[Machine translated using Google Translate, DeepL as well as some rudimentary Japanese knowledge and additional research. May not be 100% accurate although I'm confident the gist is generally correct.]
Statements from Masaaki Yuasa - Shin-chan Movie Encyclopedia
Hongo used an idea of mine in the first film. Back in the beginning, there was a very free atmosphere where even I was allowed to openly express my opinions. The final climbing competition was supposed to go downhill, but without even thinking about it, I said “wouldn't it be better to climb up?” and then we actually did it that way (laughs). When the scene was completed, I was blown away and for the first time I felt the real thrill of creating animation.
I'm not very well-educated, so there are many interesting things that make me go “huh?!” while collecting reference materials. And then I want to draw those “huhs” (laughs). I was so happy that my ideas were used in the first movie that I acquired a taste for it, and from then on when I was working on concept art I would draw a lot of ideas in my sketchbook, even though they weren't asked for. They didn't use a lot of them, but I had fun.
I get the feeling Hara has some strong convictions about life, but he usually doesn't show it. One of my hobbies is cooking, and when I talk about how useful a peeler is, he says something like “that's not the way to go. Just peel it with a knife.” In Unkokusai he got so emotionally attached to Fubukimaru that he said “why do I have to include Shinnosuke?” (laughs). But he can also be mature and detached. Sometimes on past works I felt he was holding back, just doing his job to serve the audience without putting his heart into it, but with “Adult Empire” he finally threw a direct pitch. It made me happy because he was clearly doing what he wanted to do. We see Hiroshi cry, and the climax takes things to a whole new level of intensity. No matter how you look at it, Hara is on another level.
I like when the director expresses his own feelings in the work. In “Unkokusai,” there's a scene where Hiroshi confesses he was a sci-fi nerd and is ridiculed, and I like that because it shows Hongo's feelings. Hongo wanted to let other people try things and contribute, and his approach was “let's all have fun working on this together.” I'm sure he had his own ideas, and I'm sure he was capable of doing it on his own (he still came up with a lot of key sequences) but he dared to say, “I trust you to do what you want.” When I was first offered the chance to do concept art, I think it was a matter of him saying “you have a slightly different sensibility, so let's use it here.” But it was my first time and I was terrified. It took me a long time, and I think I caused a lot of trouble for him. I'm not good at designing big vehicles or buildings. I can think of details like an interesting door, but when I think about the overall design, I'm in a fog. On a production, you need the broadest overall image first, which is the opposite of how I think. I can't picture the whole design until I've figured out the individual parts. I'm a very inefficient designer (laughs).
Statements from Yuichiro Sueyoshi - Shin-chan Movie Encyclopedia
I came onto “Shin-chan” once it was already in progress, starting with “Buri Buri Kingdom” and at the same time I began on the TV show as an animator. I've also been doing character designs since “Adult Empire” last year. The style of “Adult Empire” had a lot to do with director Hara. In particular, Ken and Chaco had a very specific period look (late 60s to early 70s). Especially for Ken, Hara had very strong feelings about what he wanted, and did a few of his own drawings first. Among them, the first one I saw was this guy with a helmet-like hairstyle. There wasn't any single, specific inspiration. No matter how much it looks like it, it's definitely not John Lennon (laughs). If anything, maybe the model is Hara himself. For Chaco, he said “I want her to have sort of a dark, shadowy look.” The Ultra Guard/Expo Defense Force was designed by Katsunori Hara. The costumes at the Expo were also designed by Katsunori Hara.
My favourite movies are “Adult Empire” and “Pursuit of the Balls of Darkness,” I enjoyed doing key animation for that one. I always wanted to do this kind of children's animation. There are few lines, and you can move the designs freely. Above all, the character Shinnosuke himself is a lot of fun to move around. Simple low-line-count designs like that are much easier to move than designs with a lot of lines. Shin-chan's face also differs depending on the animator. A lot of us (among the key animators) can get competitive and try to outdo each other. As a result, the action scenes have become a major part of the series.
“Warring States” is difficult because there are extensive psychological descriptions of the characters. The hardest one to design was princess Ren. She is a character that has never appeared in Shin-chan before, a realistic princess. At first I thought “is this going to work?” But the director just said “this is fine.” Ren didn't have a specific inspiration either, I just created her based on Hara's drawings. The director is really good at drawing. With him being that good, it's hard to live up to it.
I think to myself, “how can Hara come up with all these ideas every year?” and when it's over, I realize what an amazing person he is. I was most surprised during “Adult Empire.” I didn't get a full sense of what it was really about, just from hearing the initial plot. After the director's storyboards are completed, we have a preview screening of the animatic, and that's when we all get to see the whole thing for the first time. I hope “Shin-chan” continues for another 20 or 30 years.
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