Kiyotaka Uchiyama's first feature-length animated film look back, Based on the best-selling manga by Tatosuki Fujimoto, it is a poignant coming-of-age drama that has resonated with moviegoers and domestic audiences globally, grossing over $12 million worldwide and earning a spot on Prime Video. In just under an hour, Look back It follows Ayumi Fujino (Yumi Kawai), a popular girl who has long earned praise for her humorous comic strips in the school newspaper. However, when her teacher asks her to share painting space with Kyomoto (Mizuki Yoshida), an absent recluse, her fine artwork surpasses Fujino's and a friendly rivalry begins between them in their younger years.
Here Deadline talks with Uchiyama about the importance Look back The highs and lows of pursuing creative endeavors.
Deadline: What is your entry into Look back? I understand you used to do animation work Chainsaw man. Did you read it first, or did Tatsuki Fujimoto approach you about collaborating on an adaptation?
Kiyotaka Uchiyama: Avex Pictures came to me and said, “Do you want to work on this? Look back With us?” So, I agreed. Then we worked together to develop the presentation and took it to Shueisha, the book's publisher Look back. Other teams were also interested in adapting Look Back, so it was a bit of a competition vying to get this show approved. But I think Shueisha, including the manga editor and Fujimoto, decided to join our group Avex Pictures and Studio Durian. This is my opinion, but what caught Fujimoto's attention was when I uploaded some illustrations on social media. I think that played a big role in getting this idea. Although [my studio] Studio Durian is an animation production company, and it's not like we have a lot of credibility or clout working on commercial animation projects. We were up against big production companies, but I think Fujimoto's personal bias was towards what I uploaded.
DEADLINE: As an artist and director, what theme resonated with you and made you want to adapt the story?
Uchiyama: In the manga and movie, there's a line, “Manga isn't something you should draw.” As an animator, I think it's best to be in the audience and just watch anime. Anime consumption is much better. Making it a really long production. The fact that you have to sit for a long time and maintain concentration is a physically demanding task. So, I don't think it's something we can work on for long periods or years.
Look back
G Kids
DEADLINE: In the film, the two girls reach a crossroads. One of them decides to leave school and pursue her career. The other decides to put her career on hold and undertake formal school training. This is a real struggle. What was your journey as you entered the world of filmmaking?
Uchiyama: My father loved drawing as a hobby. I think that had an effect on me. I also have an uncle, who's a painter, but it's not like I had much involvement with him growing up. Also, when I was a kid, I had a neighbor who encouraged me to keep drawing, and that really helped me too. In elementary school, I was one of the kids who drew a lot. I had the skill to notice something and then recreate it on paper. I was also part of the art club and played sports a little, but I loved drawing indoors. When it came to college, I actually failed the entrance exams to get into the university I wanted [laughs]. After that, I went to a 3D CG school. But where I grew up in Fukushima, it wasn't like their drawings were very impressive. But I trained and then moved to Tokyo. While I was there I was working part time and looking for work. I think I could have become an illustrator or manga artist, but that's something I didn't really know how to get into the industry. But as an animator, I believe that as long as you join an animation company, you can become an animator. That's how I chose to be an animator. Then, I found a job posting for companies to join their companies and become animators. I joined the only company that accepted me.
DEADLINE: Now you have this widely acclaimed movie that everyone is talking about. Was the stress worth it?
Uchiyama: Yes [laughs]. I truly believe that the success of a film can be a hit or miss. You don't know what contributes to that and I think I was lucky. I'm grateful for the praise I receive, but I try to constantly tell myself to stay mentally strong. It's like, “It wasn't really my ability. It was just luck and all the other aspects that came into it.” So, I try to tell myself and tone it down. But I think if I think about my next project and if they say, “Oh, it'll be completely successful like Look back“Maybe I'll get a little nervous, but I try not to think about it.
DEADLINE: The film is just under one hour long. What were some of the creative challenges of adapting something so short about sadness, love, and happiness into such a short period of time? Was there a version of this movie longer than an hour?
Uchiyama: the [idea] It started as it should be short within 40 minutes. Given my schedule for Dorian's studio and finances, I can't use a lot of money. So, I knew that working on a 90-minute film would be difficult, and I didn't want to do it. So, with that in mind, it was necessary to keep it short. But also, since the original manga follows this timeline, I couldn't rush through those scenes too quickly. Because then I thought the audience wouldn't be able to keep up. I also wanted to make it easy for the audience to follow what's happening at a good pace. So I thought: “What can I do?” And then, I think I ended up borrowing the power of what music can do in film. Because I believe that dialogue and art can do a lot, but it is not enough. I think, really, that music is able to convey their feelings and what they feel inside easily and directly. So, even in the short scene where the music changes the tempo or what's happening or what's happening, I was able to keep it short and concise. But it's also easy to follow and in good rhythm.
Look back
G Kids
DEADLINE: What's a scene that you didn't think would work while making the movie, but upon seeing it ended up resonating more than you thought it would on screen?
Uchiyama: There are many. But for example, I think at the end of the movie there's about three to four minutes where it flashes back. There are a lot of cuts and takes. This large number of shots is used a lot in television but rarely in films because it feels like a pull-off. So, it's just a long time. Three and a half or four minutes of just music and footage, we were like, “Is this going to be okay?” I was worried. But due to the schedule, we ran out of time, so we had to take pictures. So, until the film came out, I was worried, wondering, “Will the audience be okay with this? Will it still convey what we want it to and will it be accepted?” But the audience really liked it so, it ended up working out well for me.
DEADLINE: Talk about the ending of the film. Fujino deals with this guilt of losing her friend but keeps a part of her artwork with her in the end. What does this mean for him? Uchiyama: In the manga, this 4-panel strip is pasted over. Maybe in the movie you thought it wasn't important to stick that tape on the window. But I think when I took on this project, one of my biggest goals was to respect the manga and be as true to it as possible. So, in the end, we matched the manga. But I think in the movie, even if we didn't have that 4-panel tape pasted on the window, the ending conveyed what we wanted to convey, and I think what the manga wanted to convey. Because I think the place where Fujino works outside her window, looks like a beautiful cityscape. Then, it goes from morning to night, working all the time. I think the background scene really did the job of what this 4 panel strip conveys. But yeah, I think in the end we matched the manga just to match it. But I think what I wanted to convey, what the manga wanted to convey, has already been conveyed if that makes sense.
[This interview, conducted through an interpreter, has been edited for length and clarity]
