"Interview Articles" that closes up on the sender of the work related to TAMASHII NATIONS. This time, we interview the double directors of the Netflix original anime series "Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045", Kamiyama and Aramaki!
The latest work in the Ghost in the Shell series is currently being distributed on Netflix for Season 1. Then, on August 22, "ROBOT SPIRITS <SIDE GHOST> Tachikoma-Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045-" will be released, and in December, "ROBOT SPIRITS <SIDE GHOST> Tachikoma-Ghost in the Shell SAC 2nd GIG & SAC_2045-" will be released. Will be released.
So we asked both directors to pick up the ROBOT SPIRITS Tachikoma series and talk about Tachikoma and the Ghost in the Shell series.

■ ROBOT SPIRITS Tachikoma

-The real thing of "ROBOT SPIRITS <SIDE GHOST> Tachikoma-Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045-" released on August 22 and "ROBOT SPIRITS <SIDE GHOST> Tachikoma-Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045-" scheduled to be released in December Is that right?

Kamiyama:It's extremely reproducible.

Aramaki:Right!

Kamiyama:The size is also good, and it's good for moving and playing.

Aramaki:It's just the size of a palm.

Kamiyama:It's affordable. It seems that the reproducibility is absolutely perfect.

――How is it compared to 3DCG in the play?

Aramaki:The most trivial part of 3DCG is that you can't touch the real thing.

Kamiyama:That's right. I don't touch it.

Aramaki:Yes Yes Yes. After all, it's the real pleasure of becoming a product. Feeling, texture and weight. The "hardness of the joints" when moved is also pleasant.

-(While showing "ROBOT SPIRITS Tachikoma-Ghost in the Shell SAC 2nd GIG & SAC_2045-") This time, I tried to stick to optional parts, but how about it?

Aramaki:This is an effect part, right?

-It's an effect of a grenade launcher.

Aramaki:What I made with 3DCG is returning in analog form (laughs). Is this an effect for a Gatling gun?

--Yes. You can also insert it into the right hand chain gun.

Kamiyama:Indeed, it also has wires. You can change the shape like this. Speaking of which, when it fires, can it be physically wavy?

Aramaki:It's liquid only at the moment it comes out, and it hardens the moment it comes into contact with the air.

Kamiyama:Looking at this way, the Gatling gun is very big. A person can be torn off even with a single hit!

Aramaki:You can tear it off. It's buffing.

--The SAC_2045 version comes with a character plate of the element and Batou, and the SAC 2nd GIG version comes with a plate that reproduces cyber communication.

Kamiyama:Oh I see! You can see the character properly in the style of cyber communication. If you put it on your own glasses, you can feel as if you were in Section 9 (laughs).

--In the Dennou Communication Plate, the final countdown of the 2nd GIG is also reproduced.

Aramaki:It's the guy before the launch of the nuclear missile.

Kamiyama:Is the contrast between the characters (on the whole plate of Batou and Motoko) correct?

-There may be some errors, but it is adjusted according to the setting.

Aramaki:Is it almost right? Yeah, this is cute

■ Tachikoma in the “Ghost”

――Please tell us about Tachikoma in the “Ghost in the Shell”.

Kamiyama:When launching the SAC series, it was said that it would be difficult to get Tachikoma in TV animation. However, I thought that Tachikoma had to come out, although it may be difficult for the meaning of the work. At that time, the way of thinking about AI was a little more vague, and it was thought that it would be a new enemy for humankind.

――In the original story, there is an episode of “puppeteer” as a possibility of AI.

Kamiyama:The puppeteer was the one to confront, not the enemy. He said that the more computers and networks evolved, the more data they accumulate, and the more precise they become, imitating humans, the more likely they are to live. Rather than thinking about AI itself, the theme is "what is life?" In the original story, the elements were exploring the possibility that a ghost would remain as an identity, in a sense, and as a soul, even if the brain were gone. I was pursuing that in the movie version as well, but I thought that Tachikoma is the person who composes the theme.

--Are you sure you want to ask a little more detail?

