Ishiguro Noboru
Anime Industry Veteran

Directly involved with the anime industry for over 32 years, Ishiguro Noboru is now currently the President of his own animation studio in Japan, Artland. Ishiguro has been directly involved in the production and direction of many well known anime series, including ATOM BOY, SPACE CRUISER YAMATO, LEGEND OF THE GALACTIC HEROES and SUPER DIMENSIONAL FORTRESS MACROSS. Having a large amount of experience in the anime industry, Ishiguro had a great deal of insight into the state of anime today.
According to Ishiguro, anime is derived from three basic influences: manga (plot and characters), kabuki theater (themes and undertones) and Disney animation (actual animation). The first two elements are the more important in creating anime. Because these first two influences are Japanese, it surprises Ishiguro that Americans understand anime.
Ironically, Ishiguro admits that some of his influences on his works are American in nature. Being a six-year old child at the end of World War II, Ishiguro had vivid impressions of the G.I. soldiers present in occupational Japan and the Hollywood films that they brought with them. He incorporated many techniques used in those films into his own (anime) works. But, returning the favor, Ishiguro notes that he sees anime techniques used in many of Steven Spielberg's films.
After working in the anime industry for several years, Ishiguro started Artland, his own animation company. The idea of starting his own production company invigorated him because it gave him an outlet to produce and animate what he wants to do, which includes perhaps a science-fiction based OAV series not based on an existing manga.
One project that Ishiguro is currently working on is LEGEND OF THE GALACTIC HEROES, a huge space opera based on a Chinese tale, San Gok Shi. Boasting a cast of over 150 characters, LoGH is taking up a lot of Ishiguro's time. At the present time, 101 episodes are slated to be produced, with 98 actually finished.
American anime fandom is something that Ishiguro is surprised by but enjoys. American fans of anime remind him of Japanese fans twenty years ago. Japanese fans today, Ishiguro stated, are too jaded, fickle and serious. He wishes for a return to the days of pure enjoyment of anime, not just a "what hot this week" attitude. With America and other foreign markets, there's now an outlet for Ishiguro to see that.

Sonoda Kenichi
Chicago's Favorite Son?

Sonoda Kenichi, character designer for notable anime works like RIDING BEAN, GALL FORCE, BUBBLEGUM CRISIS and OTAKU NO VIDEO, came to ANIME EXPO courtesy of ADVision, to promote the GUNSMITH CATS OAV series. But is GUNSMITH CATS the only thing on Mr. Sonoda's mind? Certainly not.
GUNSMITH CATS, both the manga and anime OAV, comprises only a part of Sonoda's life. In fact, Sonoda expressed some disappointment with the OAV series. "The comedy element in GUNSMITH CATS," explained Sonoda, "was the director's influence. The manga is much more serious, which is more true to form." The series, however, is still something Sonoda takes pride in.
Sonoda also explained some of his reasons for selecting Chicago as the location of GUNSMITH CATS: the American film Blues Brothers, starring John Belushi and Dan Akroyd, and the simple fact that New York City and Los Angeles are overused as locations in American movies. For more specific instances and events in GUNSMITH CATS, he points out such favorites like TAXI DRIVER and other American action films as influences on his style.
In doing research for GUNSMITH CATS, Sonoda went to Chicago for several weeks to research the City of Chicago as a location for GSC. Many pictures were taken and studied, and Sonoda's dedication to detail shows. As a 22-year resident native of Chicago, I can personally say that what is depicted as Chicago in GSC is accurate. I can pick out individual sites and highways and name them. It's that impressive. Future plans for more GUNSMITH CATS anime are uncertain and can't be ascertained until final sales numbers for volume three are in.
Another project that involves Sonoda quite indirectly is the new BUBBLEGUM CRISIS series debuting soon. Being the original character designer for the series, Sonoda, with much amusement, pointed out that the new character designer for BGC, Kikoya Chichira "is very talented and may have made a conscious effort to have a complete different character design from me." Sonoda has no direct involvement with the new BGC project but would consider some consulting if asked. One thing he expressed was a desire that the current producers not mismanage the original hardsuit designs, a request with which most fans of BGC would agree.
A realm that Sonoda still deals with in the anime/manga industry is that of doujinshi, or non-commercial privately-produced fan manga. Sonoda got his start in the anime/manga industry by producing his own doujinshi as a student until he got noticed. Now, it's more of a hobby and distraction, although he publishes under an alias. Doujinshi, he says, "Gives one a sense of satisfaction. It's rewarding to put out your own publication." One aspect of doujinshi that Sonoda would like to see grow is that of yaoi doujinshi, female-created fan art.
As for the future, Sonoda says that GUNSMITH CATS will "end" for now and he hopes to work on something totally new. One subject that he's interested in delving into is science-fiction of the near future, perhaps UFO-related. Whatever the case, Sonoda fans will be eagerly awaiting his next project. (continued)