by TOMIO (ANIMEPLAY VOLUME 6, FALL 2004)
Mr. Stan Sakai has consistently created one of the best comics in the United States of the past twenty years. With his effortless integration of accurate Japanese Feudal culture and charmingly rendered anthropomorphic characters, Mr. Sakai has created an epic story that entertains its readers as much as it educates them. AnimePlay was blessed with the fortune of having an intimate interview with the creator of Usagi Yojimbo.
Check out the USAGI YOJIMBO: STAN SAKAI video interview and drawing tutorial in the FEATURES section of the ANIMEPLAY Vol. 6 DVD
ANIMEPLAY: How did you get involved in creating Usagi Yojimbo Comics?
STAN SAKAI: Well, I’m Stan Sakai and I do a comic called Usagi Yojimbo. I’ve been doing this since 1984. Usagi is a samurai rabbit.
It came about because I wanted to do a comic about the life of Miyamoto Musashi, who is a 17th century samurai. I grew up reading comics, so I wanted to combine a part of my Japanese heritage with my love of comic books.
One day while sketching in my sketch book, I drew a rabbit with his ears tied up in a chonmage (a samurai top knot). I loved the design! It was simple but it was unique. So instead of Miyamoto Musashi, my character became Miyamoto Usagi. Usagi, of course, means rabbit in Japanese.
ANIMEPLAY: What do you find so intriguing about Miyamoto Musashi’s life?
STAN SAKAI: I saw all the Musashi movies with Toshiro Mifune or Nakamura Kinnosuke. There was a theatre located down the street from where I lived in Hawaii where they showed those chanbara (sword fighting) movies every Saturday. I was there every Saturday.
I fell in love with both the genre as well as the life of Musashi. I read the book and his “Book of Five Rings”.
ANIMEPLAY: It’s evident that you love comics and Samurai films. Did you always envision that your career would be built primarily on the unique fusion of these two forms? How did you envision your comic career?
STAN SAKAI: (Laughs) When I grew up in Hawaii, there was no comic book industry. You had to live in New York to be a comic book artist. I loved doing art and had a degree in art so I figured I’d do advertising.
It was through the backdoor that I got involved in comics. I moved to the Los Angeles area and heard from some friends of mine that some guy wanted to start a comic book company in Seattle. I sent him an 8 page story that I had done and he published it.
I sent him a second story which was the first story of Usagi. From there I started getting offers from comic book publishers asking me to do work for them.
ANIMEPLAY: When you did your first Usagi story, did you envision an epic world with many characters? Was it an organic process where day by day the world got bigger?
STAN SAKAI: Doing Usagi was very organic. I wasn’t sure whether to do a historical story or a fantasy series with monsters from Japanese mythology; not only the horrendous monsters of mythology but also the weird quirky stuff which I love.
The first Usagi story pretty much outlined the entire series. It was very historical… very accurate as far as history and culture goes, but it also had a wacky fantastical feel to it.
ANIMEPLAY: Why Comics?
STAN SAKAI: With comics I do it all. Usagi is my creation. I write the stories. I do all the artwork. My publishers have very little input as far as story or art goes.
I think I’ve had just one negative comment from all of my editors in the past twenty years. In the story, Usagi was cutting off a guy’s head and bits of brains were flying out (smiles). My editor called me and said, “You know that one panel kind of bothers me.”
ANIMEPLAY: Why did you choose to use anthropomorphic animals as your characters instead of people?
STAN SAKAI: Japan has a strong anthropomorphic history. Their very first picture scrolls were done with animal characters. Doing funny animals is kind of a tradition in Japanese history.
Also, the BIG reason is that I think Usagi looks really cool with his ears tied up (laughs). Rather than have one funny animal in a human world like CEREBUS, I wanted to have consistency. So Usagi lives in an all funny animal world.
ANIMEPLAY: How do you create your characters? Do you develop a personality and think of an animal that fits or do you create a visual and find a personality that fits it?
STAN SAKAI: The creation of characters happens either way. I may think of a visual first and then find a story to put him in, or I may create the personality and then do the visuals afterwards.
For example, I created a character named Inspector Ishida who’s a cop. My first sketches of Ishida were as a strong, silent type. He had the big square jaw and was a huge guy. But later I thought that maybe I should go the other way. I visualized an old Hawaiian detective named Chang Apana who lived in the early 1900s. He was a really small guy but he carried a bull whip. So I imagined how Chang Apana would look as a funny animal.