Kamiyama:At that time, it was often called an "uncertain valley", but it looks just like a human, but subtly different things can make you feel uncomfortable or frightened. The more beautiful a doll is, the more imitating it is to humans. However, Tachikoma is loved by humans because of its round and cute shape, and the more humane it is, the more strange it becomes. If you look like humans, you probably won't be praised if you can't do more than humans (laughs). Tachikoma is a character that expresses my evolution of AI, physical performance...whether the ghost and body are inseparable or not. It is also a kind of icon for the work, as it is a companion to "puppeteers". Tachikoma thought that some AI could be acquired because it had no human psychology, but there might be something else.

――How about Tachikoma for Aramaki?

Aramaki:Mamoru Oshii's "GHOST IN THE SHELL/Ghost in the Shell" didn't give you Tachikoma. I think it was Fuchikoma at the time. That is shocking. Still, it was a movie that was well established, so I thought it was amazing.

Kamiyama:I think the reason why I moved all four legs in drawing was because I was full of multi-legged tanks.

Aramaki:But as an original fan, I was thinking, "It's useless if I don't put it out!" After all, it's a very attractive mechanism if it appears in the play. That's exactly what happened in "SAC", especially in the latter half of the first season, the episode returned to the lab, and the final activity from that point on. I like that last episode the most.

Kamiyama:The last episode was prepared from the beginning. Everybody thought (Tachikoma) was just a pet robot, but in the final episode, it was the main stream of the story, and it was the true identity of the whole story. I put it in so that I wouldn't notice it, and I was really looking forward to what kind of response would come from everyone who saw it. Tachikoma is a character with such a strong personality and is a heroine. A heroine more than a device. A new Tachikoma will appear in "Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045", but this is also a familiar character. Well, it's also a promise of a certain kind of animation, "I'm dying once, will I come back without any problems?" It's like "I'm sorry I came back" (laughs).

■ Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045

--Please tell us about the new Tachikoma of Ghost in the shell SAC_2045.

Kamiyama:Because of the inconvenience of the SAC series as a weapon, "Tachikoma this time" is "let's show the coolness of a multi-legged tank in a fuller way." It has been tuned in various ways to make it more actionable than the previous work.

Aramaki:This time, I was really worried about how to draw. There was something that I wanted to change more, but after all Tachikoma is an icon of the Ghost in the Shell. In the first concept, we talked about making it a small and accessible place. It's a full 3DCG work, so it's difficult to produce a lie like a size drawing.

Kamiyama:Yup. In the manga version, you go into the manhole at Fuchikoma.

Aramaki:If it's a manga, you can do it.

Kamiyama:Well, that's not possible (laughs). However, I can cheat at the last minute even in drawing, but 3DCG really can not cheat there. I can't tell a lie more than a live-action film.

Aramaki:Even with this, I made it quite small, but it's physically a bit impossible to enter and exit the door where people live. Even so, there are scenes that come and go. However, I made it as small as possible so that I could not lie as much as possible.

――Among them, not only the new Tachikoma, but also the previous series Tachikoma, which is scheduled to be commercialized as the "SAC 2nd GIG & SAC_2045" version, has appeared in the ROBOT SPIRITS.

Aramaki:I was wondering what to do with the old model, but it was "I have to put it out". After all it is said that it is "delicious" when it comes out as a work. The feedback from everyone was great.

――You have teamed up as double directors since the full 3DCG anime "ULTRAMAN", what are your impressions of each other?

Kamiyama:It is said that it is difficult for two people (director) to do it.

Aramaki:Yes Yes Yes.

Kamiyama:I think it's because Aramaki is director, but it's very easy to work.

Aramaki:From the beginning, I was thinking that I could enjoy the area, including the subtle push and pull.

Kamiyama:It's been 3 years since I worked together.

Aramaki:I don't think it's a great match (laughs). I think that the direction of making things and the direction toward work are well matched with Director Kamiyama.

--If you are a double director, do you have a solid work division?

Kamiyama:There is almost no division of labor.

