Shōji Kawamori

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Shōji Kawamori
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Shōji Kawamori in his studio, in May 2011

Shōji Kawamori (河森 正治, Kawamori Shōji, born February 20, 1960) is a Japanese

Sharon Apple
in the Macross franchise). His work has had a significant impact on popular culture, both in Japan and internationally.

Personal life

Shoji Kawamori was born in Toyama, Japan in 1960. Later in his youth he attended Keio University in the late seventies and in the same years as Macross screenwriter Hiroshi Ōnogi and character designer Haruhiko Mikimoto, where they became friends and founded a Mobile Suit Gundam fan club called "Gunsight One", a name the group would use years later during the development of the fictional world of the Macross series.[1]

Anime creation and production

Shoji Kawamori occasionally used the alias Eiji Kurokawa (黒河影次 Kurokawa Eiji) early in his anime career when he started as a

ecological concern. Kawamori is currently executive director at the animation studio Satelight
.

Mecha design

Shoji Kawamori is also a visual artist and a

variable fighter from the official Macross
series continuity has been designed by him.

Kawamori also helped to design various toys for the

Starscream for Takara
.

One of his key mech design innovations was transforming mecha, which can transform between a standard vehicle (such as a fighter plane or transport truck) and a fighting mecha robot. Kawamori came up with the idea of transforming mechs while working on the Diaclone and Macross franchises in the early 1980s (such as the VF-1 Valkyrie in Macross and Robotech), with his Diaclone mechs later providing the basis for Transformers. Some of Kawamori's most iconic transforming mecha designs include the VF-1 Valkyrie from the Macross and Robotech franchises, and Optimus Prime (called Convoy in Japan) from the Transformers and Diaclone franchises.[2]

In 2001, he brought his mecha design talent to real-life projects when he designed a variant of the Sony AIBO robotic dog, the ERS-220.[3]

Legacy

Kawamori came up with several innovative concepts and helped create several franchises which had a significant impact on popular culture, both in Japan and internationally. One of his original ideas was the transforming

Hollywood movie industry.[2][4]

In addition to his innovative mecha design work, Kawamori also came up with innovative concepts in his character writing. In contrast to earlier

pop star.[6] The same year, he created Macross 7 (1994), which featured the virtual band Fire Bomber who became a commercial success and spawned multiple CDs released in Japan.[7] The Macross franchise set the template for later virtual idols in the early 21st century, such as Hatsune Miku and Kizuna AI.[5][6]

Another innovative character concept he came up with was the role of

Lisa Hayes in Robotech), who was one of the main commanders of the Macross battleship. She was the boss and commanding officer of the fighter pilot protagonist Hikaru Ichijyo (called Rick Hunter in Robotech), and later his love interest. This was a scenario Kawamori came up with which he had not seen in any Hollywood movies before. A similar scenario, however, later appeared in the Hollywood movie Top Gun (1986). According to Kawamori, "Many people pointed out that later films like Top Gun copied that idea and setting, as well as including the combination of many songs and fighters too."[2]

Works

Anime

Macross series

Note:

Macross II
is the only animated Macross project in which Kawamori had no involvement.

Other anime

Video games

Other work

References

  1. ^ "Translation & Cultural Notes". The Super Dimension Fortress Macross Liner Notes. AnimEigo. 2001-12-21. Archived from the original on 2008-12-30. Retrieved 2012-02-12. According to the liner notes of the AnimEigo DVD release of the Macross TV series Gunsight One was also the fanzine title of the Gundam fan club that creator Shoji Kawamori, character designer Haruhiko Mikimoto, and writer Hiroshi Oonogi (members number 1, 2, and 3 of said club) founded while they were students at Keio University in Japan...
  2. ^ a b c d Barder, Ollie (December 10, 2015). "Shoji Kawamori, The Creator Hollywood Copies But Never Credits". Forbes. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  3. ^ Hara, Yoshiko (2001-08-11). "Sony robot goes to pieces for owners". EE Times. Retrieved 2015-11-07.
  4. ^ Knott, Kylie (27 February 2019). "He created Macross and designed Transformers toys: Japanese anime legend Shoji Kawamori". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  5. ^ a b Eisenbeis, Richard (September 7, 2012). "The Fictional (Yet Amazingly Popular) Singers of Japan". Kotaku. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  6. ^ a b Rattray, Tim (June 25, 2018). "From Macross to Miku: A History of Virtual Idols". Crunchyroll. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  7. ISBN 978-1-61172-519-3
    .
  8. ^ "Shoji Kawamori: The Man, the Myth, the Mecha". Anime Jump. Archived from the original on 6 November 2007.
  9. ^ "Shoji Kawamori Finally Reveals His Creative Involvement with 'Devil May Cry 5'". Forbes.
  10. ^ Loo, Egan (7 April 2015). "Macross Creator Kawamori Designs New CG Thunderbirds Series' Plane". Anime News Network. Retrieved 7 October 2021.

External links

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