Atsushi Hagiwara during the making of Sayonara Jupiter. Photo © Atsushi Hagiwara. Atsushi Hagiwara got his start as a tokusatsu modelmaker working on the ambitious Toho production Sayonara Jupiter (1984), which features some of the best special effects in Japanese film history. That experience led to a variety of other film and television projects on … Continue reading MAKING MINIATURES IN JAPANESE SFX FILMS! Atsushi Hagiwara on Creating Tokusatsu Models in the 1980s and Beyond!
Godzilla 1985
RISING THROUGH THE TOKUSATSU RANKS! Eiichi Asada Reflects on His Career as an Assistant SFX Director in the 1970s and ’80s!
Eiichi Asada in June 2021. Photo © Brett Homenick. Born on March 13, 1949, Eiichi Asada got his start at Toho Studios in the early 1970s as an assistant director, working on such movies as Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975), The War in Space (1977), Deathquake (1980), Sayonara Jupiter (1984), and Godzilla 1985 (1984). In later … Continue reading RISING THROUGH THE TOKUSATSU RANKS! Eiichi Asada Reflects on His Career as an Assistant SFX Director in the 1970s and ’80s!
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!
REVISITING THE LEGEND’S REBIRTH! Director R. J. Kizer’s In-Depth History the Americanization of ‘Godzilla 1985’!
R. J. Kizer stands in front of a New York City theater showing Godzilla 1985. Photo © Francoise Charlap. R. J. Kizer, born and raised in the New York City area, attended New York University Film School, from which he graduated in 1976. Following graduation, Mr. Kizer moved to Los Angeles in 1978. In May … Continue reading REVISITING THE LEGEND’S REBIRTH! Director R. J. Kizer’s In-Depth History the Americanization of ‘Godzilla 1985’!
GODZILLA MEETS MARV! Animator Marv Newland on Creating the Classic Short Film ‘Bambi Meets Godzilla’!
Photo © James O’Mara. In 1969, Marv Newland animated a 90-second film whose popularity and notoriety has endured for more than 50 years. That short film, Bambi Meets Godzilla, has gone on to be screened in animation and film festivals all over the world and has become one of the most famous animated shorts of … Continue reading GODZILLA MEETS MARV! Animator Marv Newland on Creating the Classic Short Film ‘Bambi Meets Godzilla’!
INSIDE TOHO’S MIGHTIEST MONSTERS! A Candid Conversation with Nobuyuki Yasumaru About His Kaiju Creations!
Nobuyuki Yasumaru in December 2018. Photo © Brett Homenick. Born on January 24, 1935, in Toyama Prefecture, Nobuyuki Yasumaru is a creator of miniatures and monster suits who has worked on some of Toho's most popular kaiju films. Beginning his career with Toho in the early 1960s, Mr. Yasumaru's credits include Mothra (1961), King Kong … Continue reading INSIDE TOHO’S MIGHTIEST MONSTERS! A Candid Conversation with Nobuyuki Yasumaru About His Kaiju Creations!
THE EIGHTH SAMURAI! Shigeo Kato Shares Stories from His Decades-Long Acting Career!
Born on June 16, 1925, in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, actor Shigeo Kato joined Toho in the early 1950s. Early in his acting career, Mr. Kato appeared in brief roles in such cinema classics as Akira Kurosawa’s Ikiru (1952) and Seven Samurai (1954), as well as the original Godzilla (1954). Mr. Kato remained a Toho actor … Continue reading THE EIGHTH SAMURAI! Shigeo Kato Shares Stories from His Decades-Long Acting Career!
A LOOK BACK ON THE GODZILLA SERIES! Toho SFX Director Teruyoshi Nakano Reflects on His Godzilla Film Work!
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 1969, Mr. Nakano would serve as special effects director … Continue reading A LOOK BACK ON THE GODZILLA SERIES! Toho SFX Director Teruyoshi Nakano Reflects on His Godzilla Film Work!
GODZILLA’S LINE PRODUCER! Andrea Stern on Godzilla’s Mid-1980s Comeback!
Andrea Barshov Stern served as associate producer of the American version of Godzilla 1985 (1984). Before working on the Godzilla series' first-ever reboot, she line-produced commercials in New York for several years and worked on The Cars' groundbreaking music video “You Might Think.” After that, she moved to Los Angeles where her career has mostly … Continue reading GODZILLA’S LINE PRODUCER! Andrea Stern on Godzilla’s Mid-1980s Comeback!
BURNING GODZILLA INTO OUR MEMORIES! Ernest Farino on Creating the Main Title Sequence for ‘Godzilla 1985’!
It’s not every day that the editor and publisher of a magazine devoted to Ray Harryhausen ends up working on a Godzilla film. Ernest D. Farino did just that by designing the opening title sequence for the New World version of Godzilla 1985 (1984). He performed the same job on such blockbuster sci-fi films as … Continue reading BURNING GODZILLA INTO OUR MEMORIES! Ernest Farino on Creating the Main Title Sequence for ‘Godzilla 1985’!
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