In an interview to commemorate the release of "Kimi to, Nami no Noritara", the latest work by the brilliant director Masaaki Yuasa, he says that he has been freed from the stereotypical idea of what an anime must be like!

The latest original feature film "Kimi to, Nami no Noritara" by Masaaki Yuasa, a genius director who pioneers the cutting edge of the Japanese animation scene with his free-spirited visuals and direction, is now being released in theaters nationwide.

This long-awaited original feature film, which follows "Dawn Tells Lou's Song" (2017), "The Night is Short and Walks Away" (2017), and "Devilman Crybaby" (2018), is a love story set in a seaside town about a young firefighter, Minato, and a surfer, college student Hinako, and their doomed love. It is a love story.
The staff includes "The Cat Returns" (2002) as a screenplay, "K-ON! (2011) and "Wakaoka wa Shogakusei! (2018) by Reiko Yoshida. Music is by Michiru Oshima of "Little Witch Academia" series and "The Night is Short and the Walking Maidens" (2017).
The cast also includes Ryota Katayose, vocalist of the popular dance and vocal group GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE, as "Minato. The heroine "Hinako" will be played by Rina Kawae, an actress with a strong acting presence.
Director Yuasa talked to us about the secret story behind the making of this summer's hottest film!

The Challenge of an "Ordinary Love Story

─ This is an original work following "Dawn Tells a Roo Song," isn't it? Reiko Yoshida wrote the script. Could you first tell us how you came up with the storyline for this film?

Yuasa: In the vein of "Rue," we decided to work together again, drawing on our experience from last time. Last time, there was a conflict between what we had originally planned to do and what changed as we got together and worked on it, and some things didn't work out. From the beginning, we were given the theme of a love story with an unusual shape or with a slightly different partner, and we drew a picture of a boy and a girl reunited after they became water, and then Yoshida-san and I started working on the story.
However, I heard quite a lot of feedback that people wanted to be more emotionally involved with a single character, so I decided to focus on four main characters this time.
I had always thought of myself as someone who wanted to portray an ensemble, but when I thought about it, I realized that some of my favorite movies don't have many people in them. In "Frenzy? (1972) was a story about a murderer among three main characters, and "Ghost" (1990) is a love story with only about four people in it. I thought it might be more enjoyable and easier to convey the message since I had never done it that way, so I decided to make it that way this time.
　We read the script with three women (Reiko Yoshida, a producer from Fuji Television, and a producer from Science SARU) and one man, and we worked on the story together.

─ I was very surprised to see Director Yuasa portraying a love story in such a straightforward manner. How did you approach the love story yourself?

Yuasa: As for my own tastes, I didn't watch any movies when I was young. I didn't care if it was a suspense or horror movie, but if there was a love story, I would exclude it (laughs).
However, most of the older songs were about love and romance, and when it came time for me to write my own songs, I couldn't avoid the subject of love stories. So when I started directing, I didn't really know how to make a drama, so I started with a simple idea that if two people meet in a "Romeo and Juliet" style and it turns out to be a tragedy, it would be a good story, and I made a lot of works.
What I wanted to do was to depict a more ordinary love story, a modest memory of just the two of them, something that people would not agree with if I told them about it without any dramatic development, a feeling of "this is what it was like when we had fun together. It is unknown whether it would be fun to depict that kind of ordinary romance in an animated film. But I made this film with the intention of capturing a moment in time that even people who have never had a great love affair can relate to.

─ As an animator, I think Director Yuasa tends to be regarded as a kind of art-oriented director, or a director with an artistic bent who turns his back on popular expression and pursues experimental animation expression. I get the impression that you boldly challenged your own public image in "Kimi to, Nani no Nami no Atarashira".

Yuasa: I had never thought about it, but this work is a little different from my previous works. I kept the characters small and the story simple, and except for the port that becomes the boyfriend of the main character, Hinako, I also kept the fantasy elements like in "Roo" to a minimum.
In terms of the picture creation, I had been trying to use as little focus and focus as possible in order to compete with the power of animation, but I dared to use them, and I added more lines and drew the backgrounds more tightly, aiming for a feeling that can be seen without being so conscious that it is an animation. I was aiming for a feeling that could be seen without being so conscious of the fact that it was an animation.

What I put into the "Ride the Wave" motif

───Can you tell us why you chose the subject of surfing, as indicated by the title "If I Ride a Wave"?

