>>806New interview with legendary animator Shinya Ohira.
https://fullfrontal.moe/nterview-shinya-ohira/Ohira discusses Yoshinori Kanada, Masahito Yamashita, the new Urusei Yatsura series, and more!
"It’s well-known that you became an animator after discovering Masahito Yamashita’s[6] work on Urusei Yatsura[7]. What would you say is the appeal of Yamashita’s animation?
Shin’ya Ohira: Let’s see… (thinks) First, there’s the mood and dynamic action he inherited from Yoshinori Kanada[8]. But Yamashita has things that Kanada doesn’t, like physicality and details… It’s hard to express. Yamashita’s animation is both sharp and sensual. I really like that sort of fleshy mood, and I also love curved and irregular lines… Kanada used rulers, so it’s very sharp and straight, whereas Yamashita’s drawings are just curves, and he puts them together to create something very dense with details… (thinks) I think that’s what I like about him. That’s why I like Yamashita’s touch more than Kanada’s.
Since we’re on Urusei Yatsura, what movie is your favorite, Only You[9] or Beautiful Dreamer[10]?
Shin’ya Ohira: Only You, of course! (everybody laughs)
There’s a new Urusei Yatsura TV show coming out soon. Will you watch it?
Shin’ya Ohira: Well, you know… (laughs) The staff is totally different, and I’m not really into it for the story, so if Yamashita isn’t there, I don’t really intend to."
...
"Shin’ya Ohira: No, it hasn’t gone that far. Something small might happen soon, though. But I’d like to make something longer before I die. Actually, I want to try doing mecha again. Of course, not 3D, all by hand. Something like what we used to do in the 80s.
Won’t you do a remake of Birth[19]?
Shin’ya Ohira: (laughs) Yes, something like that! I want to go back to my roots, you see. At first, I really liked Kanada and Yamashita, but I was rejected for it, so I had to change. But with things as they are now, I’d like to return to how it was before. At least once, I’d like to do a long-form work with my own interpretation of Kanada and Yamashita’s styles, which I couldn’t do when I was 18 or 20. It doesn’t need a story; I’d rather do something like a documentary about this kind of art. I just want to draw something that keeps moving."