AsianBeat Movie Highlights Report

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Original article posted on Asian Beat here:
http://asianbeat.com/ja/feature/issue_anime/_hack/movie.html
http://asianbeat.com/ja/feature/issue_anime/_hack/movie-2.html

".hack Beyond the World" is a theatrical movie, so it's an original story that can be enjoyed even by people who don't know the ".hack" series. In fact, even though I didn't know about the work ``.hack'', I didn't feel any reluctance to watch it, and found it to be interesting.

The story is set in Yanagawa, Fukuoka in 2024. Centering around ``Arikyo Sora'', a 14-year-old girl who has never played a game, the story depicts her adolescent love life and her growth as a person in two worlds: reality and games. Also, the story is set 12 years from now in the future, and depictions of ``imaginable futures'' are scattered throughout, such as electronic blackboards and tablet answer sheets, but on the other hand, Yanagawa's old The good streetscape remains intact. I think one of the highlights of the work is that it simultaneously depicts the theme of the ``.hack'' series, ``evolving technology and the beauty of things that remain the same.'' In order to gain a deeper understanding of the movie ``Beyond the World'', we spoke to Hiroshi Matsuyama, the film's director.

The setting is Yanagawa, Fukuoka, which depicts ``evolving technology and the unchanging goodness of things.''

ab: Please tell us how you decided to make “.hack” into a movie.

Hiroshi Matsuyama (hereinafter referred to as Matsuyama): It all started in 2007 when the work ".hack//GU TRILOGY" was praised. It was released by Bandai Namco Games as an original animation, and I was able to feel that it was a new kind of visual entertainment. Then, in January 2008, Nobuo Unosawa (Vice President and Representative Director of Bandai Namco Games Inc.) told me that next time he wanted to try making a movie that would be released nationwide, and that too in 3D. At the time, there weren't many movie theaters that were compatible with 3D, but the number was increasing in Europe and America, so I was confident that it would become available in Japan as well. Then, we received a proposal to try ``.hack'' in a new market. Since then, four years have passed.

ab: When did you decide on the casting?

Matsuyama: We were cast about a year ago. Actually, we were planning to record in March of last year, but due to the earthquake...we moved the recording date back to May of last year.
ab: I think there are many people who get to know ``.hack'' for the first time through the movie, but I feel that even people who don't know the ``.hack'' series can watch it without any hesitation. Are you still conscious of that?

Matsuyama: Yes. I think games, anime, and movies are completely different, so I was conscious of that. For example, when it comes to game software, the majority of customers decide to buy it on the release date. However, movies are a little different, and although the promotion leading up to the release is at its peak, there are actually more customers after the release. What I mean by that is that many people go to the movie theater without deciding what to watch and decide on the spot which movie to watch. Movies are so familiar to us that we don't have to worry about them. You can watch a movie for 1,800 yen without doing any research just because it looks interesting, and you can talk about it while eating. But this is extremely important. So I always kept in mind that I could watch it without any preparation.

ab:Won't your core fans be disappointed if you do that?

Matsuyama: Actually, it's not about such a binary theory. In the first place, the premise is that movies should be like that, but for those who have been supporting the ``.hack'' series for 10 years, there are hidden points that will make you smile (lol)

I think the streets of Yanagawa will probably remain the same even after 100 years.

ab:Why did you choose Yanagawa as the setting for your work?

Matsuyama: Actually, the story was originally set in downtown Tokyo. However, the scriptwriter, Mr. Ito, suddenly suggested that the story be set in Fukuoka (lol). I think it's more typical of ``.hack'' to be in trouble in the countryside. So we scouted various towns in Fukuoka for location scouting, and finally decided on Yanagawa as the setting. The key point is to create the "just the right" rural feel to express the "changing future and the beauty of things that don't change," which is what we always think about when creating ".hack." I think Yanagawa will probably never change. I don't think the waterways will disappear even after 100 years. However, technology is evolving and becoming more and more convenient. Even so, I feel nostalgic about the goodness of things that haven't changed... I think this balance is just right. If this is Tenjin, it's too urban. However, if you ask junior high school students, they will probably go shopping in Tenjin. Ride on the Nishitetsu train. So I decided to draw a scene in the movie where they go shopping in Tenjin.

ab:I see...

