The following interview was originally published in the Summer 2021 issue of Great Mechanics G before being republished in the Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway Mechanic & World mook that came out in August 2022.

INTERVIEW 08
Executive Producer Naohiro Ogata
(Recorded on May 17, 2021)

A POWERFUL WORK BEFITTING THE SCALE OF A THEATRICAL RELEASE

――Gundam Hathaway seems to be made on a larger scale than ever before, going beyond the framework of Gundam series. I’ve heard that you were also considering appealing to “people who don’t usually watch Gundam,” not just Gundam fans.

Ogata: I think the big thing in the case of this work was that we were “making it on a theatrical scale from the start.” For instance, Gundam UC started as an OVA and eventually settled into the form of event screenings, but there’s only so much you can do with an OVA format. Universal Century Gundam works, along with the TV series Gundam works, are one of the two wheels that drive the series. While we want to please the fans who have supported us for many years, we also want new fans to watch it, which requires substantial planning and budget. It has to be a theatrical work that can do a nationwide roadshow with Gundam. We’re in an era where Gundam is being developed in Hollywood, so when we think about a global rollout, it must be something that stands up internationally. It needed to be structured in a way that even if someone’s parents had never heard of Gundam, they would think, “This is incredible!”

――It’s surprising to hear that even UC didn’t break out of the OVA-scale framework.

Ogata: That’s right. UC was produced entirely on an OVA scale. Gundam NT originally started as a project for 4 OVAs, and it was ultimately put together in the form of a single film. Looking back, it was a stepping stone before the challenge of Hathaway’s Flash.

――I feel that director Shuko Murase’s commitment has also had a huge impact. After watching his previous work Genocidal Organ, I thought, “What would happen if he did Gundam with this quality?” And it turned out to be, in a sense, beyond what I expected… truly incredible visuals.

Ogata: Director Murase is a very innovative visual artist who aims for a revolutionary direction. I think it was significant that such a creator took on Gundam, especially a novel by (Yoshiyuki) Tomino. Also, while ensemble dramas have been the mainstream in the Gundam series so far, Hathaway’s Flash is a work that delves deep into the psychological and emotional aspects of the characters, so I think all the elements were in place to ask Director Murase to do it.

――The detailed depictions and even the camerawork alone seem to have aspects of a live-action work, and the direction seems clearly different from the Gundam visuals we’ve seen before.

Ogata: When we brought in Director Murase, the direction was set. Within that, I think he was always aware of the Gundam-esque or animated expression and was constantly exploring “how far can I go?” The lighting is a good example. It’s not anime lighting but very live-action-like lighting, which I think is significant.

――I imagine there are various conditions for video works, such as budget and the effort involved. With such an elaborate production, I think deciding where to draw the line must be difficult.

Ogata: No, on the contrary, Director Murase asked me several times, “Shouldn’t we put the brakes on a bit more?” but we asked him to “Please go all out” (laughs). I think if he had wanted to, he could have pushed the depiction even further. But I think his sense of Gundam aimed for the very edge of “If you’re going to pursue realism in the Gundam world, this is about right” in this film.

――I see. As a result, I feel that it has broadened the scope of the realism of Gundam and the Universal Century.

Ogata: Animation production is always evolving. With changes in technology and equipment, the evolving age and input of animators and staff, and the introduction of new talents along the way, we aimed to present a film in 2021 that we could say, “This is the best we can do.”

INCORPORATING TOMINO’S STYLE WHILE BEING CONSCIOUS OF THE VISUALS OF A NEW ERA

――With a 40-year history and a diverse fanbase, I feel it was a bold decision to steer the direction toward something like Hathaway’s Flash.

Ogata: We used the excuse of “Tomino wrote it” to do something different from usual. In fact, in terms of conventional Gundam works, it would have been possible to bring in a mobile suit scene at the beginning if we had wanted to.

――And you deliberately chose not to do that.

Ogata: The body action in the hijack scene was sufficient for the opening, and Director Murase was focused on highlighting Hathaway’s emotional burden from the start. The composition goes from the Davao air raid to a sudden shift. The restraint of the mobile suit battles up to that point was intentional.

