Shinji Nishikawa and Yuji Kaida's Kaiju Art Invade Shibuya Parco!

The Shinji Nishikawa and Yuji Kaida art gallery in Shibuya. Photo by Brett Homenick.

For a very limited time at Shibuya Parco, there was a gallery dedicated to the art of Shinji Nishikawa and Yuji Kaida, two veterans of the tokusatsu world. The art on display focused mainly on Shin Ultraman and SSSS.Dynazenon, and none of it featured Godzilla.

Yuji Kaida's rendition of Eleking. Photo by Brett Homenick.

I had a bit of time to visit earlier today, which was pretty good timing, given that it was the last day the gallery would be open. It was held in the same spot in Shibuya Parco that the Godzilla: Final Wars (2004) Hedorah suit was on display last year. When I entered, I was given a pack with four coasters. Not sure which characters are featured on them yet since I haven't opened it, but I hope the coasters come in handy one day. 

Shinji Nishikawa brings the kaiju to life! Photo by Brett Homenick.

Photography was not allowed in the gallery, except for the above drawings, one done by each artist. It was a fun exhibit, but I was done pretty quickly. I'll admit that I thought the Hedorah exhibit last year was a lot more interesting, but I'm grateful for any kaiju-related events that come my way.

GODZILLA GENERATION! Celebrating the Work of Three Major Godzilla Artists!

Godzilla Generation! Photo by Brett Homenick. 

When thinking about the most talented artists in the world of Godzilla, one would be hard-pressed to come up with a name other than Noriyoshi Ohrai, Yuji Kaida, or Shinji Nishikawa. So, with the release of the first animated Godzilla movie less than a month away, a special exhibit on the 8th floor of Tower Records in Shibuya gives Godzilla fans the opportunity to study their original paintings up close.

And what excellent work it is. All sorts of kaiju are in display. Even Jet Jaguar gets his due! There are even some design sketches, most notably for Biollante. Shin Godzilla was also well represented among the artwork.

But the highlight for me by far was seeing Noriyoshi Ohrai's paintings for the Heisei- and Millennium-era movie posters. The detail was incredible, and I'm not sure I'd ever seen the paintings without the movie titles at the bottom. Suffice it to say, those paintings received the bulk of my attention.

As you buy your ticket (800 yen), you can choose from several Nishikawa-illustrated kaiju coasters free of charge. I chose the Space Godzilla one.

At the end of the gallery, of course, was a gift shop with lots of goodies for sale. I even picked up a couple of items. Nothing too expensive, natch. Just some postcards with Ohrai's Heisei-era poster art and a file folder with Ohrai's Godzilla 1985 poster art.

Godzilla Generation runs from October 27 until November 19. Be sure to check it out while you can!

SUPER FESTIVAL 74! The Toys Are Back in Town!

April 23 saw Super Festival 74 stomp into the Science Museum in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward. As someone who has now attended this event for several years, I don't really have that much else to say about it. It was fun, but the show never seems to change that much.

Of course, many toys, models, DVDs, and various other kinds of memorabilia were offered for sale. If you look hard enough, some real bargains could be found. But I'm not much of a collector, and I certainly never touch any toys or models. Just not my bag, and I don't want to be encumbered by it all.

Ultraman Powered swoops into action! Photo by Brett Homenick.

Ultraman Powered (a.k.a. Ultraman: The Ultimate Hero) was featured at Super Festival, due to the recent release of the series on Blu-ray in Japan. Toshio Miike was on hand to talk about the series and sign autographs. 

Takeshi Sasaki (a.k.a. Kamen Rider 2) finishes his interview session at Super Festival. Photo by Brett Homenick.

The headlining guest at Super Festival was Takeshi Sasaki, the man who replaced Hiroshi Fujioka on the original Kamen Rider (1971-73) series and then teamed up with him when Fujioka recovered from his on-set injury. The autograph line for Sasaki was quite long (as to be expected), which goes to show how popular Kamen Rider remains in Japan.

 Producer Toshinori Nishida promotes LEDX at Super Festival. Photo by Brett Homenick.

While wandering around the halls, I spotted producer Toshinori Nishida, whose independent kaiju film LEDX was recently released. I met Nishida-san in March during a screening of LEDX, and we've been in touch ever since. It was certainly great to see him again.

Hey, look, it's that total performer himself, Pee-wee Herman! I remember when this doll was being sold in toy stores across America, and it was pretty funny to see it randomly for sale today. I hope no birds were around to interfere with this high-wire act this time.

Yours truly with Yuji Kaida. 

I also ran into artist Yuji Kaida again, whom I last saw in late February. He and his wife, Aya, were selling various merchandise. The Kaidas are always wonderful to see.

Ultraman Jack suit actor Eiichi Kikuchi. Photo by Brett Homenick. 

It just wouldn't be Super Festival without Eiichi Kikuchi, the Return of Ultraman (1971-72) suit actor who makes just about every show and was helping promote LEDX.

Those are about all the highlights. I'm sure the hardcore toy collectors could tell you all about what figures were on sale, who manufactured them, what kind of paint was used, etc., but I can offer no such details. I'm a fish out of water at toy shows like this, and I only come to meet guests and see friends.

Still, it's always cool to take photos of interesting figures and models, but that's all I need to take with me. You can keep the rest!

BEAM ME UP! Sadao Iizuka Talks Making Beams in the Ultra-verse!

