Very few in the history of anime have had the same breadth of output as Masaaki Yuasa. The director of visionary anime includingMind Game,The Tatami Galaxy,Lu Over the Wall,and much more recently came to America, both celebrating the nomination of hismost recent featureInu-Ohat the Golden Globes and attending a specially-organized screening of the film accompanied by an immersive Biwa performance.
Sitting down withGameRantfor a wide-reaching conversation, one of anime’s most esteemed creators discusses everything from the challenges and rewards ofInu-Oh’s creation, to its awards-season buzz, to the surprising audience reactions in Japan.
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GameRant:Inu-Oh’s nomination for the Golden Globes award for Best Animated Feature is a big win. You’ve been awarded some very big honors in Japan for your contributions toboth anime and to Japanese culture in general. How does it feel to be making a splash at the Hollywood awards as well?
Masaaki Yuasa: I was always a big fan of watching the Golden Globes, even when I was little, not just for animation, but just for the ceremony and for the live-action films as well, so I’m really, really excited honestly! This is a tale from 600 years ago, dealing with a very traditional form of art, so it’s very interesting that modern audiences and critics have felt so strongly about such a project! I feel like Inu-Oh, the figure around whom the film is based, is watching over this!
GR: ForInu-Oh, you’ve said that creating a historical period piece was a unique challenge. What was your thought process for both trying to visualize a historical setting, as well as visualizing the fantastical elements within it?
Yuasa: I did a lot of research, extensive research about the period, of course. But the biggest thing was being able to convey the feeling of the emotions of audiences who would have been watching Inu-Oh’s performances back then. To get in the headspace for it, I kind of had to visualize myself as one of those people in the Muromachi Era. More specifically, the novel from whichInu-Ohis adapted is a sort of collection of short tales, written in a style in which the biwa-playing priests depicted in the film are themselves the narrators. But for me, for a film version, I wanted to have the feel of something big and exciting. In the book, you don’t get the same visual elements of the dance element, or the visual staging of the performances, so I wanted to do something exciting there, in a modern sense, to reframe those feelings for an audience today.
GR: The film has been described as something of your “parting statement” on the anime industry. With this film that champions individual creativity in the face of institutionalized convention, it’s easy to see a reflection of your own freeform creative journey within the highly systematized and structured anime industry. Do you see yourself in Inu-Oh in this way?
Yuasa: Actually, not so much. I don’t feel like I could regard myself to be as innovative as he was. But, I would say the biggest thing that I would channel there in admiration is that he comes from this position where he didn’t attempt to seek out status as much as he simply tried to entertain people, and he was himself having fun when entertaining people. And in that element, I did all that I could to try and make this film as entertaining as I could, and I had fun there as well!
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GR: Some of the most painterly scenes inInu-Ohare those of Tomona’s village, with the sea diving and boating and seaside life all in meticulous detail. Whether it’s these scenes, or the surfing ofRide Your Wave, or the mermaids ofLu Over the Wall, or even the giant whale ofMind Game, it seems like water and the ocean are quintessential motifs in your films. Is this an intentional aspect for you, and what do you like about these settings?
Yuasa: It’s actually more of a coincidence that all of my films have oceanside settings. But I was raised by the water and lived by the ocean until I moved to Tokyo, so maybe it’s easier for me to envision things as occurring there.
GR: Perhaps it could be said that the flowing of water has similarities to the go-with-the-flow approach to animation style in your films?
Yuasa: When I became an animator, I drew a lot of water. I feel like I can find myself unconsciously focusing on water, how I animate it, and how I can make it better. It’s an element, like a character, that I’ve developed more and more as time goes from a technical standpoint.
GR: Looking back on your career, what’s one piece of advice you would give, either to your past self or to young artists today?
Yuasa: [laughs] For others, I have no advice, unless they want to ask specific questions or need to know specific things during the making of the film. For myself? I don’t know about giving advice to him, because he wouldn’t listen to me anyway! [laughs] One thing I could tell them, me? Maybe to study English a bit more!
GR:Inu-Ohis a film that’s had a lot of success in a lot of different contexts since it first premiered at Venice. How has the reaction been in these international screenings, and how has it contrasted with the reaction you’ve seen from audiences in Japan?
Yuasa: In locations like America and Venice and France it’s gotten a very warm reception I’m happy for. In Japan, the audience, well, there are now some theaters where the audience participates! They make noise when they see Inu-Oh’s performances, they cheer during the performances and go along with the music, and everything as if they’re speaking to the screens. Seeing that is incredibly fun and in keeping with the spirit of the film. Some of the people going to the theater, they even have their own fashion derived from the movie, making unique outfits in a way where it’s not even just the film, but also these organic reactions in different directions.
GR: Fascinating! Like a sort of cosplay almost?
Yuasa: Actually, one of the biggest things we’ve noticed is nail art, like painted nails. And they have fans that they bring into the theater, with writings matching dialogue from the film, or even confetti mâché that go along with the performances.
GR: Confetti!? Going off in the theater?
Yuasa: Yes! It would take so much time to make, and then in one second, they go off and that’s it!
With that, the director gives a smile and the interview is complete. While the Golden Globes ceremony the following evening presented the Best Animated Feature Oscar toGuillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, though Yuasa attended the special biwa-accompanied screening of his film as arranged by GKIDS afterwards. Much like the active participation of fans in Japan, the Los Angeles screening represented the history, artistry, and merriment whichInu-Ohso powerfully encapsulates. That may be the biggest win in its own right, and the legendary musician of its namesake is, of course, looking down.
Masaaki Yuasa’sInu-Ohisavailable from GKIDS nowon Digital VOD, with a Blu-Ray release coming in January 2023.
