From theatrical works to dramas, the "Rider" and "Sentai" series. The "Toei Tokyo Studio", which continues to produce movies that everyone loves, was a space full of wisdom and ingenuity (4).

Speaking of Toei, in addition to movies, "License of Heartlessness" (1973-80), "Tokusou Frontline" (1977-87), and now "Aibo" (2000) and "Detective 7" Many popular and masterpiece dramas have been sent out to the world. He also produced special effects hero dramas such as the "Kamen Rider" series, which began in 1971, and the "Super Sentai" series, which began in 1976.

From 2000's "Kamen Rider Kuuga", he has continued to produce two "Super Sentai" series. Can it continue broadcasting for more than 20 years?”

Therefore, Mr. Jun Hikasa, president and CEO of Toei TV Productions, which continues to produce these two works, Mr. Hidehiko Kawasaki, deputy manager of the technology management department, and the post production department of Toei Co., Ltd. Digital Center Post Production Division We asked Mr. Hiroaki Usui, the sales manager of the Center, about the company's history, business content, 4K and HDR initiatives, and future prospects, focusing on the "Kamen Rider" and "Super Sentai" series. Editor's note: Toei Tokyo Studio does not accept general tours

Hikasa Toei TV Productions was founded in 1959. It was a company created within the Oizumi studio when Toei, which had been producing movies, wanted to expand its business to television production.

At the beginning, both dramas for adults and special effects for children were all produced in-house, and TV production was also created at the Kyoto Studio, and at most four or five TV production departments. I had a place and a company. It merged with the company and became Toei TV Productions as a separate company within the Oizumi studio.

Currently, I am working on 60-minute detective dramas such as "Aibo", "Tokusou 9", and "Keiji 7nin" for 5 to 6 courses a year. However, there are more than 10 two-hour special suspense dramas a year. In terms of special effects, the Kamen Rider series and the Super Sentai series are released 50 times each year.

Kawasaki: Approximately 190 dramas are produced annually, or 120 hours worth of broadcast time.

――The fact that they produce 190 dramas a year is surprising, but the fact that they have continued to produce two special effects dramas, "Kamen Rider" and "Super Sentai", every week for more than 20 years. I can't help but be surprised. Moreover, recent VFX technology boasts a quality that is not inferior to Hollywood blockbusters.

Hikasa: We are often asked, "How do you make that many?", but we don't know how we do it either. Or rather, since this is everyday life, there is also the aspect that people do not understand how amazing it is (laughs).

Kawasaki: Regarding VFX, we owe it to the cooperation and efforts of the three main companies, Nihon Eizou Creative, Tokusatsu Research Institute, and Toei Digital Lab, as well as many other people. And the fact that it has continued for more than 20 years is significant, and I think it boils down to the fact that each company has created such a system based on their many years of experience and achievements.

Hikasa: We have a long relationship with each company, so I think they are very cooperative. If I asked a new company to produce 50 titles a year with this quality, I don't think they would accept it.

――　In the previous interview with Toei Digital Lab, it was said that the first drama in Japan to use the high-performance digital video camera Red One was "Samurai Sentai Shinkenger" (2009-10). However, the reason why "Super Sentai", which had traditionally been shot on 16mm film until "Engine Sentai Go-onger" (2008-09) broadcast the previous year, jumped to the latest Red One. It was Hollywood.

Hikasa: "Super Sentai" was shot on 16mm film for a long time, and when the screen became wide for digital broadcasting, it became a horizontally long Super 16 film. Each film was converted to video and edited. But at this timing, it became Red One at once.

Kawasaki: According to what I heard from Mr. (Takeyuki) Suzuki, who was the producer, the reason for adopting Red One was "Power Rangers". In the United States, since 1993, there has been a program called "Power Rangers" that uses the special effects parts of "Super Sentai".

The drama part before the transformation was filmed in the United States, but the filming will be switched to Red One, and the texture of the image will not match if only the special effects part is filmed. So, it seems that there was talk of considering introducing Red One in Japan as well. I think that we introduced it because we thought that we should take such measures when considering future worldwide business.

Usui: It's true that we suddenly switched from film to Red One, but as the staff on set had experience and achievements in HD shooting for "Kamen Rider," we were confused, but we were able to handle it. I think it's

Hikasa: One of the reasons I chose Red One was that I wanted to leave a film feel in the video. "Kamen Rider" is basically a life-size action, but "Super Sentai" has special effects scenes using miniature giant robots, so Red One produced a more natural image than a normal video camera. That's a big deal.

