EX: Do you think that BEBOP is a new type of animation, one that's beginning a resurgence of anime that's for adults and not aimed at kids?

KT: Don't take kids too lightly.

EX: Well, with all the smoking and drinking and the like, it's kind of hard to aim at kids. Maybe teenagers, though.

KT: And what about GUNDAM MS08? Isn't that for adults because of the violence?

EX: Well, here in the US, it's most likely aimed at teenagers too. And speaking of MS08, there's only one installment left, right?

KT: Yes, Last Resort just came out. It's a side story, though, so it didn't get worked on by the main staff.

EX: Did you work on it at all?

KT: No, I couldn't because I was busy with BEBOP at the time. We were doing the final episodes. And Watanabe was very determined to end it once and for all. In his mind, there would be no BEBOP II.

EX: What can you tell us about the ESCAFLOWNE movie?

KT: Not much right now. The storyboards are only half done. No one knows what the last scene is going to be yet.

EX: What was the most surprising for you about this trip to an American anime convention?

KT: Well, I had no information about what's been released here in the United States, so I was very surprised that everyone here knows GOLDEN BOY. The reaction to that show in Japan was not as big as the reaction that I'm getting here.

EX: I think that has something to do with the very beautiful women that populate the series.

KT: Well, your favorite character is Faye, so what do you say to that? (laughs)

EX: Touche! (laughs) In actuality, though, my favorite BEBOP character is Ein.

KT: Me too.

EX: I heard you had a dog, right?

KT: Yes. A Welsh Corgi, in fact. I got him as a motion model for Ein. I would have brought him with me if I could have. There's a lot I can still learn from this dog. (laughs)

EX: So, you got this dog as a motion model for Ein and then decided to keep it, right? Was there also a motion model for Faye, too?

KT: (laughs) I don't think so. There is a rumor, however, that Ed was modeled after Kanno Yoko. And that rumor is true. I first heard from the Director, Watanabe Shinichiro, that Kanno was the type of person who rolls on the floor of the mixing room when she wants to go to sleep. She's just got so much energy. So I modeled Ed after her.

EX: Does she know that?

KT: I believe she does, but she denies it. I guess people just don't know themselves. (laughs)

EX: Is Spike modeled after anyone? There are a lot of familiar aspects to his character.

KT: Not after any one person in particular. In very general, vague terms, he's a combination of "Space Lupin" and "City Hunter." I liked both of those characters so there is some inspiration, but Spike was the result of coming up with a character that Watanabe wanted.

EX: Did the character designs change much from the prototypes to the finals?

KT: There have been no changes. In the beginning, I was asked to make other designs, but in the end, they returned to the original designs. The only thing that's slightly different is the ages of the characters. They are all slightly older—this is reflected in their facial features and physiques.

EX: Ein too?

KT: Well, Nobumoto Keiko, the scriptwriter, said "Put a Welsh corgi in the show." And so Watanabe came up with the concept of the data dog. I couldn't really think of a design, so I used a friend's dog. When I asked this friend about using his dog for the design, he helped out by providing a lot of video tapes and photos. So there is a real dog that looks exactly like Ein.

EX: What's the hardest character you've had to design?

KT: It would definitely be Ed's father in BEBOP. The image I had was very different from the one the director had, so it took a long time to reach an acceptable compromise. Of course, he's Ed's father, though, so in some strange way that makes sense.
And then there's Gren. It was hard to create this character because he was so atypical. I didn't want it to be a stereotype. Apparently, the scenario writer wanted Gren to look more like Brad Pitt, and I got scolded for that. But I was very satisfied with the results.
The hardest characters to do overall were the ones from GOLDEN BOY because the characters were very elongated and I had to try and emulate Egawa's style.

EX: What would you like to do next?

KT: I don't have a clear vision of exactly what I want to create. I have a director that I want to work with and a manga series I'd like to see animated.
Most important, though, is that I'd like to have a good staff to work with. It wouldn't do any good to work with a bad staff. And if the project isn't good, then it wouldn't be any fun either. This is a business and it's all for profit, but I choose the people and projects I want to work with so I can really enjoy my work.

Special thanks to Rika Takahashi for translation assistance, and to Mr. Kawamoto for being such a good sport and for the beautiful image that graces this issue's cover.

Image Copyright © Sunrise