Aramaki:Basically always stay together and watch together. So if something goes wrong, it's a work to make corrections on the spot. However, director Kamiyama leads the series composition and the script, and is asked to organize it. After that, we are doing the storyboard together, but Director Kamiyama is busy with the scenario, so I feel like checking the storyboard. I'm with them during the daytime, so the part I take home as homework is a little different.

――“Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045” is the first full 3DCG work in the series, but what about this area?

Kamiyama:I think that the meaning of the image is completely different when drawing and 3D. There are anime, 3DCG, and live-action film in my senses, and what I think of doing full 3DCG works over the past three years is now on the other side of live-action film. Therefore, it is more difficult to tell a lie than a live-action film, and it is 3DCG that it is easy to see and see bad things. So at the time of drawing, I was searching for a method that can be done only by drawing. At that time, it was said that the SAC series was like a live-action film, but it was made in a way that is unique to anime. Actually, the amount of information was less in drawing, and the amount of information was increased by dialogue, music, SE, and so on. On the other hand, if it is 3DCG, no dialogue can be entered. Simply speaking in a script, "SAC" averages 21 pages per episode. Maybe "2045" has only about 17 pages on average.

Aramaki:When it comes to page 20, you can't enter the dialogue.

Kamiyama:After all, I think that the speed is absolutely slow. As much as the work enters.

Aramaki:You're actually doing a motion capture.

Kamiyama:Well, there are few parts that can be omitted like drawing.

Aramaki:Well, I mean it's not symbolized.

Kamiyama:Physical movement is simply reality. Speaking only of speed, the lines of motion capture and actors are faster. However, I think that the time will probably be spent there because the work is included. Then, if you cut the part of the work, it will not move. I am looking forward to how the first attempt to create a Ghost in the Shell with full 3DCG will be accepted by the world, and that is also the part that challenged me.

Aramaki:Because it became 3D, we can do things that are different from the animations we draw, such as real action. That's just an animation picture, but I feel that there are "real people" in it, and I think it would be nice to see something in the story that seems to be fresh in a good way.

Kamiyama:Regarding the content, we are conscious of what the viewers of this series can enjoy. Compared to the previous series, which was based on the premise of knowing the context and background of the work, it has a wide frontage that can be seen without prior knowledge.

■Expectations for Season 2

――Director Aramaki has been holding (ROBOT SPIRITS) all the time during the interview (laughs).

Aramaki:Originally I was working in the toy industry, so I am interested in 3D (laughs). It's interesting because there are various moving mechanisms in it, and you can take on more poses than you can imagine. “I think it would have been better to have this pose (in the play),” I wonder. I want to give this to an animator. Is it still in time?

Kamiyama:It's actually difficult because everyone is busy right now, but it's a day when it's like this, so when you play around, you'll have a strong sense of aesthetics. It seems like it should be moved like this.

Aramaki:Like cute poses. You'll get an image of how cool this looks. Now that you have a finished product that you can play this much, it's easy to touch. Everyone seems to be cherishing it, and it seems like it's for play and storage.

-Do you collect figures such as figures?

Kamiyama:I can't go to the collection these days. But I will touch it if you have it.

Aramaki:I'm careful not to be a collector ... I will take good care of related products because I can get them, and I also get various things in the meantime. There are already a lot of them, and (from my family) I'm often told to do something about it. You can't throw it away. I can't let go of Tachikoma because I'm so attached to it. I think every time, but I'm happy to commercialize it (laughs). Tachikoma of the ROBOT SPIRITS, will there be color variations in the future? Yellow or green.

Kamiyama:It's not a different version, but there are various colors in the story (laughs).

Aramaki:At the construction site.

――Last but not least, please tell us about the future season 2 of “Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045”.

Kamiyama:In Season 1, we are expanding as much as we can, so I hope you can look forward to seeing if the story really folds (laughs).

Aramaki:I'm definitely trying to make a tatami mat now. I wonder if I can only say that.

――Is it actually folded in Season 2? Or is it likely to continue?

Kamiyama:It’s a secret.

――So, including that, you have high expectations for Season 2.

Kamiyama:Yes, please wait for Season 2.

Aramaki:Please wait while touching the ROBOT SPIRITS Tachikoma.

--Thank you for today.