――Tomino’s dialogue in the novel is quite unique. I think it’s quite difficult to decide “what to change and what to keep” when someone other than Tomino is producing it. What kind of discussions were held, including the process of turning it into a script?

Ogata: We debated this extensively. Director Murase, Mr. Yasuyuki Muto, and our team each had different perspectives on the balance, and we worked hard to align these into the storyboards. We focused on how much of Tomino’s original flavor to retain, which was a delicate task. We intentionally kept a lot of it at the beginning of the work, parts A and B. We also kept quite a bit in the middle, though now that I think about it, maybe we should have streamlined it a bit more.

――Can you specify which parts?

Ogata: The nuances around Newtypes are very much Tomino’s style. The conversations don’t seem to connect, but they do. The words don’t seem to be understood, but they are. It seems like the conversation is jumping around, but the people involved understand each other. In the film, it’s easy to see where Hathaway and Gigi are talking by the pool. It looks like a string of words, but there’s a Newtype resonance between the two of them, and it’s portrayed as if they really understand each other.

――You’re right. Tomino’s works have a unique way with dialogue. Fans find comfort in these familiar elements.

Ogata: However, Tomino always says “not to stick to the original too much,” not just for Hathaway’s Flash. On the contrary, I got quite caught up in it this time, so when Tomino watched the film, he told me, “You’re a fundamentalist” (wry smile).

――But that dedication is also part of the appeal, perhaps reflecting the fan in you.

Ogata: I think it’s okay for creators to fully express their individual obsessions. But for us on the production side, it’s important to balance “how to follow the greatest common divisor of what everyone wants to see,” so I think everyone’s idea of Tomino-esque is important.

――The trailers and PVs insert footage from Char’s Counterattack and of Amuro and Char.

Ogata: Ideally, we shouldn’t overemphasize Amuro and Char to avoid alienating newcomers. However, since the film is the first work in its series, it’s not widely recognized. We have no choice but to start from the stage before that, so to be honest, Amuro and Char have to appear. I think that after the first film is released, its “uniqueness” will solidify.

――Targeting a series with such history to a specific audience is challenging.

Ogata: That’s right. Just because it’s the Universal Century doesn’t mean it’s a work aimed at our generation, and I think it needs to be passed on to the younger generation. In recent years, I feel that more people say, “I watched it with my parents because they were Gundam fans.” It would be great if that generation could watch Hathaway’s Flash, experience the Universal Century works, and realize how interesting the past Universal Century works are.

――For young people, especially the Universal Century stuff, some people avoid it because “it looks difficult.” However, the power of the visuals being accepted and becoming an entry point was the same with UC. The same may be true for Hathaway’s Flash.

SWITCHING THE DEPICTION OF MOBILE SUITS AT THE PERFECT TIMING

――The original mobile suit designs in the novel, including the Xi Gundam, have a very strong 90s flavor in a sense, and you could say they have a distinctive individuality. Were there any considerations for redesigning or such when adapting them into visuals?

Ogata: That came up as a topic not just for the mobile suit designs but in the broader context of “to what extent should we retain the flavor of the novel?” Regarding the mobile suits, Tomino emphasized that they were “for the novel,” but for Director Murase, Katoki (Hajime), Nakatani (Seiichi), Genma (Nobu), and us, we didn’t place much emphasis on “changing the designs.” That’s probably why Tomino called me a fundamentalist. Katoki took the initiative in the design aspects. Katoki played a key role in respecting Moriki Yasuhiro’s original designs while making necessary adaptations for the film.

――In practice, it seems that the original flavor was retained while giving it a modern update.

Ogata: Even in the evolution of Universal Century mobile suits, they’re t like the pinnacle of dinosaur-like evolution, aren’t they? It makes sense that this dinosaur-like evolution led to the shift to smaller units like the F91, so it can be said that they were necessary units in the flow of history. Also, if Director Murase was going to animate them, I was confident that they would look cool, and if you actually watch the film, I think you’ll want to buy the models (laughs).

――In depicting the mobile suits, this work gives an impression of unprecedented detail, and it seems that 3DCG is being used more than ever before. What parts changed the most?

