Whisper from TOTORO

NHK aired a special program “A secret of creative work of Ghibli---400 days of conflict between Miyazaki and a newbie director”------ too long title!
As usual, NHK crew stayed in Ghibli studio for 400 days and filmed the process of making their new movie “Arrietty the borrower”
This time the person focused on is not Miyazaki but Yonebayashi Hiromasa----who is usually called Maro of his nickname.
At the beginning of this program, some veteran staffs wondered the fact that Miyazaki hadn’t seen the story board(e-konte) written by Maro. At the staff meeting including Miyazaki, Miyazaki said about it. Maro refuted it with smile, “You said you didn’t want to to see?”
After Miyazaki entrusted the responsibility of making Arriety, he didn’t order anything to Maro. Not only that he didn’t talk with Maro at all during whole production period. That’s a little unnatural because they worked in the same room everyday. We once saw similar situation when Miyazaki’s son Goro directed Gedo-senki.
pic above: Miyazaki never talked to Maro though they worked at the same room.
However Miyazaki complained only once about a sequence to some staff. Maro heard it from the staff but didn’t change his policy.

After 400 days, the movie was completed. Miyazaki also attended the preview for staffs
At the ending of the movie, we saw a tear on Miyazaki’s cheek.
After the preview, Miyazaki rewarded and praised Maro.
Miyazaki said, "I feel we've got a real director at last."
Miyazaki seemed very satisfied to get a good successor.
pic right: Miyazaki praised Maro at the staff preview.

I watched Ghibli's new film Arrietty yesterday.

Arrietty is a very beautiful movie.
It has no explosion, no affair, no murder,
no magic, no chase......but only 7 characters and simple story in a confined space.

Still, it shows up dense feeling of air because of its amazing background art.
From the opening, I immediately was caught up in its beautiful background.
Generally, Ghibli movies are famous of its beautiful background art.
However I can tell this movie shows the very best of the ones.
You can enjoy this movie even if you watch only the background.
Needless to say, of course you can enjoy the story as well.
You won't see any nonsensical or mysterious sequences such as ones often seen in Miyazaki's.

Directed by Yonebayashi Hiromasa, senario by Miyazaki Hayao

------spoiler---------

The story is based on Mary Norton's "The Borrowers"
So the plot of this movie follows the original novel.
But the location is transferred from England to Japan.
The age of the boy, one of the main character whose name is Show, is changed from 9 to 12.
Show comes to his grandma's house to stay for a week before his heart surgery because his parents are absent.
Soon he happens to see a small person in the garden.
The small person is Arrietty, 10cm tall and 14 years old girl who lives with her parents under floor of the house for long time without being seen from normal persons.
They have a rule that they can't live any longer at the house if they come to be seen by normal persons.
Arrietty keeps secret the fact she was seen by the boy from her parents.
But again she happens to be seen by Show when she and her father go borrowing things.
They feels Show has no bad intention on them. So they decide to see how it works for a while.
Then another one, the old maid of this house Haru, realizes that there live small persons somewhere in the house.
She has bad intentions on the small persons and begins to try capturing.
Arrietty's family Krocks can escape from her with Show's help.
In the end, Arrietty and Show get feeling of friendship or love each other.
However they have to say goodbye and the Krocks leaves the house by helping of Spiller who survives with other small persons in the wild.

right upper: The Krocks. Arriety and her father Pod, mother Homily.
right lower: a background image board.

A member of Seashepherd was arrested by Japanese coast guard today, after illegal intruding to Japanese research ship.
They are obstructing catching whales of Japanese reserch ships at the Antarctic Ocean.
They seem to think everything can be allowed if it can stop whale catching.
Japanese public opinion seems to be critical to their behavior.
However, on the other hand, many of Japanese have doubts about Japanese government policy of whale catching, I think. Do we still need whale?

We Japanese have eaten whale for a long time.
When I was small, whale was one of my favorite food.
One day my mother sent me on an errand buying whale meat. I went to a meat shop and asked whale. The meat shopman laughed at me. He told me, "Go to fish shop. Whale isn't animal but fish!!" I hadn't known whale was sold at fish shop till then. Yes, Japanese have categorized whale as a kind of fish like swordfish or tuna.
Japanese Buddhism hadn't allowed to eat four paws during feudal era. But eating whale was no problem because it was fish.

After losing in the WWII till 1960s, whale was significant source of protein. With the depletion of whale resource, Japan discontinued commercial whaling in 1970s.
After it, most of Japanese lost food habit of whale. Now whale is just rare delicacy for curiosity seekers. It is very expensive.
So I have never eaten whale for this 30 or 40 years. I can say there is no problem without whale catching. For that matter, there is no problem, at least for me, without tuna, caviar, sharks' fin, lobster... I only need sardine and mackerel.

right: fried whale. This was my favorite. To be honest, beef or pork taste better than it.

---------To be continued to next post---------

A big earthquake occered in Chile yeaterday.
It brought tsunami around Pacific ocean.
After more than 30 hours, the tsunami arrived Japan.
Today, NHK aired about tsunami warning from morning to night.

Around my place, the local goverment gave alert to residents by loudspeaker vans.
They spoke, "Never go to the seashore! Tunami will arrive around 3 pm."
BUT!, for me, it sounded like "Go to seashore to watch tsunami!"
Of course, I went to the seashore at 3pm. There was a rescue car near the sea.
Emergency rescue team was watching the sea.
The national road along the seashore was closed traffic.　A helicopter was flying above...

However, I only saw peaceful ocean and ....old spectators.
After all, tsunami came but it was too small to recognize.



right:
old people were waiting for arriving tsunami. Finally, they were disappointed to see no tsunami.




50 years ago, a big tsunami from Chile took lives of 142 people in Japan.(1960.5.22)

"Digi-sta"(shorten digital stadium) is a NHK program that shows amateur animations. It has a history of 10 years. These days, there are many animation softwares that are easily available for amateur creators.
So a lot of amateurs contribute to this program.
On last night's air, I watched a nice one titled "memory". It's a 3D-CG made by a Kyushu Univ. student, Yamamoto Jun-ichi. Nakaya, who is the host of this program, comments like this, "Its CG skill isn't so good but the story and the image have good balance. So it can survive ten years after." Still I was impressed with his skill. It reminded me the opening sequence of "UP" though, "memory" was made before "UP" release.