Yuasa: After discussing this and that, I decided to make a girl the main character and to make her a surfer. I also wanted to meet unknown people who had never seen my previous works, so I thought that the surfer would probably be the person who seemed the furthest away from me and the coolest (laughs). Of course, the job of a harbor firefighter was also something I had avoided because it seemed difficult to draw, and I wanted to learn about that kind of world, so I set up the couple as a surfer and a firefighter.
As we conducted various interviews, we found that there are many different types of surfers. For example, the first person we interviewed was the type who did not want to get involved in a battle where everyone was fighting over the waves and wanted to enjoy surfing by himself. Surprisingly, not all of them were easy-going people, and we had the feeling that there were also those who were taking it easy.
With this in mind, Mr. Yoshida suggested that Hinako be a girl who lacks self-confidence, and I thought it would be good to have Minato-kun, who can do anything, leading the way.

─ Minato-kun is a perfect superhero with all the elements that today's girls seem to admire. Was Reiko Yoshida and the rest of the female team the main force in creating that character?

Yuasa: Many women read the book, so I asked them how they felt about the characters and came up with the characters as we went along. It was decided that everyone has a part of them that is lacking in confidence, even if they don't seem confident at first glance. It turned out that all four people in the story were, in fact, all unsure of themselves, and they all had memories of each other being saved by each other. The idea of everyone being someone's hero was always a theme I wanted to work on, so I thought it would be nice if all four of them were helping someone who was unsure of themselves but just didn't realize it, so I created the story with that in mind.

─ I see, especially for the culturally oriented people who like anime, the word "surfer" gives the impression of a cool guy, but the axis of the drama was created from the point of abandoning this preconceived notion.

Yuasa: Yes, I watched the movie "Kirishima, Clubkatsu Yamerutte yo" (2012) with great interest, and when I heard that even popular people who seem to have no problems had problems, I realized that I was not the only one who had problems. When you get older, you realize that even popular people who seem to have no problems have problems. When you are a child, you tend to think, "If I could change my position or ability to be like that person, I would definitely be happy," but when you actually become a person, you realize that you have your own problems.
In Hinako's case, surfing is an escape route. It is a fun moratorium for her, as she does not know where she should go in life, such as finding a job, but she does not want to make a living as a surfer. I don't know who I am or what I want to do, and I feel like I can't go out there.
On the contrary, Minato, in contrast to Hinako, is now in a position where she seems to be doing her best and establishing herself in a respectable way, but in fact she is not, and she is troubled and anxious. I think there are many reasons for this, such as not wanting people to see you fail, but basically, I wanted to support those people who are trying their best, and I made this film from the idea that it would be better if people could ride the waves more easily and comfortably.

Kiminami" as a "surfing film

───Did anything inspire you to depict surfing as a film?

Yuasa When I was a child, I had the image of surfing overseas from the masterpieces "Big Wednesday" (1978) and "California Dreaming" (1978), and then when I was in college, I saw films like Hui Choy Pillow Productions and Takeshi Kitano's film "Ano Natsu, Ichiban Shizukana Umi" (1991). (1991) and other Japanese surfing movies.
In fact, as I mentioned earlier, there are many different kinds of surfers. Some surfers have very philosophical beliefs about the waves, like in "Heart Blue" (1991), while others have surfing integrated into their daily lives, like riding for an hour or two early in the morning with friends before going to work.
I also heard that there is a difference between shortboarding and longboarding, and that just floating around in the water is fun because it is a different world from the outside world. I thought it might be a good fit for me, so I went for a trial practice.
I couldn't swim that well and I was in bad shape, so I thought, "This will probably kill me," so I didn't get in the water (laughs), but I came to think that I would like to try it someday. (laughs) But now I want to try it someday. I think I will surf in my old age.

─ I see, and with Fuji Television involved in the production, I get the impression that you have digested the lineage of marine sports films from the Hui Choy movies and turned it around in your own way.

Yuasa Well, the image I have of surfing in the bubble era is one that I did not experience but was exposed to indirectly through TV and movies. I was hoping to portray it in a slightly different, more life-size way. The surfing film that is the opposite of such a glamorous image is "Ano Natsu, Ichiban Shizukan Umi (The Quietest Sea in the Summer). I loved that film, but I think that this film has a different way of depicting surfing that is not too heavy-handed, while also including those nuances.

