Minoru Kawasaki is best known for his low-budget films featuring animals with human characteristics, with Calamari Wrestler and Executive Koala being two of the most famous. Before that however, he also worked on Tsuburaya Productions’s Ultraman Tiga and Ultraman Dyna. His latest films, “Monster Seafood Wars” follows on the footsteps of the first two.
On the occasion of Monster Seafood Wars screening at Fantasia 2020, we speak with him about animals instead of human characters, using comedy and parody to communicate a message working with Tsuburaya Pro, and many other topics.
Where did the idea of using an animal hero instead of a human originally come from? Where do you typically get your inspiration?
There are many Japanese stories about humans and animals getting along, such as “Momotaro” or “Kintaro”. Aside from that, there is also a manga series everyone in Japan know from their childhood “Norakuro”, a story in which the protagonist is a dog; or “Kaba Daioh”. We have many stories where animals are the protagonists of their respective stories.
I was strongly influenced by series where the protagonists are really bizarre creatures. These were productions from 60s, such as “Little Ghost Q-Taro” or “Kaiju Booska”. For me, when such a fantastic creature enter the everyday routine, this is where the fun begins.
Despite their absurdity, your films also hide many social and philosophical comments. Do you think you can use a comedy or a parody to properly communicate your comments, for example in a drama?
I think that a comedy or a parody may convey a message more effectively, than a serious work. It’s also smarter this way.
Your recent work features remakes and parody of old monster movies. Why?
I just really like old monster movies.
How was your experience with Tsuburaya Pro? Why did you decide to make a movie based on Eiji Tsuburaya’s early ideas?
I wrote the script for “Ultraman Tiga” and directed the anime “Monster Tavern” (Kaiju Sakaba), but I think that after Eiji Tsubaraya passed away, so has his heart and spirit vanished from Tsuburaya Pro. But, the thing is that once the genius is no longer there, everybody thinks this way. You can’t do anything about it. I think this is also because Eiji Tsuburaya’s early works were the ones that had the most, what you can call: heart and soul.
“Monster Seafood Wars” seems to comment on the modern consumer culture that is all commercialized. What do you think about this issue?
I think that one thing that you can’t get from the products opted for commercialization is touching one’s heart.
In the middle of the movie, the style changes a bit, from mock mentality to some sort of food show. Why this change?
It was actually a draft that came up during some conversation with my mentor, who was also a filmmaker, Akio Jissoji. When I was doing a TV series “Ultraman Dyna”, we talked about a new project. It was something like this…
In front of the self-defense troops, who had gotten on a spaceship and landed on some star, suddenly a wild kaiju appears. They bring it down, but since the spaceship is broken down, they can’t go back to Earth, so they come up with the idea to eat the monster. And then, I used this as an origin for my story.
Costumes play a very important role in the film. Why is that?
The process of creating the design of characters is a part of the filmmaking that I put the most effort in. I’m very sensitive to how my characters may look like in the film.
Tell me more about the movie casting process. In general, what do you look for in an actor to cast?
It’s all about whether the actors fits in the role. As for the lines – well… as long as you don’t fumble the words, it’s all good. The rest is to enjoy my world.
You have been in the film industry since the 80s. What are the most important changes you have witnessed? And what is your opinion on the current situation?
The most important change is the development of CGI and entering the digital era. These are the times that everybody is able to make a film, so pulling out something that has this unique magic in it became very difficult.
Are you working on a new project?
I am planning two films. One is about an alien-hero and the other is about a raccoon who is a company’s director.