The energetic Sadao Iizuka explains how he animated the various beams seen in the hit TV series Ultraman. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Today, I attended another fascinating event with Sadao Iizuka, the optical effects expert who animated Godzilla's ray, King Ghidorah's gravity beams, and Ultraman's Specium Ray. The bulk of the event focused on Iizuka-san's work on Ultra Q (1966) and Ultraman (1966-67).

Sadao Iizuka talks to his fans during a break outside. Photo by Brett Homenick.

There were certainly beams aplenty in the various Ultra-series, but Iizuka-san also discussed the other optical effects he worked on. Several visual aids were used to demonstrate how the effects were done. All in all, it was quite intriguing! 

Art director/production designer Toshio Miike. Photo by Brett Homenick.

But that's not all! On hand were several tokusatsu VIPs. Toshio Miike, an SFX art director and production designer whose credits include: Gunhed (1989), Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991), Zeiram (1991), Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992), Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995), Gamera 2 (1996), Gamera 3 (1999), GMK (2001), Godzilla against Mechagodzilla (2002), Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (2003), Godzilla: Final Wars (2004), and Shin Godzilla (2016). Of course, even those credits just scratch the surface of what he has done!  

Yours truly with artist extraordinaire Yuji Kaida. 

Another attendee was the celebrated artist and illustrator Yuji Kaida, who has recently garnered international attention for his dynamic Japanese-release poster for Kong: Skull Island. I've met Kaida-san at several of these events, but this was the first time we actually posed for a photo.

With Heisei-era assistant director Yoshiaki Kondo.

Another Godzilla series alumnus at the event was assistant director of SFX Yoshiaki Kondo. Having worked on Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah, Godzilla vs. Mothra, Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993), Orochi the Eight-Headed Dragon (1994), Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla (1994), Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995), Mothra (1996), and even Godzilla 2000 (1999), he was a key member of Toho's SFX staff during the 1990s.  

If you're into Japanese special effects, this was truly the place to be! The SFX side of the industry was well represented here, ranging from Godzilla (1954) to last year's Shin Godzilla. What a great time it was!

SADAO IIZUKA TALKS SHOP! The Optical FX Veteran Dissects The Three Treasures!

Sadao Iizuka discusses his optical SFX techniques during a Q&A session. Photo by Brett Homenick.

October 31 saw another event at DeNs Cafe in Sagamihara, Kanagawa, with optical photography veteran Sadao Iizuka. Iizuka-san worked on the original Godzilla (1954) and went on to animate King Ghidorah's gravity rays and Ultraman's Specium Ray. Suffice it to say, his credits in tokusatsu are legendary.

The focus of this talk was the optical effects in Songoku: The Road to the West (1959) and The Three Treasures (1959). Iizuka-san demonstrated how many of the optical effects in these two films were accomplished. To say the least, it was an eye-opening discussion.

After the Q&A wrapped, the attendees sat down for dinner. Iizuka-san happily answered any and all questions from his fans during the meal. He also signed many autographs from those in attendance. Famed illustrator Yuji Kaida (and his wife Aya) were among those at the event, adding a bit more star power to the occasion.

When Iizuka-san stepped outside for a break, I took this photo with him. As you can see, it's a pretty standard photo op. But, seeing as how it was Halloween, I had another pose in mind.

There I am, fully dressed as President Ted Thomas, standing next to a legendary Toho SFX technician. It was a great evening with many friendly people, as the events in Japan always are. It's great to see Iizuka-san get his due among fans who know and appreciate his work.

IN CELEBRATION OF AKIRA TAKARADA! Kaiju Legends Come Out to Honor THE Legend!

 

When worlds collide! Godzilla star Akira Takarada and Heisei Godzilla suit actor Ken Satsuma meet for the first time! Photo by Brett Homenick.

Sunday, October 5, saw a celebration of Godzilla, Akira Takarada, Akira Ifukube, and just about everything else in the genre take place at Cue Studio in Ueno, Tokyo. Akira Takarada was the guest of honor, but also in attendance were Godzilla suit actor Kenpachiro Satsuma, director and creature creator Tomoo Haraguchi, Kyoko Ifukube (Maestro Ifukube's daughter), and artist Yuji Kaida.

Everyone in attendance (including the other special guests!) each got a chance to speak with Takarada-san on the microphone. It was quite a sight to see Godzilla (and Hedorah and Gigan!) speak with Takarada-san!

Tomoo Haraguchi also offered his praise for Takarada-san. I was pleased to see two giants of the Heisei kaiju universe pay tribute to one of the greatest figures from the Showa era.

The obligatory buddy shot! After getting some things signed, it was picture time! I should mention that when it was my turn to speak, I presented Takarada-san with a poster for Salaryman Chushingura (1960), in which he was one of the stars. He was delighted to receive it!

While it was my first time to meet Haraguchi-san, I've briefly met Satsuma-san at Super Festival. I got to communicate with Satsuma-san a bit more through our mutual friend Tsuyuki. Satsuma-san was his usual gregarious self!

Even Kyoko Ifukube wanted an autograph from Takarada-san! The great composer's daughter was very excited to get this lovely shikishi board signed by the Godzilla series' biggest star.

And that's a wrap! What a great event! I was taken by surprise by all the additional guests. Truth be known, I thought Takarada-san would be the only guest, so the addition of so many bonus guests was the icing on the cake!

The highlights for me were catching up with Takarada-san and getting to know Satsuma-san much better. This event far exceeded my expectations, and I had a wonderful time. I eagerly await the next one!