─ ─ What I thought was very interesting about the setting for the surfing was that Hinako and her friends basically live in Chiba's ocean. But the first date Hinako and Minato go on is at the beach in Shonan. How did you come up with this theater setting?

Yuasa: The Chiba sea is really dedicated to surfing and there is nothing there. The ocean in Chiba is really dedicated to surfing and there is nothing there. The waves are big and suitable for surfing, but it is quite rough and not the kind of place you would make a date. On the other hand, Shonan has calmer waves, which means that beginners like Minato can get a good start.
However, Hinako is a bicyclist, so even if she wanted to go to Shonan by herself, she would not be able to. I thought it would be nice if Minato's car could be used to pull Hinako to cafes and other fashionable places in Shonan. The ocean in each scene is set up as a place where you can go swimming and surf, for example.

─ So even in the same ocean where you surf, you separate the ordinary from the extraordinary based on the location shooting. I think the relationship between Chiba and Shonan expresses what you said earlier about surfers having different attitudes and the range of memories of surfing films. And the date-movie feel that could depict the casual atmosphere of the couple was amazing, simply in the scene of the move. I thought it was also clever to connect both of these places with the café that Minato-kun yearns for.

Yuasa: Yes, when I mentioned that Minato might be the type of person who likes to visit such cafes, Yoshida-san agreed and said, "I think that's a good idea! I think that's why we incorporated it.

Inheritance and Transformation from "Roo's Song: Dawn Told at Last

─ ─ Looking again at the animation expression in this work, there are three motifs in common with the previous work "Roo," namely "water," "fire," and "song," what did you want to inherit and what did you want to change in the flow from "Roo" to "Kiminami"? I would like to ask you what you wanted to inherit and what you wanted to change in the flow from "Rue" to "Kimi-no-ha.

Yuasa The sea is mysterious. In "Rue," the sea was depicted as the source of life but also as a symbol of the world of death where humans cannot live, and the water that Rue manipulates is a fantasy that transcends this. In "Kimiha," too, the water in the harbor plays the role of transcending life and death, depicting the ocean as a world of life and death. And this time, focusing on the waves, I compared them to people and events, as surfers do, and gave meaning to riding them, failing to ride them, and overcoming them.
The "fire" in the other story was contrasted with the sun and water in the previous story, but this time I chose the firefighter, a fire specialist, against the surfer child, a water manipulator, because of their incompatible circumstances, which is a standard theme in tragic love stories. Also, the firefighter uses the power of water to put out the fire. The water then turns to vapor and disappears in bubbles, which also expresses the sublimation of the feelings of the two.

─ ─ This is exactly how the conflict between water and fire is beautifully combined with the emotional expression of each character, isn't it? The song connects the two. In "Roo," strange things happened through songs, but this time, the power of the songs that connect the two characters is used to bring back Hinako's missing port, which is a fantasy that has been carried over from "Roo.

Yuasa: We had talked about featuring music again from the beginning. The way we used the song this time was to tie it to memories of the past. Originally, it was a song about Minato's memories, but when Minato played it in a sort of mischievous way (laugh), it became a song about his memories with Hinako, and the trick was that Hinako would later learn the meaning of the song and her hidden memories.

On the theme song/theater song "Brand New Story

─ ─ The song "Brand New Story," which is also the theme song, is sung over and over again in the film in a very memorable way.

Yuasa: I think we came up with the idea of this kind of lyrics in the beginning as we were thinking about the storyline, but I don't remember for a moment (laughs). (laughs). I am glad that the song that came out was a very youthful hit song that broke down the content of the story.

─ ─ I had the impression that this song, including the way it was sung in the film, was very mundane for a song that is keyed to a fantastic magical phenomenon, or that it was more like a common pop song. In the traditional repertoire of animated film productions, the song would have been sung in a more Disney-like musical style, or in the style of a nostalgic children's song, or in the style of folk music with mysterious melodies, to give the song a special feeling. Instead, you chose a theme song by the GENERATIONS, which young people who like surfing would normally listen to, and positioned it as a bit of nostalgic melody for the younger generation, which I think shows the attitude of this work.

Yuasa Well, it's a hit song that was usually played on the beach. There was no special meaning in the song or lyrics that connected the two, but it just happened to be playing at the time of a major event, and I tried to portray it as a song that later became special in their minds. It actually describes the story of the two of them afterwards, so I hope people will hear it as a love song from Minato to Hinako at the ending.

