From the final note of the recently released – like today – The Intuition Of Haruhi Suzumiya. I’ve added aniDB links to the staff members here to show their work history more easily.

A Final Note

Words fail me when it comes to what happened at Kyoto Animation on July 18, 2019. I feel like I could write forever and it would never be enough, and that this is something beyond the capacity of mere words. So there’s not much that I can write here. What I can talk about are the little memories stored in the corners of my mind. So many Kyoto Animation staff members helped animate this series. I can’t thank them enough for what they did. I only met a few in person and spoke to even fewer, but there are a number of moments that remain seared into my mind even after all this time.

So the following are my personal recollections.

If I remember right, I first visited Kyoto Animation early in 2005. One of the first people I met was Yoshiji Kigami. He introduced himself by saying, “Kigami, written as tree and above.” Clear, easily remembered—and I’ve never forgotten it. But I’m afraid I was unaware of who he was at the time. It was much later that I learned he was one of the world’s top animators. But even I could tell the rest of the staff had the utmost faith in him.

The character designer and chief animation director for The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya anime was Shouko Ikeda, and I remember her being in those meetings very early on. She gave me a warm smile and then asked very pointed questions like, “How does Haruhi smile?” Off the cuff, I said, “Like a half-moon on its side yawning open,” and then figuring it would communicate the idea better, I drew a few pictures on a piece of paper. If you’re curious what that answer led to, check the key visuals Ikeda drew.

Naomi Ishida was the color designer, and I remember her from a visit to the studio with Noizi Ito. The two of them were looking at an image of Haruhi on a monitor, getting really nitty-gritty about the specifics of the coloring. I especially remember when they got to Haruhi’s shoes. Ishida had a mouse in one hand and asked Noizi, “How’s this?” “A little darker.” “Like this?” “That’s it.” To my eyes, the two colors were basically the same, but to the two of them, they were worlds apart. The craftsmanship was astounding.

I first spoke to Futoshi Nishiya (chief animation director of the second season and The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya) while visiting a hospital to do location scouting for the movie. At the time, there was concern about a new strain of influenza, so when a bunch of us rolled in wearing masks and carrying cameras, the patients gave us some very strange looks. I was sitting on a bench in a waiting room, and Nishiya came over to me, looking very serious. I wondered if something had happened, but he said, “I may have made the characters too cute. What do you think?” I could see it being a problem if they weren’t cute, but how could “too cute” ever be an issue? I said I couldn’t see the slightest smidgen of an issue, but he was clearly still thinking about it. I couldn’t help admiring his perfectionism.

Yasuhiro Takemoto was the director of the second season and The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya, but all my memories are from the nigh weekly script meetings we had for the first season. I remember more about the idle chatter than the actual scripts. We talked about all kinds of stuff, from the World Rally Championship to Wimbledon to old Famicom RPGs. I wouldn’t necessarily call myself the most social person in the world, so I suspect this was his way of keeping me engaged. In hindsight, I really appreciate that consideration. The last time I met him was several years ago, at a Kadokawa thank-you party, and as we parted ways, we said the lines everyone takes for granted: “We’ll have to go drinking together sometime.” The fact that we’ll never make that happen leaves me with nothing but grief.

I wrote this to the best extent of my memory, as accurately as I could, but perhaps some of these memories are faulty. I hope you’ll excuse that.

Finally, there are two things I feel should be said.

I won’t forget you.

I won’t forget what you did.

If you agree with these statements, read the subject as plural. Feel free to rewrite them as you please.

My memories are tiny things. Other people have far more memories than I do. Those memories belong to them.

I intend to treasure the modest memories that remain with me.

Thank you so much.