Matsuyama: The story of this work begins on November 22nd, but November 23rd is a national holiday, right? So, they go shopping in Tenjin on the national holiday, and the next day they have school. That's the time schedule.

ab: It's because it's so calculated that it feels even more real.

Matsuyama: School classrooms haven't changed either. That one is also modeled after a real school, but if you look closely, you'll see that the tests have evolved into tablets and electronic blackboards. Eventually, turning the print from the back will no longer be necessary (lol). Therefore, the things that can definitely benefit from technology and the goodness of things that do not change coexist. In that sense, Yanagawa had a good balance. Also, Yanagawa has a unique landscape. There are waterways and willow trees... The best thing about it was that it had a landscape that reminded me of Yanagawa.

Thoughts expressed in the words “Maybe we are more connected than we think”

ab: The story is set in 2024, but do you think the world will look like the movie in 12 years?

Matsuyama: I think it's actually even more amazing. When I think about it from 10 years ago, I think that the future is now, which is unimaginable. Ten years ago, it would have been unthinkable for everyone to be connected via Wi-Fi. However, when you depict that in a realistic way, the theme of the work changes. It takes on a sci-fi worldview, so it's no longer a middle school love story (lol). That's why I created a future that I can imagine now. What we didn't expect was that the times had caught up with us during the four years (of the production period). The digital signage that Sora-chan handled in Tenjin is commonplace in Tokyo, and it has finally arrived in Fukuoka as well. While we were in the middle of production, an electronic blackboard was also announced. Furthermore, if you look closely at the movie, you'll notice that there are no power cables in the world of this movie. There's a scene where Sora-chan uses a hair dryer after taking a bath, but there's no cable. This is also a technology that actually exists, so it will definitely happen in 12 years. In that sense, I created it with an image of a future that everyone can imagine.

ab: What is the message in the movie?

Matsuyama: This is the message that Tanaka says in the movie, which is the theme of this work, ``Maybe we are more connected than we think.'' In this work, I wanted to depict the reality of adolescent boys and girls. For me, 14-year-old boys and girls are special, and people think that they are complete at 14 years old. I believe that at the age of 14, children begin to understand things, such as the boundaries between children and adults. I was 14 years old when I felt like I was at a crossroads between those who study, those who love, and those who play sports. The world is very ambiguous, and people seem to be connected, but they're not. But in the end, even though I thought I was a stranger, I still wanted to connect with him in a strange way... I think this is becoming more and more complex as technology evolves. Like Twitter (lol). There's a limit to how ambiguous it is (lol). However, it is also true that people like such things. SNS: Well, the ones that Japanese people like are obscure ones like Twitter and mixi. In Japan, the more vague things become, the more popular they become. Because I feel like I'm connected to a lot of people. But, it's actually not connected. I just feel like we're connected (lol). However, there are some people who are supported by it. That's why I think the value of connection is completely different depending on the person. In creating this work, I wanted to depict this ambiguous "boundary nature" of today. This is called liminality in English, and this word was also used in the title of the original animation series in the first season of .hack. This is the theme of the latest ".hack" drawn with the latest technology.

The highlight is the change in the emotions of the main character, Sora Arijo.

ab:What kind of people do you want to see?

Matsuyama: There are two main categories. Of course, I would like the fans who have been following the ``.hack'' series for the past 10 years to watch it. The other group are people who don't usually play games and honestly don't know about ``.hack.'' That's exactly what the main character is. I think everyone has heard of and knows about the culture of games. That's why I think it's a movie that can be enjoyed even by people who have never played or are not interested in games.

ab:What are the highlights of the movie?

Matsuyama: It's definitely the emotions of the main character, Sora Arishiro. I think games are something that people have different positions on. This work depicts the change in the feelings of a girl who had been prohibited from playing games until now due to a chance opportunity. Please pay attention to Sora-chan's emotional movements as she ends up saving the world, albeit indirectly.