3d CG in recent Japanese anime

[J.sharp]

Dear list members,

Am just writing to inform you that the January 2007 edition (#86) of the
magazine 3D WORLD: THE MAGAZINE FOR 3D ARTISTS (published by Future
Publishing here in the UK, but also available in the US) is featuring a lot
of information about the technical nuts and bolts implementations of several
recent animations from Japan.

I wrote quite a lot for the issue, including interviews/features with the
technical staff for TEKKON KINKREET, TALES FROM EARTHSEA and NEGADON: THE
MONSTER FROM MARS. This latter film is sort of the odd one out here in that
it is the only title covered that uses 3d computer graphics in the orthodox
ways most Western studios are using at the moment.

In fact, the other titles are fascinating in the way that they use 3d CG in
such a way as to disguise it as traditional 2d cel animation (in the case of
Ghibli) or for a completely unique aesthetic in TEKKON KINKREET. I can think
of no comparison with American or European animation studios doing anything
similar at the moment.

The magazine also covers a lot of other stuff from Japan like recent
computer games - interesting here is the PS2 title ROGUE GALAXY, which
renders its graphics as 3d models and then 'cel-shades' them to look like
2d, similar to the technique used in many of the recent animated features
from Japan.

The magazine will also be carrying on its 'Big in Japan' focus for next
month, in a longer article I wroter about Mamoru Oshii's recent TACHIGUI
RETSUDEN, which animated 2d characters created from still photographs as if
they puppets in a 3d theatre.

Those researching animation might well be interested in the methods and the
philosophies Japanese animators are using nowadays - the results are
certainly a lot more intriguing than most of the run-of-the-mill OVER THE
HEDGE-style CG cartoons coming out of Hollywood these days.

for more info see:
www.3dworldmag.com/page/3dworld?entry=3d_world_issue_86_now


Jasper Sharp

--
Midnight Eye: The Latest and Best in Japanese Cinema
www.midnighteye.com

===

Available now in bookstores everywhere:
The Midnight Eye Guide to New Japanese Film (Stone Bridge Press)
by Tom Mes and Jasper Sharp
http://www.midnighteye.com/features/midnighteye_guide.shtml
"Easily one of the most important books on Japanese cinema ever released in
English."
- Newtype USA



--------- Original Message --------
From: KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
To: KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu <KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu>
Subject: Re: self-introduction & question
Date: 09/12/06 00:50

>
> Hi Silke,
>
> May be a bit hard for you to get hold of, but you should definitely
> consider cinematic representations of Nanjing during the war itself.
> In particular &quot;Nanking&quot; (Toei, 1938), a Japanese documentary
that shot
> the ruins and devastation in the city after Matsui's troops overran
> it. There are also several newsreels produced by Asahi and Yomiuri
> News that featured the capture of Nanking, all of which were screened
> back home. Public perception/reaction will be a hard nut to crack but
> I would recommend close-reading of film magazines, journals,
> newspapers during that time.
>
> There's also a short film shot by two missionaries during the massacre
> itself and smuggled out of China, I forget the title but I'm sure
> other people on the list would know. Would be interesting to explore
> how that film affected public opinion in the West at that time of the
> Nanking Massacre and the Sino-Japanese war.
>
> Wei Ting
>
>
>
> On 12/8/06, Silke Harbodt &lt;s.harbodt at gmx.de&gt; wrote:
> &gt; Hi,
> &gt;
> &gt; my name is Silke Harbodt,
> &gt; I'm a student at University Leipzig
> &gt; in Leipzig, Germany.
> &gt; I'm working on a thesis about the cinematic representation of the
Nanking massacre in Japan right now.
> &gt;
> &gt; I know there've been three movies produced and shown in China:
Massacre in Nanjing (Luo Guanqun, 1987), Black Sun: The Nanjing Massacre
(T.F. Mou, 1995) and Don't cry, Nanking (Wu Ziniu, 1995). What I'm
interested in now is, if these films have been shown in Japan as well, and
if so, how the reactions of the public, government etc. looked like and how
the films were reviewed.
> &gt;
> &gt; I'm glad about any kind of information.
> &gt;
> &gt; Thanks a lot,
> &gt; Silke
> &gt; --
> &gt; &quot;Ein Herz f?r Kinder&quot; - Ihre Spende hilft! Aktion:
www.deutschlandsegelt.de
> &gt; Unser Dankesch?n: Ihr Name auf dem Segel der 1. deutschen America's
Cup-Yacht!
> &gt;
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

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