Ogata: Up until Gundam NT, the method was to add 3D on top of 2D hand-drawn animation. This time, we completely reversed it, and it’s in the form of hand-drawn on top of 3D main. Especially this time, the two units, Xi Gundam and Penelope, have never been depicted in animation before. Furthermore, they’re the first Universal Century Gundams that can fly freely under gravity with the Minovsky Flight System. If we were going to change everything at once, this was the best timing, and it matched with Director Murase’s desire to “go with a 3D focus this time.” We particularly went all out with 3D in the Davao air raid scene in the middle and the battle between the Xi Gundam and Penelope in the latter half. Including the lighting and camerawork, I feel that it has become a new film.

――As a result, it doesn’t feel like the traditional “hand-drawn” feel has been compromised much.

Ogata: That’s right. I also prefer hand-drawn mobile suit battles if I had to choose. While this film leans heavily into 3D, we’ve fully utilized hand-drawn elements where appropriate. A clear example is the air raid scene towards the end, where Hathaway and Gigi are panicking under the mobile suits.

――It seems to match the realistic direction very well.

Ogata: That’s largely due to Director Murase’s approach. 3D certainly expands the range of expression, but most Gundam up until now has had a 2D look, so if it suddenly becomes a 3D-like expression, it would only feel out of place. I think it was important to show it in the direction of 2D production while making 3D the main. In the end, it’s not about “which is better?” I think that’s the kind of era we’ll be entering in the future, and whether it’s 3D or 2D, I think the direction will be “what’s good is good.” In terms of the expression of mobile suit battles, I think this film marks a turning point.

THE TRUE POWER OF THE VISUALS CAN ONLY BE SEEN IN THE THEATER

――As a theatrical work, this film gives the impression that you want to watch it in a good environment on the big screen of a movie theater. I had the privilege of viewing it in the screening room of a movie company for this magazine, but after the release, I want to watch it on an even bigger screen.

Ogata: Absolutely. Along with the visuals, what we’re particular about is the sound. This time, we created it natively in Dolby Atmos. Usually, when applying sound in Dolby Atmos, you first create it in 5.1 channels and then expand it to Dolby Atmos, but for the film, we created the sound itself in Dolby Atmos from the beginning. Once you watch it in Dolby Atmos, you can’t go back. The way the sound envelops you is completely different.

――Are any particular aspects of the sound unique to Dolby Atmos?

Ogata: We asked Koji Kasamatsu to do the sound direction, and this time, we changed the sound design itself. This is also Director Murase’s particular focus, but in response to his desire to have live-action-like effects, we made new challenges while being aware of the sound effects created by Fizz Sound Creation, who was in charge of the sound effects for Mobile Suit Gundam. I think the beam sound when the Penelope shoots the pod (Cargo Pisa) containing the Xi Gundam in the latter half of the film worked out exceptionally well.

――That’s something you really need to experience in a theater to fully appreciate.

Ogata: That’s right. By watching it in a theater environment, I think people will understand the allure of this film. Depending on the scene, I think many people may feel that it’s “dark,” but to be honest, at first, we were also checking the footage on our own PC monitors and thinking, “Is this going to be okay?” But it looks vivid when you watch it in the same environment as a theater. The immersion is further enhanced in scenes like the air raid in the middle. Since it’s designed and made for theaters, the best way to fully enjoy its charm is in a good theater. Please watch it in a Dolby Cinema if possible.

――Perhaps the proper way for fans is to first watch it in the theater, then buy the video to check the details and watch it at home several times (laughs).

Ogata: If you’re watching it at home, the best full-spec would be an HDR monitor with an Atmos home sound system.

――We’re really talking about the level of live-action visuals. There aren’t many animated films that can have this kind of conversation, are there?

Ogata: I think it’s become a film worth all the hard work we put into it. In fact, at the preview screening, various people involved watched it, and they were all uniformly excited, saying, “It’s amazing.” Everyone may have different takeaways, but that diversity of impact is genuinely gratifying. This level of achievement isn’t possible with just any title. The Gundam series has become a powerful content franchise, allowing us to invest heavily in its production. It’s a film worth all the effort we put into it, so please make your way to the theaters.