Kawasaki: If you think about it normally, it would be used as a trial in a one-shot drama, and later in a serial drama, but Toei has always wanted to try it first (laughs). I think that there were many companies that had a frontier spirit that if things didn't work out, they could go back to the original, and they would try Kamen Rider and Super Sentai first.

By the time Red One was introduced, all theatrical movies and dramas were shot in HD. I shoot with quality (horizontal 2880 x vertical 1620 pixels). In the case of digital cinema, 4K is horizontal 4096 × vertical 2160 pixels, but there is almost no difference in appearance, and in the limited production time of TV programs, we want to reduce the burden, including the amount of data, as much as possible. That's why I settled on this resolution.

Also, in "Super Sentai", there are many cuts in which the five members are lined up side by side and zoomed in on them. I use it carefully. However, when shooting in 4K for movies with this lens, a phenomenon called vignetting occurs where the four corners become black. That's why I'm using 3840 horizontal pixels.

Hikasa: It was 2001 when we resumed the theatrical versions of "Kamen Rider" and "Super Sentai". At that time, "Theatrical version Hyakujuu Sentai Gaoranger Hi no Yama, Barking" was shot with 35mm film instead of 16mm film, and "Theatrical version Kamen Rider Agito PROJECT G4" was shot with a digital camera. This was the first time. This continued until we introduced Red One for Super Sentai.

Usui: We shoot with film and digital cameras, but in the end we convert it to HD (horizontal 1920 x vertical 1080 pixels) data and edit the video, so the finished work will be HD quality.

Hikasa: By shooting in 4K, there were times when things that we didn't want to be seen could be seen, and the oddities that tend to occur in video shooting, and miniatures that looked like miniatures. This was the same for HD, but it was solved with the efforts and ingenuity of the staff, props, and makeup. After that, it may have been a big part of the “familiarity” peculiar to humans (laughs).

Usui: I heard that Lighting had a hard time when they switched from film to video. This is because the colors and textures of lighting differ between film and video. In the first place, all the staff have shot with film, so I really want to bring out the nuances of film. In that sense, "Kamen Rider" and "Super Sentai" are one year long, so it was nice to have time to try out various things.

――　In recent years, shooting in 4K is said to be on the rise, but to what extent is it used in "Kamen Rider" and "Super Sentai"?

Kawasaki: In "Kamen Rider" and "Super Sentai", 4K is mainly used when shooting materials for compositing with a green screen and when shooting large-scale shooting such as explosions. The materials for compositing are used to increase the accuracy of the edges of the subject so that the mask can be easily cut out, and are also used when digital zooming is performed in post-processing. Currently, 4K shooting is about 20% of the total.

Hikasa 　I think 4K is often used for special effects rather than high image quality. It is a feeling that if there is a request from the synthesis team, it will be used. If you shoot the whole movie in 4K, the compositing and other work will also be of 4K quality, so I think it will be difficult at the moment to finish one film every week.

However, as a movie filmed in 4K, our company is producing Yutaka Mizutani's second film, Hitokage: The Best Worst Day. Director Mizutani said he wanted to use the staff he had cultivated in "Aibo", so we mainly did it at our company.

──　The content itself is seen by viewers as a "Toei work", but in fact it was created through the joint efforts of many companies such as Toei Headquarters, Toei TV Productions, Toei Digital Lab, Toei Digital Center, etc. there is What part of the production is Toei TV Productions responsible for?

Hikasa: Planning and casting are handled by the Planning and Production Department at Toei Headquarters, and our company is in charge from the stage of receiving the script and budget. We will ask Digital Lab to do the post-production work, but it will be the TV production that will finally finish and deliver it.

There are 16 stages in the Oizumi area, 8 of which are used for dramas such as "Kamen Rider", "Super Sentai" and "Aibo". One of them is dedicated to the miniature set for robot battles of "Super Sentai".

――　When producing special effects dramas such as "Kamen Rider" and "Super Sentai", there are important points that are different from other dramas. It was exactly what children longed for, a hero work.

Kawasaki: Depending on the amount of light, the colors and textures of the photographed image and the actual product may appear different. In normal dramas, it doesn't bother me that much, but in the case of special effects dramas, toys and goods are made, so the colors and images of the heroes on TV look different from what children pick up. I shoot so that it appears flat, while giving due consideration not to feel uncomfortable.

――　Toei's TV works are already being produced on a tight schedule, but the situation has become even more difficult due to the influence of the new coronavirus. Filming for Kamen Rider Zero-One is said to have been suspended for nearly two months due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, the critical situation creates new technology.

Hikasa: Due to the corona crisis, the number of restrictions has increased. First of all, we have to reduce the flow of people and movement, and there are almost no locations where we can get permission to shoot. Even if a filming location is found, the number of cars is doubled because the seats are vacant when traveling.

