Experts' choice
Various experts introduce their own selection of the works on JAFC.
- List of Works
- Various Rankings
- Characters selection
- Experts' choice
- FAQ about the films
Mizue Mirai（Illustrator, Animation artist）
Animator. JAM, MODERN No. 2, WONDER, and DREAMLAND (all short films) are counted among his masterpieces. His films have been officially screened at the Venice International Film Festival and the Berlin International Film Festival, and were awarded the Music Award and the CANAL+ Award at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival. Mizue is actively working on the stages of international film festivals.
Mizue Mirai's choice
- Choice reason of the work
- Wild Animation Paradise Watching Momotaro, Sacred Sailors, a long animated film created by Mitsuyo Seo during the Pacific War, and Tora-chan, a film created by Kenzo Masaoka shortly after World War II, makes me feel strange in a way. My eyes are riveted to the characters that move around in the films. The same thing happens when I watch The Quack Infantry Troop. It imitates the Disney animation style. However, the movements are very unique; they are not patterned like in contemporary Japanese animated films, which shows us how animators were searching for new techniques at the time. In short, Japanese animation was still untamed, so to speak, at the time. That is why we feel excited when we watch these movies full of a certain charm that contemporary animations lack.
- Choice reason of the work
- Animated Films Can Create a Future under Any Circumstances What was it like to live in Japan in 1933, when this work was released? The Showa Depression had occurred three years before, the Manchurian Incident two years before, the May 15 Incident one year before; and in 1933, Japan withdrew from the League of Nations and became isolated from the international community. Three years later, the February 26 Incident occurred. Subsequently, as a result of the imperialism promoted by the army, Japan rushed headlong into the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Pacific War. Against the backdrop of that uncertain period, this film was created to depict a future world 100 years later. Shigeji Ogino, who is on a trip in a future 100 years later in the film, is supposed to have died in a war in 1942. In that year, the Battle of Midway, which was the turning point from offense to defense in the Pacific War, the Battle of Guadalcanal, and other incidents occurred, forcing Japan to plunge into the quagmire of the brutal war. While harboring a sense of disillusionment that he might die in a war, Ogino created this film with hopes for the future of this world. This makes us feel the unbounded power and dignity of creative art. Animated films can create a future under any circumstances. We have 15 more years to go until we see the future world that Shigeji Ogino envisioned.
- Choice reason of the work
- Genuine Love of Shapes This is a film that Shigeji Ogino created when he was my age (36). I can understand his strong interest in shapes themselves as I have also created many abstract animated films using geometric figures. This work, which was created for the sole purpose of satisfying an interest in changes in figures, gives us the impression of gentleness and innocence of parents who love their children, or of little children who love animals and insects. Against the backdrop of the period when Japan was gradually moving toward war, Ogino created an animated film filled with joy, instead of a government propaganda movie, to pursue his personal, secret pleasure. This greatly encourages image artists who live in the contemporary world.
selection of the works 1Seo Mitsuyo『The Quack Infantry Troop』(1940)
selection of the works 2Ogino Shigeji『A Day after a Hundred Years』(1933)
selection of the works 3Ogino Shigeji『An Expression』(1935)
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