The cinema of Japanimation or Anime is mysterious cult entertainment for most of the
English speaking world. An impenetrable yet seductive universe filled with breath taking
visuals that tell fantastic, exotic and violent tales. Language and cultural differences
present barriers for mass audiences but for those who are up for the challenge artistic
treasures await.
The creative center of Anime is a a microcosm with it's own politics and economics located
in Tokyo, far outside the realm of Hollywood. The financial realities of hundreds of animated
film titles competing for limited screens has produced a cottage industry rather than a giant
corporate structure. While this allows for greater creative freedom it also requires sacrifices
from it's practitioners.
Those who inhabit this world have an almost religious devotion to the art, often working 100
hour weeks for the duration of their project, which in animation can be years. When Mitch
Osias and Digital Arts undertook the sound design of a full length Anime feature film they
knew many challenges lay ahead. With a tight schedule, a multi country/language workflow,
constant revisions and audio to design from the ground up, the team knew they had their hands full.
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Osias flew to Tokyo in April 2006 to meet with Director Michael Arias to screen the mostly
incomplete film, discuss ideas and capture location sound with a Sound Devices 722 recorder.
The movie takes place in a pan-asian city of the 1960's called Treasure Town, a gritty and
violent place that required a highly textured and period appropriate sound design. Mitch
came back to New York with a strong conceptual direction and an array of MS recordings.
The Digital Arts team started to paint the sonic landscape a scene at a time, sending 2-3 min
clips over the internet back to Tokyo. The sound design was created in surround from the
beginning in order to paint a more immersive landscape.
With a first pass at sound design in hand, Osias returned to Japan with a Pro Tools HD 5.1
rig and custom SFX library. He set up a 5.1 studio in the Tokyo office of the film's production
company, Studio 4c, where he worked for another 2 months with the director and animators
giving daily feedback. This unusual situation of having the sound design on site resulted in a
close collaboration with the entire creative team. Traditionally, sound and picture are
completed separately, but director Mike Arias wanted greater creative control and integration.
It proved quite valuable as it led to changes in the film and a more nuanced understanding of
the characters for both the animators and the sound designer. The elements were mixed at Tokyo
Television Center's THX film stage and mastered in Dolby 5.1 for film release.
Already a financial and critical success in Japan, Tekkon was recently played at the Berlin Film
festival where it received a standing ovation and has been lauded by Variety for its sound design.
"Tekkon Kinkreet" will screen at the Museum of Modern Art in New York on April 5 and April 25
through 31. Barbara London, the Associate Curator in the Department of Media at the Museum of
Modern Art (MoMA), New York, selected Tekkon as the top film of 2006 in Artforum magazine.
An audio and video creative and production pioneer, Digital Arts (www.digital-arts.net)
specializes in HD finishing and graphics, as well as sound design, audio mixing and music
composition. Founded in 1992 by Grammy-winner CEO/Creative Director Axel Ericson,
the studio works with leading cable and broadcast television networks, as well as filmmakers,
commercial producers, ad agencies and corporate producers to deliver state-of-the-art creative
and technical solutions.
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