work with them now.

Kawada: You have been involved in the "Pretty Rhythm" series directed by Masakazu Hishida, haven't you?

Kawada: I started working on "Pretty Rhythm Dear My Future" (2012-13), the second in the series, and left Swara Productions around the time of "Rainbow Live" (2013-14), the next in the series. I was the only one who understood the world of the work, so I was allowed to continue working on the "KING OF PRISM" series (2016~).

You were also involved in the "MAJOR" series (2004-10) for a long time. Goro's gyroball sound was powerful and cool!

Kawada: It had been six years, so I had to be careful not to inflate it. At the beginning of the story, there is Goro's real father, Otto-san, and at that stage, the sound of one of the biggest professional pitches was already rooted in the story, and the story gradually moved closer to that point. First there was the scene of the all-out battle between the majors and Japan's top players, and after that things got more and more exciting, so there was a conflict: "We have to seek something above that thing, don't we ......?

Kawada: You have also worked on ufotable productions such as "Tales of Zestiria the Cross" (2016-17), "Katsugeki Toukendanbu" (2017), and "Emiya-san's Today's Gohan" (2018-19).

Kawada: "Tales of Zestiria" started when I was still at Swara and I was asked to do the animation for the game "Dawn of the Conductor" (2014), and it was kind of connected from there. It seems that some people in the industry had seen "Emiya Gohan," and I sometimes received offers to work on it because I had a few cooking-related scenes. I am happy when I am recognized because my work is a big part of my calling card.

Adding breadth to the sound by making use of "structure geek

Kawada: Please tell us about your specialty in sound creation.

Kawada: It's not so much that I am good at it, but rather that I am rather influenced by the work I am working on, so when I am working hard on a film, sound effects come naturally. If the picture or drama is really strong, I will say, "Let's do something about it! I feel like I can do something about it.

I feel that the sounds you create, whether artificial or live, have depth, and that they are created to the last detail.

Kawada: I am a structure geek, so I often create sounds after I have a good understanding of the structure of things. For example, when I record the sound of meat tearing, I prefer chicken bones to raw meat. If the meat is not structurally complex, like raw meat, the sound will just be a "thud," so I need to add sounds such as "dakusha," "mecha," and "pakka" later. Chicken bones have small bones in them, so when you stab them, they make a nice, firm sound.

Kawada: Are you conscious of the structural differences between Japanese swords and Western swords, such as the sound of swords clashing with each other and the sound of guns firing?

Kawada: I do change the sound between Japanese swords and Western swords. I tend to make the sound of a Western-style sword resonate with a "squeak, squeak, squeak" sound, and the part of the sword that hits the target and the sound that lingers behind it are recorded and processed separately. In the case of "Zestiria" and "Sword Dance," I am very conscious of changing the sound. With the exception of when it is required by the production, I tend to focus more on the kaleidoscopic aspect of the gun rather than the structural aspect. For example, Mutsu Mamoru's gun is a revolver, but I use the sound of a shotgun.

The sound of Nijimin biting her nails in "Magical Girl Sight" (2018) was also impressive. Was that a live sound?

Kawada: I made it based on the sound of breaking plastic.

I sometimes add sound to the camera work such as panning and zooming. In the first episode of "An Angel Descended on Me!" (2019) In the first episode, there were different sounds for the zoom when Miya and her sister first see Hana-chan, and the pan when the mother Chizuru sees Hinata and her sister from her perspective.

Kawada: I added sounds to match the pictures. On the other hand, if the sound would have a strange meaning, I would not add it. If the pan is to be turned around in surprise, it would make sense to add sound, but if I add sound to a pan that just turns around, it might convey the wrong message. Effects can be misleading if applied in the wrong way, so I try not to do that.