So Inspector Ishida, instead of being a big, burly square jawed guy… the typical hero type, became a really smart, very quiet spoken short guy (smiles).
ANIMEPLAY: Beyond Usagi, what characters are you proud of designing?
STAN SAKAI: I like Gen, the bounty hunter. He’s a rhinoceros. I love the massiveness of the rhino. He’s a nice counterpoint to Usagi. Gen was actually based upon Toshiro Mifune’s appearances in YOJIMBO and SANJURO. He has that scruffiness to him… he’s always scratching himself. Gen even has the personality, in the way he always manipulates people.
ANIMEPLAY: How much research is involved in writing a story for Usagi?
STAN SAKAI: I really enjoy doing the research. It connects me to my culture as a third generation Japanese American.
But Usagi is primarily for entertainment, so I do as much research as I can within reason. I don’t want the research to overwhelm the story. The more research, the better because it sets Usagi in a real world.
I’ve done stories based upon kite making, sword making, and pottery.
“Grasscutter” was a twelve issue story. It took about five years to write. It started off with the creation of the Japanese islands and follows the sword “Grasscutter” throughout history. “Grasscutter” is a real sword. It’s one of the three treasures of Japan, so I had to get it right.
I’m really proud of “Grasscutter”. It’s won a number of awards and was even used as a text book for Japanese history classes at the University of Portland.
ANIMEPLAY: Is there any story that you never really thought to tell, but because the research was so interesting, you HAD to tell a story based upon it?
STAN SAKAI: Yes. The kite story. It was the first time I ever did a lot of research for a story. That came about because I bought a book on Japanese kite making. I didn’t buy it thinking it would make a good story; I just bought it because it seemed kind of neat!
Five years later, while sketching in my sketch book, I did a small drawing of Usagi holding on to the tail of a kite while the kite flew off. The kite book had sparked the idea. I did a little bit more research and the story pretty much wrote itself.
ANIMEPLAY: How real is the character of Usagi to you? In your mind, does he ever direct the stories himself?
STAN SAKAI: Usagi writes himself. Of course, I write the stories… but Usagi directs these stories himself. He’s grown and matured over the years. If you look back on the earlier Usagi stories you see that he’s changed physically. That was totally unconscious on my part. It’s the natural growth of Usagi.
ANIMEPLAY: Usagi has had stories published in black & white and in full color. Which format do you prefer?
STAN SAKAI: Usagi started off in black & white and it became a color series when I went over to Mirage Studios. I actually got some letters of complaint saying that people did not like the color. Personally, I prefer it in black & white. In color, I found myself putting in a lot less detail because the color would carry it through. But I love the feel and look of black & white.
ANIMEPLAY: How long does it take to do a story of Usagi?
STAN SAKAI: I do about 9-10 issues and roughly one trade paperback of Usagi a year. That gives me time to do other projects. Right now we are working on the ART OF USAGI YOJIMBO coffee table book. Also, Usagi will be appearing in the new TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES cartoon series.
ANIMEPLAY: Have you been influenced by anime and manga?
STAN SAKAI: I have been greatly influenced by the anime and manga people. I grew up reading Osamu Tezuka’s work. I used to watch GIGANTOR and SPEED RACER back in the 1960s.
Of the more recent creators, I’m just a huge fan of Miyazaki’s work. His work is just unbelievable. I’d love to attain that level of dedication and artistry in my work.
ANIMEPLAY: In general, what are some creators that have influenced your work?
STAN SAKAI: I love Kurosawa’s work. I’m influenced more by film than by comic books as far as visual storytelling goes. People like Alfred Hitchcock and Steven Spielberg.
ANIMEPLAY: What do you feel you can learn from storytelling in film?
STAN SAKAI: Particularly the pacing of films. In comics you are limited by the number of pages that you have. You have to compress everything. With film you can spend a bit more time on certain scenes…
I would love to get into film… but with comics, I get to do EVERYTHING myself. I’m the writer, the director, the art director, and I do the final editing. I love that independence.
ANIMEPLAY: Anything you’d like to add?
STAN SAKAI: No. That’s about it (smiles)… except, pick up an issue of Usagi and I hope you enjoy it!
Link to the DVD video.....
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x4qbyt ... 0_creation
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