How did you start this project?

Sanae Suzuki, the producer of BS-i, approached us to do this project by getting the information that ‘there’s one strange guy who dares to do a drama with a unique concept’. My initial idea was to do a serial drama every week, but she said me to do it as a two-hour special program. It sounded perfect for me and I started to do it.

What’s the concept of this project?

To create something I myself want to see. Personally, it should be that something knocks me down. Sometimes we can encounter something knocks us down like Denki Groove’s music video ‘Polynesia‘, the opening sequence of Trainspotting, and commercial films of Nike. They all are really cool and I wanted to make a cool drama like them. I think a drama can be cooler than a film. It’s because I came up with the idea of this project. We also have the odds in our favor against the direction, technique and business, so we went forward with the project.

What was hard for you?

The thing is that the broadcasting standard was ‘Digital Highvision’. It made us worried very much. No one knew about what HD was at the beginning. To create Highvision images that have six times as much information as the TV format now in use, everything from shooting to editing and recording should have been changed. Also, the setting, make-up and lighting should have been clear since the images were clearer than in normal TV format. To make matters worse, the machine environment has not been ready yet and there wasn’t enough editing rooms for us.

All the staff, including directors, went to the office of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd, to learn how to produce images for HD. We’ve studied everything about HD including the concept and started producing the program through trial and error. Thanks to those hard processes, now we have absolute confidence in ourselves of ‘producing images in high resolution’.

What was good and impressive for you?

Everything that was hard for us became something we can feel good about. The know-how to produce pictures on Digital Highvision can be applied to a film, so I think we can make a film while making an effective use of the budget.

All the production processes were impressive for me, so it’s tough to mention what was specially impressive, but the encounters with the staff, casts and those who were involved in this piece were really impressive. Everyone was positive and I could feel their pureness, spirit and energy to try to create something good.

And I don’t know if I should have to say like this, but I’m sure that ‘Japanese creativity is just great!’.

At present, ‘Burst the Earth’ is broadcasted only on a limited medium as BS channel. Do you have any plans to show it at some film festivals or to release it as a DVD?

I really want many people to see this piece. So it’ll be rebroadcasted on BS many times. I also want to release it at theaters and as a DVD. We’ve already got offers from some companies and maybe it’ll be realized sometime soon.

I’m also thinking to show it at some film festivals. It has unexpectedly got a great reputation overseas and we all are surprised at the reaction.

What do you think about the possibility of BS digital? Do you think it has much more possibilities rather than surface broadcasting? Also, how do you think you’ll be involved in it?

BS digital broadcasting has a power just like the late-night programs of the surface broadcasting a little while ago. In a few years, lots of unique and interesting content might be created for BS digital broadcasting.

Now I’m working on a new project for BS digital.

How about other projects? Do you have any plans for the near future?

‘Burst the Earth’ has got a great reputation, so we’re now thinking to do a second edition. It’ll be presented by splendid casts and staffs. At the same time, a new project has been just started. What I can say at the moment is it’s a long film and it’s developed in London. There’s another ongoing project too and it will be longer or a serial drama. At the moment, there are three different projects going. Further information will be available on ‘Bakuha.com‘ soon, so please be looking forward to it!! On the web site, there’s one project that you might be able to get a present, so be sure to check it out!