Director Kenshi Itoso, a disciple of Hayao Miyazaki, talks about his goal with the theatrical animation "Santa Company: The Secret of Christmas.

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Finland, two animated films "Santa Company - The Secret of Christmas" and "Korvokkolo" will be released in theaters nationwide in December 2019 (simultaneous screenings), it was announced on June 10, 2019 at the Embassy of Finland in Tokyo during the "Theater Production The project was announced on June 10, 2019 at the Embassy of Finland in Tokyo.

Santa Company - The Secret of Christmas" is the first animated feature film for Kenshi Itoso, an apprentice of Hayao Miyazaki, one of Japan's leading animation directors, who himself financed and produced the short animation in 2014. It was produced using crowdfunding, which was still rare at the time.

This time, in order to expand the story of the film and reach a wider audience, it was decided to rework the film with many new scenes and a more in-depth story.

The film was produced almost entirely on his own in 2007, and was introduced and screened at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was later highly acclaimed both in Japan and abroad, including an award at the Tokyo Animation Awards. This time, the film will be completely renewed, and the scenario will be changed so that the connection with "Santa Company: The Secret of Christmas" will also be revealed.

Before introducing the project, Director Itoso shared an episode with his mentor Hayao Miyazaki: In 1998, he participated in the "Higashi Koganei Murajuku," an open recruitment program by Studio Ghibli, where he attended a workshop to train directors for the next generation of Studio Ghibli. Director Itoso, who was in his first year of college at the time, went to Mr. Miyazaki's villa and worked with Mr. Miyazaki and other students on various projects.

The most important thing he learned there was to "think.

During a group interview before being hired, the other candidates accepted what Mr. Miyazaki said "this is how it is," but Director Itoso was the only one who passed the interview by giving his own opinion back and forth.

The director Itoso's new animated film, "Santa Company: The Secret of Christmas," will be remade from the self-produced version, and various business models that will be created through this film were presented.

As in the past, the film will be broadcast, screened, distributed over the Internet, and sold on Blu-ray/DVD, as well as merchandised, sold as related products, and held as hands-on events. In addition, since the copyright of this work belongs to director Itoso, he is planning to develop practical educational programs using this work, as well as to collaborate with industry and academia, both in Japan and abroad.

Director Itoso said, "I would like to make secondary use of the materials created in the animation as teaching materials."

Also on the stage were Mr. Koumitsu Odaka, CEO of Tokyo Otaku Mode, which is supporting the film, and Mr. Natsuki Seisuke, Representative Director of NPO "Charity Santa". Tokyo Otaku Mode" hopes to promote the development of otaku culture through its "Otaku Coin" virtual currency service, and "Charity Santa" hopes for a synergistic effect through this film, with more people participating in the organization's projects, and more people going to see the film. He said.

The company also plans to raise funds from supporters through Sony Bank GATE, an investment-based crowdfunding service by Sony Bank. The bank will also be offering special rewards such as character naming and appearance rights through this crowdfunding campaign.

In addition, the voice cast for the main character, Noel, will be replaced by Kana Hanazawa, who is currently on a leave of absence, along with Yuki Kaji, Rie Kugimiya, Haruka Tomatsu, Takahiro Sakurai, and Yusuke Kondo. In addition, the casting of other famous celebrities is also planned.

In addition, the latest special news release video using footage from the self-produced version of the film was also shown. Director Itoso commented that the production progress is not necessarily encouraging at the moment, but that the film must be released during the Christmas season to make it worthwhile, so he is working hard on it.

He is aiming for completion at the end of October.

For more information, please visit the official website.

After the presentation, Akiba Research Institute conducted an interview with the director!

He spoke once again about his enthusiasm for the film and his thoughts on his mentor, Hayao Miyazaki.

Interview with Director Kenshi Itoso

--Director Itoso owns all the copyrights to this film. In recent years, I think the mainstream style of animation is that the copyright is held by a committee, but please tell us how you came to this attempt.

Itoso: Looking at Studio Ghibli from the outside, I was envious of the freedom that Hayao Miyazaki seemed to have. When I finally jumped into the animation industry, it was natural to think about business, but there were many works based on original works. For example, when it had been several years since I created a soccer animation, I was told that even if I wanted to release it again at this time because of the World Cup, I would not be able to do so because I did not have the rights to the work. I had heard that many times.

I felt uncomfortable about that, so I came to the conclusion that if I was going to do it, I would have to pay for it myself and make it myself.

When I was approached to do it on a larger scale this time, I told the producer that I wanted to keep only the rights to the work, and he said, "That's interesting, so let's do it with someone who is willing to take on that challenge. We had a difficult time, but we found a good landing spot. I hope this will be a new challenge.

Noel (CV: Kana Hanazawa)

--What are the advantages and disadvantages of this production system?

Itoso: The advantage is that we can expand the amount of money that we can spend, which is limited when you are basically self-financed. Another advantage is that if I had to do everything on my own, I would not be able to do the production work, which would limit the range of what I can do. As for the disadvantages, I have eliminated everything that is currently visible to me, and there are no particular problems. I have the right to direct the work without dispersing the rights, and I believe that it is natural for those who contribute money to receive a percentage of their investment, so I have them provide me with that ratio.

--I would venture to say that it is difficult to find companies and individuals who are willing to work together with you?

Itoso: Yes, it is. If it is a very large company, the response is often, "What's that? I often get a "what's that?" response. Some of the sponsors and investors are from the animation industry, but I have the impression that it is more the individual investors and those who are light on their feet who are participating.

Belle (CV: Yuki Kaji)

--What made you choose the motif of "Santa Claus" for this project?

Itoso: Christmas is my favorite event of the year, but when I was a child, I was still shocked when I found out the true identity of Santa Claus. I still want to believe that it is not true (laugh), but on the other hand, when I grew up and learned to earn money, I was confronted with several problems that I had to solve, such as how Santa Claus distributes presents in one night and how he lives with only one day of work on Christmas. When I grew up and learned to earn money, I had a number of problems that needed to be solved. I spent years thinking of ideas to solve these problems, and when I had a good idea, I wanted to make an animation.

--I was wondering if Hayao Miyazaki is still a great admirer of yours.

Itoso: The most important thing I learned from and was influenced by Director Miyazaki is that you should not aspire to be Hayao Miyazaki. Miyazaki is a one-of-a-kind talent, and I can never catch up to him even if I aspire to be like him. His style is unique to him. Therefore, I don't think that copying his style will result in anything. Rather, I think the proper way to be influenced by Director Miyazaki is to not do what he did. However, I do like what he likes, so I think there are some similarities, but I try not to be conscious of it as much as possible.

--Thank you very much for your time. I look forward to the completion of the film!