─ ─ As for "Brand New Story," the scene in the first half of the song where Hinako and Minato are joking around and singing together over the detailed description of their days enjoying "normal" love as a couple, was very wonderful because it condensed the raw atmosphere between the two lovers. I read on the press sheet that it was an idea that Ryota Katayose, who plays Minato, came up with at the recording site.

Yuasa: We had planned to have two humming scenes, and each scene was to be sung by one person. On the day of recording, Katayose-san sang first, and Rina Kawae, who played Hinako, was also waiting in line, waiting for her turn to sing next. I asked Katayose-san to sing in a casual way, as if they were playing with each other, and she replied, "How about two people singing together?　It's not a song that is originally sung by one person, so I thought it would be better if two people sang it together. So I decided to play the accompaniment for the other scene and recorded a pattern of the two of us singing together.
In fact, once they started singing, Katayose-san led Kawae-san well, and we were able to record in almost a single take the kind of unaffected, happy-go-lucky facial expressions we were aiming for.
I think scenes like this are hard to find in past films. I think it is the most innovative scene in the film.

─ ─ I really think so. Another interesting thing about the scene creation was that in the middle of the film, after Minato-kun starts appearing in the water in response to a song, Hinako-chan starts carrying around a plastic snapping turtle filled with water all the time. At first glance, this oddity is depicted in a comical manner, but I felt that it also conveys the viewpoint that this is a horrifying picture from the perspective of those around her.

Yuasa That's right. If you think about it, they are like earthbound spirits, so I included that kind of material as a bridge until the more unusual picture comes in at the end of the film. I thought it would be nice to have a scene where the two young lovers carry around a plastic stuffed animal, which would be a little unbelievable, as a way of expressing the feelings that young lovers would want to touch each other.

Making a "movie" with animation

─ ─ It was impressive that you mentioned the names of various live-action films up to this point. Was it possible that you were thinking of making this film as a Japanese film rather than an animation film?

Yuasa: No, I didn't particularly intend to go that far. However, in the case of my previous work "Roo", I was more interested in pursuing expressions that could only be achieved through animation. From that point of view, I think that this work is more free from the stereotypes of "this is how it must be because it is an animation".

─ ─ If that is the case, what do you think about the reason for choosing animation over live-action?

Yuasa: When I think about why I have loved animation since I was a child, I used to find it difficult to understand reality, so I thought that the parts that were far removed from reality were interesting. However, as I became an adult and started working on settings, I began to realize that the beauty of animation lies in the way it summarizes and extracts the interesting aspects of reality, and I began to think, "Oh, the world is quite interesting, and the interesting parts of it are in animation. I began to realize that the beauty of animated pictures lies in the way they summarize and extract the interesting aspects of reality.
For example, when shooting live-action images of humans, the physical movements that we do in real life, such as walking and eating, can be done without any special planning. Then, the issues of acting and cut and split become the expression of the film, but this is not the case in the case of animation. Even if you just make a character walk, you have to go to the trouble of drawing him or her, so even if you just make him or her do something "normal" that real people would do, it will have meaning as an expression.
So the real appeal of animation lies in the need to systematically summarize and extract reality from that part of the image. With live-action, on the other hand, there are a lot of unplanned happenings that enter the picture when it comes time to shoot, so there is a sense of enjoyment in trying to overcome the limited amount of work that can be done on site.

─ In other words, "Kimi-no-ha" is a challenge to systematically depict the interesting aspects of "ordinary" things that we tend to overlook in real life through the power of animation expression that you have cultivated, even though the subject matter and settings are much closer to those of live-action films.

Yuasa: Yes. I hope that through the film, the viewers will be able to see the interesting aspects of reality and say, "Oh, I see! I hope that through the film, viewers will realize how interesting reality is.

To ride the great wave of life

The climax of the film was a spectacular scene. I can't spoil the details since this article will appear just after the movie's release, but the expression of waves and flames accumulated since the beginning of the film and the changes in the feelings and principles of action of each of the four characters are very highly connected in an incident that takes place in a certain building, leading to a raging catharsis. How did you design this scene?