Kawasaki: In one project, we were only on location for one day in a week, and the rest of the filming was done inside the studio.

Usui　The director and staff came up with ideas and filmed in the same place so that it wouldn't look like that.

Kawasaki: Those who have seen "Kamen Rider Revise" and "Zenkaiger" will understand, but the process of transformation and special moves is becoming more and more complicated, and the synthesis department's capacity is being reduced. I'm in a situation where I'm over it.

Hikasa: Now there is a technology called live compositing that allows you to create such images without going to a location. Our focus is on how you can take advantage of this live composition.

Usui: In green screen compositing, the background is composited into the footage shot with a green screen in advance, but live compositing is a technology that simultaneously composites the background while filming the actors in front of the green screen.

Hikasa: It's a pity to shoot only the material and send it to post-production, so I decided to shoot something as close to the finished version as possible on site to reduce the burden on post-production. Another advantage of live compositing is that with green screen compositing, the background is added later, so the performers don't know where they are. However, with live compositing, the background image is projected on the spot, making it easier for the performers. With that in mind, our current direction is to push live synthesis even further.

Kawasaki: Around the time of "Kamen Rider Saber", synthesis had become saturated, so we decided to incorporate live synthesis in earnest.

――　In the past, VFX was associated with special effects works, but in recent dramas, CG and VFX have become commonplace, and demand continues to increase.

Kawasaki: The demand for VFX is increasing, but anyway, the number of composites is so large that "Kamen Rider" and "Super Sentai" are overflowing, so even if requests for composites come from general dramas, "Ah, On the contrary, I sometimes think that the number of synthetic cuts in a drama is like this (laughs). That said, all dramas now require synthetic cuts, so each person is in charge of the work.

Hikasa: Usually, scenes in which you're in a car are actually taken out on the road, but with the recent coronavirus pandemic, that's sometimes difficult. However, if you use the live composition I mentioned earlier, you can shoot in the studio, so I'm trying it little by little even with ordinary dramas.

Kawasaki: At Oizumi Studio, the entire company is working on virtual studios and live compositing. The big issue for that is assets, assets. In other words, how to collect the materials and materials to be used for the background.

The key to compositing is how many backgrounds you can prepare. By making it into a library, I think it will be possible to use it constantly in various works. In the case of a TV program, if you create assets after someone says, "I want to shoot a scene like this," the broadcast may end by the time it's finished.

――　In terms of TV broadcasting, stereo sound has become commonplace, and it is becoming possible to enjoy even more clearly. However, it is said that there is a point unique to a program with a long history when it comes to sound.

Hikasa: The video has changed since "Shinkenger" was shot by Red One, but the sound has actually changed as well. Until then, I had recorded only the dialogue after the shooting, but with the switch to Red One, the voice was also recorded at the same time (simultaneous recording).

Usui: As for the sound, one of the points might be that "Kamen Rider" and "Super Sentai" have a long history, so we don't dare change the sound that the fans are familiar with. Right now, I'm recording the dialogue in the same recording, but the special effects part after the transformation is dubbing. The texture of the voice changes between the same recording on site and the post-recording in the studio, so compared to other dramas, it may be a struggle.

Hikasa: The sound is certainly difficult. There are a lot of sounds that don't exist in this world, especially the SE, especially the voices of the scene, the sound of the scene, the voice of the dubbing. If I can't find the sound I want, I sometimes use 6mm (magnetic) tape to bring in sounds that I made in the Showa era.

Usui 　Sometimes people say they want that sound from "Super Sentai", but sometimes it's hard to find it. There are some sounds that I inherited from my predecessors, but they have not been archived yet, so if I can't find the 6mm tapes, there will be none left. At that time, there is no choice but to make it closer to the desired sound.

Hikasa: I've even used the sounds extracted from past videos.

──As the era changed from Showa to Heisei to Reiwa, both "Kamen Rider" and "Super Sentai" will change.

Kawasaki: In the past, "Kamen Rider" was a solitary hero, but now it has changed into a hero in which multiple riders appear and fight together with their friends. Also, the Reiwa version of Kamen Rider has a job. "Zero One" is the president of a large company, "Saber" is a writer, and "Revise", which is currently on air, is the heir to a public bathhouse. Since then, female riders have appeared, and there are riders who do not hide their Kamen Rider status. Kamen Rider also changes along with the times.

Hikasa: We are now in an era of high image quality and high sound quality, but the most important thing for us as creators is to continue broadcasting one episode each week without interruption, even as we seek it. I think it is. As Toei's masterpiece, we will continue to create programs that will not disappoint our fans.