Archive for the 'Features' Category

3/11 (Sunday)
Today we filmed a scene of Shiro’s company “Excesstreme.”

V3, Kazami Shiro, is a charismatic and young president of a IT company. Excesstreme is a fictitious name, and these names and settings are sometimes thought up by the assistant directors. We also are assigned to “searches” on occasion. For instance we found out what an IT company offices look like, that they don’t have a set time to come in, jokers don’t wear neckties and wear colored glasses and suspenders, desks are covered with presentation materials (many floor plans), most commonly used PCs are ThinkPads, etc.
For this assignment I had a friend in the IT industry tell me his experiences.

Back to Excesstreme. Scissors Jaguar, played by Taguchi Tomorowo, is usually a gentleman in a suit. When he transforms, he becomes a violent kaijin with giant scissors.

The Riders and Kaijin are designed with Izubuchi Yukat-san’s illustrations. With that as a base, we have the Rainbow and Takeda Dango-san’s costume teams make it a reality.
Oh, those who hasn’t watched “THE FIRST” may think that they say “Henshin!” and make a pose during transformation. However, in “THE NEXT” the Riders and kaijin either snap on a mask or put one on. This is how Ishinomori Shotaro sensei originally envisioned it. It is “Masked” Rider after all.

In any case, Excesstreme becomes a victim of Shocker’s plan. Tomorowo-san and Shocker breaks into the building and the employees are trapped inside. Tomorowo-san is wearing a protective mask and usually we use a boom microphone, but the audio technician put a pin microphone on him so that they could get a sense of being inside the cramped helmet. When I viewed it in the editing stages I figured out what they meant.

Nearing the end of the scene, we called for those who wanted to be “stepped on by Tomorowo-san!” 3 brave, masochistic souls volunteered. They were impressively stepped on many times in the final shot. Many extras hope to become an actor someday, so making a positive difference in the production is also happiness to them.

[Translated by Pal. Originally posted on 10/19/2007 @ Kamen Rider THE NEXT Official Blog]

2/28 (Wednesday)
Today we filmed our first wire action scene at the pier.
In this scene Hongo is approached by Shiro and gets punched, thrown far into a pillar. Action scenes aren’t handled by the acting crew. Action is the lifeline of the film, so they’re handled by the pros. The most important thing in this scene is timing Kikawada-san jump and the pulling of the wires. There was a mistake in the first take, but we got an OK on the second. Kikawada-san hit his bottom pretty hard on the first take, but he kept going with a smile. The spirit of an actor is truly impressive.
(There is a foam mat in the photo but it’s removed for the actual take. Kikawada-dan hit his bottom on the concrete…)

Tonight we just moved locations, this time to a cafe where Kotomi and Okamura, the Chiharu Fanclub chairman, meets. We got the owner of the cafe to play as an extra.

This is most likely the scene where we had the most retakes.
As a car moves across the camera the focus changes and a white hand rises from the back seat. The white hand was created by the makeup crew. We had an actor lay in the back seat of the car, but the timing of when to take out the hand, how the hand was introduced, or issues with the camera forced many retakes. It took a pretty long time since the car had to be moved back to its origin every retake, but in the end we got the shot that we were looking for. I felt as if the director taught me to “never compromise and aim for perfection.”

Found this ever-so-depressing page yesterday that chronicled the writer’s trip to the the Toho tokusatsu studios backlots. This page was made in November 2001, and noted that the pictures were taken over a decade before that (1988 or 1989). Translated below:

Over a decade ago, while Kamen Rider Black RX was on the air, I visited the Toho tokusatsu studio. All obsolete vehicles from past shows were carelessly placed outside the studios. (They were literally carelessly dumped there.)

I just found the photos I took so I’ll post them for all the tokusatsu fans out there.

The first photo is the outdoor parking lot.

The buggy with the word “MASKMAN” on it is the “Spin Cruiser” from Hikari Sentai Maskman. To the left is the “Live Cougar” from Choujuu Sentai Liveman. Perhaps exposed to too much rain and wind, they were in pretty bad shape. The Spin Cruiser’s bumper was bent and looked like it was about to fall off. I’m sure a fan would scream “what a waste!” if they saw this.

The second photo is to the side of the storage building.

The yellow bike is the “Moto Lion” that Yellow Lion rode in Liveman. I’m not sure what the red one in the back is. Red Falcon’s “Moto Falcon”? (If you know, please tell me.) The pink one in the back is most likely a “Mask Roader” from Maskman. They just left these between storage buildings like pieces of scrap.

The third photo is of a special bike.

The green bike in the front is “Battle Hopper” from Kamen Rider Black. This was still in good condition. The pink and yellow vehicles behind it are the “Flash Hawk” bikes from Choushinsei Flashman.

Finally, the most impacting photo was taken in the corner of the parking lot.

