#naoko yamada

[ca-tsuka]

"The Colors Within", the new movie by Naoko Yamada (K-ON!, Heike Story, Silent Voice) & Science Saru studio. Character designs : Takashi Kojima. Original designs: Daisuke Richard.

[haveyouseenthismovie-poll]

[turbobyakuren]

The Yuzuki Team, in their casual outfits and Human forms!

(MagiMonster forms will be drawn soon... I promise...)

From left to right:

Yuzuki Yukimura, Tsukumogami MagiMon, heir of the Yukimura clan, wielder of the contract-bound blade Onino. Quiet at a first glance, she is extremely passionate about Youkai and aims to learn more about them. She is the core heart of the team that cements the five girls together.

Naoko Yamada, Bakeneko MagiMon, the "Calico Combatant". A friendly girl who cares too much about others. She values friendship a lot and claims to dislike competition while enjoying a competitive spirit. Her mother and her two sisters are also MagiMonsters.

Hikaru Katsushika, Chouchin-Obake MagiMon, heir to the Katsushika Industries corporations. She comes from a wealthy family, but she harbors a visceral hatred to everything surrounding her social class. She's the designated leader of operations and treasurer of the Team. She looks constantly angry at all times, but she is a very kind soul so long as you do not anger her... And she has a very short fuse.

Tsubame Fujimaru, Nukekubi MagiMonster. She doesn't like talking and she doesn't want to befriend anyone. So, there's not much known about her. One thing is apparent: she is strongly motivated by her sense of justice and will always be there to save people... To the point of self-destruction. She was reluctant to join the team, but conceded in the end due to feeling like she owes a debt to them.

Yuuka Morishita, Furutsubaki no Rei MagiMonster, "Lady Camellia". She seems dainty and polite, but there is a sadistic and ultraviolent nature underneath that facade. She is obsessed by the urban legend of Masked Hunter and claims he has "saved her life". She accepted to join the team under the condition of toning down her violence as a MagiMonster. She considers owing a lot to Yuzuki after she helped her in battle when she used to go solo.

[cinematicmasterpiece]

liz and the blue bird (2018)

[animefeminist]

Queerness and the Power of “Subtext” in Sound! Euphonium & Liz and the Blue Bird

Sound! Euphonium drew an audience of sapphic women due to the heavily implied romantic relationship between its two leads, Kumiko and Reina, but the show’s endgame saw them drifting apart as Reina confesses her love to an older male teacher and Kumiko becomes dedicated to her upperclassman friend Asuka.

The subtext between the characters has been enough for a small fandom to sustain itself for years, but the actual show ultimately failed to deliver. Years later, however, the spin-off film Liz and the Blue Bird, centered around side characters Nozomi and Mizore, provides audiences with the explicit queer representation many Euphonium viewers found themselves lacking.

Sound! Euphonium premiered in April 2015. Produced by Kyoto Animation, it exploded in popularity after a ship between the two female leads garnered attention online. The series is told through the eyes of Kumiko Oumae. A somewhat directionless young woman when we meet her, she is haunted by the final competition of her middle school band, when she unwittingly insulted a fellow classmate. The series follows her joining the newly rejuvenated concert band at her new high school and rekindling a connection with Reina Kousaka, the girl she drove to tears in middle school.

Even before any of their romantically coded interactions in the show itself, “Tutti!”, the ending theme for Euphonium’s first season, features a shot of Kumiko and Reina standing in a field, backs to each other, as a long red thread connects them. It’s the “red string of fate,” one of the most instantly recognized symbols of destined lovers.

Read it at Anime Feminist!

[geekcavepodcast]

The Colors Within Trailer

"On a remote island, music brings together three teenagers trying to find their way in the world in this heartfelt coming-of-age story." (GKIDS Films) Totsuko has the ability to see others "colors." Her classmate Kimi gives off the most beautiful color. Totsuko forms a band with Kimi and quiet music enthusiast Rui, even though Totsuko does not play an instrument. Their practices bring them closer together.

The Colors Within is directed by Naoko Yamada from a screenplay by Reiko Yoshida. Music is by Kensuke Ushio with character design and animation direction from Takashi Kojima. Character designs are by Daisukerichard.

The Colors Within is coming to North American theaters in Winter 2024.

[canmom]

naoko yamada getting her first and second standing ovations of the day (and patting her camerawoman on the head lol)

[susansontag]

naoko yamada ending the film on a shot of totsuko and kimi’s hands as totsuko pulls kimi towards her is the spiritual successor to nozomi turning away from the camera and towards mizore and saying something we can’t hear as mizore’s eyes light up……. she’s so insane for all this

[animebw]

THE NEW NAOKO YAMADA MOVIE FINALLY HAS A TRAILER

ABOUT DAMN TIME

[animehouse-moe]

The (Present and) Future of Science Saru

As a bit of a preface, it was announced in this article that the animation studio Science Saru would be purchased outright from CEO Eun-young Choi on June 19th of this year.

It's big news, and definitely has been eliciting quite a few knee-jerk reactions to it, so I wanted to throw my 2 cents out there in a bit of a more casual format.

First of all, Science Saru was not bought because of financial struggles. Just in 2023- largely thanks to the success of the Scott Pilgrim anime- Science Saru recorded nearly a doubling (90%) in terms of their operating revenue as a studio.

It's a massive number, and helps to prove that the studio is not strapped for cash in any sense. By the same token though, it doesn't necessarily mean that the purchase was made in 110% good faith from both parties- but I do want to make a case that it is the most probable reasoning.

After all, Eunyoung Choi hasn't yet announced that they'll step down after the purchase, and Toho is allowing Science Saru to remain as a subsidiary of their growing animation division.

Similarly, look at what Toho Animation is doing as of late. They made massive waves with their work in The Apothecary Diaries, and are angling to place webgen wonderchild China (yes, that's their full name) as a cornerstone of their studio. From there, you just have to consider the trailer for the Godzilla-centered original anime First Line, as well as China's long time partnership/friendship with Moa Ang (who's the character designer for Naoko Yamada's Garden of Remembrance), and you realize that between the two entities there is a strong creative bond.

Piecing it all together, it really just feels like there's a strong backing from creatives on both sides of the field. With that in mind, it really feels like this buyout is about Science Saru having access to more funds, a greater talent pool, and more opportunity.

In a sense, it's hard not to. As of right now, Science Saru has four announced anime projects- two movies (both from Naoko Yamada), and two very big TV anime series. Considering the sheer popularity of Dandadan, and the mythic history of Ghost in The Shell, and you come to the natural conclusion that you really need every tool at your disposal to find success.

All of this is really just some rambling to put my thoughts together on the move, and Saru's future, but the more I continue to look closer and closer, the harder it is to explicitly pin ill intent on either party in this transaction. Toho is breaking into the animation market with the anime boom, and Science Saru wants to take themselves to the next level. It's a natural conclusion in this industry (almost). So rather than being overly pessimistic, I'm more so looking forward to what Toho is able to provide for Science Saru, and what kind of work we'll be seeing down the road.

[kushanna]

Heike Monogatari | 平家物語 (2021) dir. Naoko Yamada

[haveyouseenthismovie-poll]

[turbobyakuren]

the crossover we needed

the crossover we got instead

[cinematicmasterpiece]

a silent voice (2016)

[moviemosaics]

A Silent Voice

directed by Naoko Yamada, 2016