The Academy Museum's Makoto Shinkai Retrospective Highlights Two Decades of Films

Crunchyroll, in partnership with CoMix Wave Film, Story Inc., and TOHO Co., hosted a one-day special event at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in hopes of drawing attention to Makoto Shinkai's latest film, Suzume, ahead of awards season. Both voting members of the Academy and admirers of Shinkai's work traversed "Makoto Shinkai: A Journey from Voices of a Distant Star" on the private fifth floor of the museum. From Voices of a Distant Star to Suzume, the pop-up displayed storyboards, stills, and early drafts for each film. Guests were treated to an in-depth look into the director's history of films, but the installation's focus leaned more towards Shinkai's superfans rather than the general public.

While there were free screenings for Weathering With You and your name., the Ted Mann Theater held a private viewing of Suzume with renowned director Rob Minkoff providing opening remarks. Following the movie screening, Director Shinkai came out to talk about his creative process, as well as the profound impact of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake on his storytelling. Before taking his seat, the eccentric filmmaker hoisted a replica of the chair into the air, but quickly put it on the ground as it was "pretty heavy."

Reflecting on his journey and growth, the veteran filmmaker shared how the natural disaster from twelve years ago continues to shape him today. "It made me question my role. Is animating or creating animation necessary in a time of need like this?" When crafting the story behind your name., the fresh wounds from the earthquake led him to depict the painful atrocity as a metaphor through the meteorite. Now, with Suzume, he felt a "more direct depiction" with the characters coming "face to face with that incident was possible."

As an expert in depicting longing, loneliness, and loss, Shinkai revealed he needed to balance the heavy themes to keep audiences engaged. "If I just had Suzume and Souta in his human form going on this huge adventure, then I might have skewed too heavily in the direction of romance." To course correct, he thought transforming Souta into a three-legged chair would be more interesting. Regarding animating the chair, he explored different avenues, from 3DCG to traditional animation. During the early hand-drawn tests, he felt the furniture was "too alive," like the cutlery in Beauty and the Beast. "I was looking for something more like Luxo Jr., the Pixar logo, because I wanted this inanimate object to be awkwardly moving." The charming movement of the three-legged chair gives it a heartwarming element, providing comic relief during tense scenes.

Taking a moment to acknowledge his admiration and love for cats, Shinkai explained how Daijin and Sadaijin are forces of nature. "This whimsical force of nature made me think of how a cat treats you, and what more whimsical creature is there than a cat?" He currently owns two cats, Suzume and Tsubame, who wanted to accompany him on his trip. Like how others show off their pets on social media, the idea of Suzume following Daijin came to Shinkai naturally. "If you're trying to track down something, I think the first place we would look to social media. But I didn't predict that Twitter would turn into X, so in the film, it's still Twitter."

Switching gears to more serious aspects of the film, the host asked Shinkai if there was a character arc that he found the most challenging. He admits Japanese animation is often criticized for largely focusing on adolescence, but that's because those are the primary consumers of anime. However, as he ages, he feels more akin to adults in movies. About Suzume's aunt, the director put himself in her shoes and what he would do if he had adopted an orphan amidst a disaster.

"Interestingly, you bring up the keyword' character arc,' and this is something that I discovered through various interviews and discussions during my time in the States," said Shinkai. Unlike in Japan, there's an expectation to see through a character's journey, which turns into a character arc in the US. Before the Academy Museum pop-up installation, he spoke to the director of Elemental, Peter Sohn, at Pixar. Sohn told Shinkai about this rigorous process of laying out character arcs at the early stages of a film's production. "I don't know if I can speak on behalf of all Japanese animation, but rather than prioritizing each character's arc and figuring that out, I tend to focus more on the story and the narrative component of my films." In contrast to Elemental—where characters express their inner dialogue very directly—Suzume never gives a clear look into the titular character's mind in the same way.

A fan asked Shinkai if he's thought about his movies' impact on their viewers, and he recalled a poignant moment in his career. "Someone who saw 5 Centimeters Per Second said that they were just so devastated after seeing the film that they couldn't get out of their seat for a while." That moment showed him the power of film and how powerful that journey of exchanging two hours is as an emotional experience. "At the same time, I don't know if that was the type of experience I wanted to leave behind for my audience. Maybe in the next film that I make, I want them to jump out with joy."

Closing out the panel, Rosalie Chiang—the English voice of Chika—asked Shinkai about the significance behind Suzume's journey and the people she met. "For Suzume—who came in direct contact with a massive disaster in her childhood—to be able to meet these people, there's an understanding that on the other side of all the grief and disaster, there is a future." As it's been over a decade since the 2011 earthquake, the director wanted to show the stages of healing and growth after a life-changing experience.

The 2024 Golden Globe and Oscar nominations will be announced on December 11, 2023 and January 23, 2024 respectively. After the snub of your name. in 2016, it's unclear if Suzume will make the list of nominees. The director previously shared that he is "uninterested" in accolades and the awards circuits that come with them because he focuses solely on making movies. If he snags a nomination, it will be his first in either award show. Shinkai will be honored with the International Animation Award for Suzume on December 4 at the Critics Choice Association's upcoming Celebration of Cinema and Television: Honoring Black, Latino, and AAPI Achievements.