Director, Koji Masunari
My job was to transfer this work's philosophy onto the film as accurately as possible. I must say that the key character was Achika. Although she is Tenchi's ultimate ideal woman, I deliberately tried not to idolize her and make her into a perky high school student. Because Achika is rather traditional type of heroine the gang is quieter than usual when she is around. Maybe they are behaving themselves because she is Tenchi's mother. Although they are running around getting themselves in trouble when Achika is not around. (laugh) When I heard we were creating the sound track in the US, I thought, " Wow... that's something, we are spending a lot of money on music..." (laugh). I was a bit concerned though.... because "Tenchi Muyo!" is such a stereotypical Japanese film. The basic rhythm of my direction is actually similar to the rhythm of Noh or Japanese folklore music. It is the same with the action scenes, only just a little bit faster though. (laugh) This is because I believe this kind of rhythm is most comfortable and people can relate to it most easily. So I had this doubt for a long time, whether or not a " Japanese folklore music" movie could take on an American soundtrack. However, when I recieved the music for the 30 second trailer, I was pleasantly surprised and decided not to say anything further (laugh). As for the music for the feature, it was much better than I ever imagined and I am confident the film will be a success.
(Koji Masunari): Belongs to Studio Ebisu. Oh My Goddess! (director), Dangerous Adventures of Jojo (OVA) (sketches,director). Directed the endings of Tenchi Muyo! ( all episodes including OVA the first period through TV series). He also directed the opening of the TV Tenchi Muyo! and was in charge of the sketches for episode #6.
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