For the filming of "Kaminofude" (Brush of the God), the production team utilized "tokusatsu" live-action special effects, suspending actors in full-body creature suits on wires to depict the rampage scenes.
At the age of 88, legendary suit designer Keizo Murase, known for his work on "Gamera," "Godzilla," "Daimajin," and numerous other monster and fantasy films, made his feature film directorial debut. Murase served as the general director on the project.
The story follows Akari, portrayed by Rio Suzuki, whose late grandfather was a renowned monster model maker, Shiro Sano.
At a farewell party, the protagonist meets a mysterious man named Takumi Saito and soon finds herself stranded on an island teeming with colossal "kaiju" monsters. Bewildered, she begins to question whether she has somehow stumbled into the fantastical world her late grandfather had envisioned for a film.
In 1976, Hong Kong's Shaw Brothers Ltd. invited Murase to work on a project, prompting him to write a screenplay. However, the script went untouched for decades before being adapted into the current film.
The eight-headed giant snake Yamata no Orochi rampages as the central monster, evoking the space creature from the 1991 film "Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah" - a creation of Murase.
"When designing King Ghidorah for the film, the creature's immense weight posed a significant challenge in terms of control and maneuverability. To overcome this, I opted to use fiber-reinforced plastic for the heads and urethane for the body, making the whole structure as light as possible. Constantly evolving materials science played a crucial role, as I kept researching new options to achieve the desired balance of weight and durability."
"Veteran special effects wizard, commenting on the Academy Award-winning visual effects and CGI in 'Godzilla Minus One,' said: 'The knowledge and techniques we pioneered as forerunners are now embodied in director Takashi Yamazaki's creative vision.'"
Murase emphasized, "When using CGI, you must commit fully. The same principle applies to analog techniques." He noted, "The analog approach of tokusatsu captivates fans across all age groups. That is where our focus should lie."
Source - The Asahi Shimbun
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