There I found the trashed “Ginkron” from Brothers Fist Bricrosser, a very minor tokusatsu show. In the show Bicrosser Ken would lift the bike onto his shoulder while Bicrosser Gin was riding it and used the bike as a cannon [note: observe this oddity here]. I wanted to see how heavy the bike was but it was covered in rust so I didn’t attempt to lift it. The one I can’t figure out is the colorful one in the corner. It might be the colorful vehicle from Himitsu Sentai Goranger, the “Barikikyuun”. The Barikikyuun is the only air balloon machine in all of sentai history. With all their supposed technology in the show they somehow make a low-tech air balloon. Basically it’s a stupid machine. I can’t believe these still exist…

Most likely the Toho tokusatsu studio has treasures like these still carelessly thrown away like this. Definitely a place to visit if you’re a tokusatsu fan.

[Original site in Japanese]

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2/25 (Sunday)
Today we film a scene in a girls high school.

Hongo has finished his term at the university research center and now works at Jonan University and High School and teaches biology. Even our hero, the protector of justice, is having trouble with his rebellious students… Although he was a genetics researcher, the students are chanting “Hongo the Virgin,” and Hongo flees from the classroom. I used to think that finding a torn page from an “adult” magazine was the ultimate thrill, but it’s no comparison to today’s generation.

Today one of Hongo’s students, Kotomi, makes an appearance. Kotomi isn’t being picked on, but she went against her peers and her strong personality is clashing with their agenda. She hasn’t opened up to Hongo either, so she is essentially a lone wolf.
Kotomi is played by Ishida Miku-chan. She is very likable and polite, but once the camera starts rolling she becomes a different person. There was a scene where she gets rejected by her peers and darts out of the classroom in anger, which was very exciting to watch.

Now, the text on the chalkboard in Hongo’s classroom was written by me. I studied information on genetics for reference, but the director praised me saying that “this is the best chalkboard I’ve ever used in a movie.” These little compliments are truly the best~(T_T)/
I didn’t get too many praises from the director this day…

[Translated by Pal. Originally posted on 9/21/2007 @ Kamen Rider THE NEXT Official Blog]

[Note: Starting from the oldest to to the newest entries now, sorry for the confusion]

Hello!
I’m the fourth assistant director Kato for Kamen Rider THE NEXT. This production diary is intended to introduce our day to day filming experiences and discussions that are usually staff only. Nice to meet you.

First, I’ll introduce myself. It’s been a little over a year since I started this job. I was a home electronics engineer for 5 years and switched careers, so I guess I’m a little strange. My digital lifestyle became analog, I get more phone calls instead of e-mails, company cafeteria changed from credit to cash, footwork instead of networking, drinking and socializing instead of time at home… I’m comfortable with the new work style. I like this better anyway, and I’m absorbing a lot about movies and its digital aspects.

Many call movies a comprehensive art since many people with different skills work on all kinds of things. Director/producer/production crew (assistant directors belong here)/production design/special effects/lighting/sound/art/wardrobe/editing/script writers/makeup/actor manager/car rental… Many people are involved. I will try my best to write in a way to explain what people do what at in the production of a movie in hopes that you might become more interested in the movie making process.
Alright, let’s get started!!

2/23 (Friday)
Tasaki Group, crank in! Preparation was brief, and filming is about to start.
As written above, there are many people working on a particular project, but every project has a different set of staff. That being said, the first day of filming is also a “break in” day, and the group’s rhythm is decided naturally. So, the first day is very important. There are no complicated actions scenes or dramatic acting on the crank in day. Like a ship at sea, the production starts slowly.

Today we’re filming a scene in a high-class club. Ichimonji Hayato makes his appearance in the darkness of the metropolis.
Those who saw THE FIRST will remember that Hayato suffers from a “rejection” since he betrayed Shocker. He cannot live without his blood transfusion. However, he has made his decision to never go back to the Shocker headquarters. His body is rotting away, meanwhile…

Oh that Hayato, he’s having a blast at the high-class club. He has enchanted every hostess in the club! He even orders a dozen bottles of Dom Pérignon! To top it off, there’s gold! …Did you know that there’s Dom Pérignon with gold in it? Basically it’s more expensive than the regular bottle. I’d love to drink it at least once. Sadly the bottle wasn’t filled with the actual drink (^-^;>

Since this is the first entry, let me talk about the production crew. We, the assistant directors, fall into the production crew category. The director is a producer and and it’s natural that he’s in the production crew, but it’s also the production crew’s responsibility to create the rhythm that I mentioned above. Majority of the “Test!” and “Rolling!” and other things you hear on the set are said by the production crew. There’s also a rank within the assistant directors: the chief assistant director checks everything and plans the shooting schedule, second assistant director supervises the production while handling the wardrobe/makeup crew, third assistant director and below handles the art/props department while supervising.
Now, the lowest rank assistant director like myself gets to use the clapper board. Once we see and hear the clap, the cameras start rolling and it’s as if it switches on the actors, so it’s an important item to maintain the rhythm.

The production crew in a way acts as the lubricant that creates an atmosphere which allows the actors to perform comfortably, creating the director’s vision as a team.

[Translated by Pal. Originally posted on 9/13/2007 @ Kamen Rider THE NEXT Official Blog]