Yukiko Takayama in January 2016. Photo © Brett Homenick. Born on April 4, 1945, to the famous Japanese painter Tatsuo Takayama (1912-2007), Yukiko Takayama studied screenwriting at the Scenario Center after graduating from Keio University's Faculty of Letters. The Scenario Center was launched in 1970 by prolific scriptwriter Hajime Arai, who was known for penning … Continue reading MECHAGODZILLA’S SEQUEL SECRETS! Yukiko Takayama on Writing the Screenplay for ‘Terror of Mechagodzilla’!
Author: Brett Homenick
GODZILLA’S UNSUNG ANIMATOR! Ernest Geefay on Animating the Short Parody Film ‘Bambi’s Revenge’!
Ernest Geefay works on the Thai children's television program Meet Mr. Maytree. Photo © Michael Schmicker. Bambi’s Revenge (1976) is an unofficial sequel to Marv Newland’s classic short film Bambi Meets Godzilla (1969). The 1976 cartoon was written and directed by Norman Gibson, produced by Frank Wetzel, photographed by John Roope, and animated by Ernest … Continue reading GODZILLA’S UNSUNG ANIMATOR! Ernest Geefay on Animating the Short Parody Film ‘Bambi’s Revenge’!
RECOLLECTIONS OF TOHO’S GOD OF CLOUDS! Fuchimu Shimakura on Painting the Studio’s Tokusatsu Backdrops!
Fuchimu Shimakura in January 2021. Photo © Brett Homenick. Born on October 5, 1940, Fuchimu Shimakura began working at Toho in the late 1950s, creating or assisting in the creation of tokusatsu backdrops for the Showa era's most notable special effects movies, including Battle in Outer Space (1959), Mothra (1961), King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962), … Continue reading RECOLLECTIONS OF TOHO’S GOD OF CLOUDS! Fuchimu Shimakura on Painting the Studio’s Tokusatsu Backdrops!
AN ANIMATED LIFE IN TOKUSATSU! Minoru Kujirai on His Anime and SFX Work at Tsuburaya Productions and Toei!
Minoru Kujirai in November 2021. Photo © Brett Homenick. Born on September 13, 1944, Minoru Kujirai is an animator who began working at Toei Animation in the mid-1960s, working on numerous well-known anime programs, including the kaiju-themed King Kong (1967). In the early 1970s, Mr. Kujirai transitioned to working on such Toei-produced tokusatsu programs as … Continue reading AN ANIMATED LIFE IN TOKUSATSU! Minoru Kujirai on His Anime and SFX Work at Tsuburaya Productions and Toei!
ULTRAMAN FLIES INTO HOLLYWOOD! Eric Brown on His Design and Modelmaking Work on ‘Ultraman: The Ultimate Hero’!
Eric Brown shares a quiet moment with a close friend. Photo © Eric Brown. Eric Lloyd Brown has lent his creative talents to some of Hollywood's biggest blockbusters, but he got his start in show biz by serving as a modelmaker and concept artist for Ultraman: The Ultimate Hero (1995). Afterward, Mr. Brown would go … Continue reading ULTRAMAN FLIES INTO HOLLYWOOD! Eric Brown on His Design and Modelmaking Work on ‘Ultraman: The Ultimate Hero’!
MEMORIES OF MECHAGODZILLA! SFX Director Teruyoshi Nakano Reflects on 35 Years of ‘Terror of Mechagodzilla’!
Teruyoshi Nakano in December 2015. Photo © Brett Homenick. Teruyoshi Nakano is one of Japan’s masters of special effects. Born in what is now Dandong, China, on October 9, 1935, Mr. Nakano joined Toho in 1959 and quickly moved up the ranks in special effects, becoming chief assistant director under Eiji Tsuburaya by 1963. In … Continue reading MEMORIES OF MECHAGODZILLA! SFX Director Teruyoshi Nakano Reflects on 35 Years of ‘Terror of Mechagodzilla’!
REVISITING GODZILLA FANDOM’S GLORY DAYS! David Milner on Writing for the Early Kaiju Fanzines and Interviewing Toho Icons!
David Milner poses with legendary film composer Akira Ifukube in his home. Photo © David Milner. Godzilla fandom in the U.S. began to take shape in the early 1970s, and David Milner was there to witness its growth. As a contributor to the various Japanese monster movie fanzines that existed at the time, Mr. Milner … Continue reading REVISITING GODZILLA FANDOM’S GLORY DAYS! David Milner on Writing for the Early Kaiju Fanzines and Interviewing Toho Icons!
ON THE TRAIL OF ‘THE LAST DINOSAUR’! A Candid Conversation with Rankin/Bass Associate Producer Benni Korzen!
Benni Korzen in June 2022. Photo © Benni Korzen. Born on April 1, 1938, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Benni Korzen served as an associate producer on the live-action Rankin/Bass films Marco (1973), The Last Dinosaur (1977), The Bermuda Depths (1978), The Ivory Ape (1980), and The Bushido Blade (1981). Following his involvement with Rankin/Bass, Mr. Korzen … Continue reading ON THE TRAIL OF ‘THE LAST DINOSAUR’! A Candid Conversation with Rankin/Bass Associate Producer Benni Korzen!
GODZILLA GETS A TRIM! James Melkonian on the Post-Production Process of ‘Godzilla 1985’ at New World Pictures!
Photo © James Melkonian. Readers of Vantage Point Interviews probably know James Melkonian for writing and directing the mid-1990s comedies The Stoned Age (1994) and The Jerky Boys (1995), but he got his start in the film industry at New World Pictures in the '80s, working in the post-production department. During this time, he worked … Continue reading GODZILLA GETS A TRIM! James Melkonian on the Post-Production Process of ‘Godzilla 1985’ at New World Pictures!
BUNGLE IN THE JUNGLE! Director Tom DeSimone on the Trials and Tribulations of Making the Cult-Classic Disasterpiece ‘Terror in the Jungle’!
Photo © Tom DeSimone. Terror in the Jungle (1968) was a Crown International Pictures release that promised adventure and thrills, but it's not so much an action film as a confusing hodgepodge of jumbled scenes with amateur actors. Tom DeSimone was hired as a first-time director to bring Terror in the Jungle to the big … Continue reading BUNGLE IN THE JUNGLE! Director Tom DeSimone on the Trials and Tribulations of Making the Cult-Classic Disasterpiece ‘Terror in the Jungle’!
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