An interview with the director is being shared in comment forums in Japan Ryū Nakayama and to the producer Keisuke Seshimoboth key members of the anime’s production Chainsaw Man. The entire interview was not shared on the forum, but rather the answer to a key question: «Did you talk about what kind of anime you wanted to create at first??».
The director’s extensive response, wrote the following:
- I always had an idea of what I wanted to do. I don’t know if that’s the right word, but I didn’t want to do what everyone knows as “anime”. When I was in high school, they broadcast “Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu” late at night and it became a boom, making the anime will go from being something for the stragglers of the class to being something that everyone liked and something socially accepted.
- But there is a certain “pattern” for television animation. The same goes for the fixed concept of subcultures like Akiba-kei and moe, or the girls with green or pink hair. However, the expressive technique of animation itself is not something that can only be achieved by relying on these things.
- I myself have always wanted to make something that would be able to be seen by adults and strong enough to hold up to the point of view of appreciating the work. When I decided to make an animated version of “Chainsaw Man”, I looked for links to what I wanted to do, and Since I like movies and Mr. Fujimoto too, I thought it would be interesting if I could incorporate the essence of the realistic and the cinematic.
- He was convinced that it would benefit the work more than any personal selfishness. Another thing is that we think that manga-like things should be enjoyed as manga. It is a kind of challenge that can only be carried out in a movie format. We want to make it bigger as a visual work, not just as animation.
And well, if you’ve been keeping an eye on the anime industry in recent weeks, you probably already noticed why the director’s statement became a trend. In his comment, Nakayama mentions that he wanted to “get out of the paradigm“and don’t create a project”traditional” with a moe style or, most importantly, girls with green or pink hair. Something that, according to him, would have alienated adult viewers.
When the Japanese noticed the mention of pink hair, they immediately associated it with Bocchi the Rock!, since the protagonist has this distinctive characteristic. However, there were also mentions of other series with this characteristic, such as SPY x FAMILY or the following season Kimetsu no Yaiba. Even Jujutsu Kaisen it has a main character with green hair and Itadori has pink hair.
By the way, when is this information from? Well, the interview was published in the eleventh edition of 2022 of the magazine Nikkei Entertainment!, released on October 4, 2022 in Japan, a week before the premiere of the anime adaptation. Of course, the director’s comments left some opinions on the Japanese forums, highlighting:
- «It doesn’t matter what color the hair is, that doesn’t define the quality of an anime».
- «His words were almost insults to the industry in general.».
- «The only man responsible for failure».
- «Too bad, because we all know that an anime with a pink haired girl did better.».
- «Why are these people experimenting with such an important project?».
- «It should not be forgotten that Nakayama’s animation skills are impressive, a pity that he did not have the same talent in directing».
- «At that time Bocchi the Rock! It didn’t give much to talk about, so he was probably referring to SPY x FAMILY. In the end, nobody expected the emergence of a rival like Bocchi».
- «Imagine going from competitors like Kimetsu no Yaiba or SPY x FAMILY, to a Kirara anime like Bocchi the Rock!».
- «Chainsaw Man’s biggest flaw was the fact that Bocchi the Rock! yes it went viral with each episode».
- «Definitely Chainsaw Man was a difficult work to adapt. If MAPPA thought Chainsaw Man would be popular with men and women of all ages by drawing Denji eating vomit or sexually suggestive scenes, they were wrong.».
- «Chainsaw Man wasn’t even a musical, so it doesn’t make sense that they would do a different ending theme song every episode. In fact, that fit more into the theme of Bocchi the Rock!».
- «I guess he was referring to SPY x FAMILY and Kimetsu no Yaiba, but the fact that he now also competes with Bocchi the Rock! it turned into a very funny coincidence».
- «I actually don’t get why the manga and anime use such wacky hair colors. Although if they all had black hair it would be hard to tell them apart.».
- «If he had been an animation director it would have been different, but they put him as the director of the project without any experience».
Fountain: Yaraon!
The post Chainsaw Man director mentioned his rejection of ‘pinkheads’ was first published on Kudasai.