Yuasa: Since this is a story about a surfer and a firefighter, we naturally came to the conclusion that the final scene would be a fire scene. I consulted with a university professor who specializes in fire science, and he told me that in Japan today's buildings, the area that burns is surprisingly limited, and almost never the entire building burns. I also looked for cases of major fires overseas, but the materials used were materials that are no longer used in Japan, making it very difficult from a realistic standpoint.
Then, I thought about what would make a big fire, and I tried to come up with a structure like that, using the news I had heard about building the world's biggest Christmas tree as a clue.

─ I see. As one would expect, something of that scale would not exist in reality, so you incorporated it as an animated fantasy, didn't you?

Yuasa That's right. No matter how big the building was, it was only about 30 or so meters.　So we didn't decide on the exact size of the building and how many stories it would be, but rather drew it in a vague manner. I thought that if people entered there and the same incident that triggered the encounter between Hinako and Minato in the beginning occurred, I could create a situation where the building would be on fire all at once.
I was also considering how to extinguish the fire in a way that ordinary firefighters cannot, and at the same time, how to create a situation that would involve surfing without turning it into a gag.

─ ─ Indeed, the animation expression was very powerful, and the script and direction matched the emotions of the characters very closely. Up until this scene, I think the director had focused on the details of Hinako and her friends at their height and their emotional growth, but from this point on, the sense of liberation from the torrent of dynamic imagery typical of director Yuasa was simply wonderful.

Yuasa: The final spectacle was quite absurdly expressed, so I was worried that people might think, "What? I was worried that the final spectacle would be considered "what?" but surprisingly, everyone accepted it openly, which was gratifying. I think the sense of liberation you felt there is the explosive change that happens when you confront the uncontrollable aspects of life that everyone faces, such as the person you want to be but can't become, or the breakup with a lover, and you still face them.
It must be something so big that it could sweep away even a fire that burns down a building, and I thought such a thing would be appropriate for the end of the film. If you call it an exaggeration, maybe it is.

─ ─ I think that the climax scene was a perfect example of the theme of riding the waves of life, and it could not have been animated in a better way. For you, too, was this film a step forward from the edgy line you established between "Mind Game" (2004), your first feature film, and your recent work "Devilman Crybaby", in which you rode a new wave?

Yuasa Well, "Devilman" itself was a popular and popular title, and we had been gradually aiming to create works with a wider range of appeal.　If "Kiminami" is different from other works this time, I think it is because of the chemical reaction between the staff members who came together and the focus on the casual "ordinary" that I mentioned earlier. I have been throwing the ball while thinking about how to reach the audience, and I think I have been able to swing my arm more widely than usual.

─ ─ Yes, I think this work gave me a strong sense of the possibility that animation nowadays is capable of making films like this.

Yuasa Thank you very much. I hope so.

(Reporting and writing by Daichi Nakagawa)

Film information】 ※Honorifics omitted.
Kimi to, Nami no Nori ni Norareta (If I Ride a Wave with You)

The film will be released on June 21 (Fri.) on a nationwide roadshow!

＜Story

Hinako moves to a seaside town when she enters university.
She loves surfing and has no fear on the waves, but she is unsure about her future.
After a fire accident, Hinako meets Minato, a firefighter, and the two fall in love.
The two become indispensable to each other, but Minato is killed in a sea accident.
Hinako is so exhausted that she can no longer see her favorite ocean, but one day she hums a song that reminds her of their love, and Minato appears out of the water.
Hinako is happy to see him again.
Hinako is happy to see him again, but....
Can they stay together forever?　What is the true purpose of Minato's reappearance?

<Staff> Director: Masaaki Yuasa

Director : Masaaki Yuasa
Screenplay : Reiko Yoshida
Music : Michiru Oshima
Character Design/ Chief Animation Director：Takashi Kojima

Cast: Ryota Katayose (GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE), Rina Kawase, Honoka Matsumoto, Kentaro Ito
Theme Song: "Brand New Story" GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE (rhythm zone)

Animation Production: Science SARU
Distributor: Toho

＜Characters
Minato Hinageshi: A 21-year-old firefighter with a strong sense of justice.
He has a strong sense of justice and is trusted at work. He appears to be dexterous and can handle everything with ease, but in fact he is a hard worker.

Hinako Mukaimizu: A university student. 19 years old.
She loves surfing and is quite good at it. She has a cheerful and open personality, but is unsure about her future.

(C)2019 "Kimi to, Nami no Norareru" Production Committee