4 years ago, I went to a small local animation festival and saw a 25-minute short film done entirely by one person on his Power Mac G4.
By the end of that viewing of Voices of a Distant Star - the project that launched Makoto Shinkai into the anime world’s consciousness – there was a sense of having seen something special that resonated for days after. I’ve been following Shinkai’s career ever since, eagerly awaiting his next piece of work.
Voices of a Distant Star (2002)
It’s strangely difficult to describe the films of Makoto Shinkai. The easy way is to say that they are possibly the most gorgeous animated films you will ever see.
The funny thing is, there is surprisingly little animation in his films if one takes a closer look. But Shinkai infuses every image with such luster and detail, the economy of his animation only serves to accentuate the power and beauty of each frame.
The Place Promised in Our Early Days (2004)
At once otherworldly and ultra-real, Shinkai’s work is an ethereal alchemy of mood, music and utter melancholy. Themes of separation and loneliness are ever present, and while there is hardly a cheer, there is almost a quiescent joy in the depression.
5 Centimeter Per Second (that’s apparently the speed of cherry blossom falling – beat that for a lyrical title) is probably Shinkai’s best film yet. I first saw it in March this year during the Tokyo Anime Fair, when Shinkai’s producer told me to go see it even though there were obviously no English subtitles.
So I did (free ticket anyway). It’s stayed with me since and I fought the urge to see it again on YouTube where fans have already subtitled it, hoping instead that it would be brought in for this year’s Animation Nation in all its 35mm glory (which of course happened).
5 Centimeter per Second (2007)
Animation is not a genre – it’s an art form. At the moment I can’t find a better proponent of that argument than Shinkai. Like reading a short, sad story on a train that clings on to you long after you’ve left the station, the films of Makoto Shinkai may not make you leap for joy, but they linger in your memory like treasures from life itself.
Selected Works:
She and Her Cat (彼女と彼女の猫, Kanojo to Kanojo no neko)
Voices of a Distant Star (ほしのこえ, Hoshi no Koe)
The Place Promised in Our Early Days (雲のむこう、約束の場所, Kumo no Mukō, Yakusoku no Basho)
5 Centimeter per Second (秒速５センチメートル, Byōsoku Go Senchimētoru)
