Chapter 2 | Since When, and Until Then | Remake our Life!
Part 7
I went to Kaiyukan for the first time in a while, and it turned out to be an even more amazing place than I expected.
The huge aquarium surrounded by large acrylic glass was impressive, and there were rare and beautiful creatures swimming in each one.
Time flies by as I admire the schools of tiny fish and the sheer size of the manta rays. Just watching the blue water moving and swaying, 10 or 20 minutes are consumed in no time at all.
At first I thought it would be more boring, but I was very wrong.
Now, I've realized it.
(Of course, this is also a form of entertainment.)
The same goes for the trick of descending step by step from the upper floors, and techniques that create movement on the part of the viewer rather than just staring at them will likely be useful for future video productions.
And finally, the main character appeared.
"Wow, that's so big."
Shinoaki is surprised and raises her voice.
Among the big things that stood out in the tank was a huge fish swimming leisurely.
"Is this a whale shark?"
It is so famous that it is said that this is the fish when you come here, and it can be said to be the centerpiece of the Kaiyukan.
At the time, the mere fact that this large fish was swimming in an aquarium was a topic of great interest. Of course, it is still very powerful even today.
"It's beautiful. It's sparkling in the blue light~"
Shinoaki is entranced and gazing at the aquarium, which resembles the ocean.
"Yeah," I said, and I kind of looked at her from the side.
She does not look like a woman of her age as she engrossed herself in the scene before her. She looks much younger than her age, like an innocent little girl.
But she is probably one of the most skilled people of her generation in a certain field. She has created an enormous number of drawings of extraordinary quality, and she is trying to go even further.
The contrast between the childishness of her outward appearance and the fearsomeness of her inner self. Tsurayuki described this contrast as a monster.
(Where does she find that kind of strength?)
On my way back to the share house the other day, I thought about that question again. It was a question that had no answer, but I wondered if I would ever have the chance to find out.
*
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Both Shinoaki and Kyoya were standing in front of the tank, close to each other, whispering something to each other. I don't know what they were talking about,
"Somehow, they have a great atmosphere!"
Or it looks like so.
"It's just your imagination. They have that kind of conversation at home."
"No, what can I say about that...... I get the feeling that Shinoaki is letting up a little bit. I feel like she's not her usual self."
"Like I said, it's just your imagination."
Tsurayuki says that no matter what I say, it's all in my imagination. That's because if you don't care about it, any conversation you hear will be like that.
But I understand. I can tell.
Kyoya's feelings for Shinoaki are not clearly understood, but Shinoaki... has feelings for Kyoya that are close to love.
(I wonder if she will say it, somewhere)
In this atmosphere, it didn't seem strange to say it at any time.
"Ah~ mou, what should I do? what should I do? If that happens, I don't know what to do~!"
"You, I told you before, are you thinking about it! Let's go home before you do something crazy, please."
"Wait! Can you please stop talking under the assumption that I'm going to do something weird!?"
"Don't you think you've done enough already?"
"Because, you know, it bothers me. Hey, let's get a little closer to where I can hear what they're saying!"
"Stop it! Don't listen to people behind their backs. I don't care what happens!"
*
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Suddenly, Shinoaki's face turned towards me.
"What's wrong? I thought you were staring at me."
As usual, she has a soft smile.
"Does Shinoaki like the sea?"
"Yeah... that's right, there's a lot of ocean over there."
The word "over there" probably refers to her hometown, Fukuoka.
"I see, Shinoaki seems to take good care of your parents' house."
Well, the only evidence is her taste for instant ramen and dialect.
If you don't have any attachment to your hometown, she probably won't touch either of them.
"Yeah... that's right."
Shinoaki answered with a slightly somber look.
"Sorry, I guess I said something weird."
"It's nothing like that. I just remembered something."
Soft and fluffy, always with a gentle expression.
Shinoaki once told me about when she was at home with her parents. She was always screwing up in her daily life, her academic performance was not good, and she was not good at sports. The only thing she was good at was drawing.
Perhaps, I thought, things at her parents' house were not such a good memory. If so, maybe I should stop talking about it.
"Shinoaki, you know"
Trying to change the subject at least, I spoke to her in a cheerful tone.
But she,
"There's something I wanted to tell you, Kyoya-kun."
She had a soft but determined expression.
"To me...?"
Shinoaki nodded silently.
*
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"Wah, it's coming, it's coming! Hey!"
"Shut up! What if they hear you? Be quiet!"
"I mean, this is definitely a confession! Ah~ I already knew that Shinoaki was like that~ I knew, but mou~!"
"Anyway, if you don't want to be found out, just listen quietly!"
"You don't have to tell me that......Areh?"
"What's wrong?"
"Doesn't the atmosphere feel a little different?"
"Eh?"
*
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I wonder if there was anything that she had to talk about in a formal way here. I just assumed that there was nothing, but in fact, she may have had something she had been holding on to for a long time.
I waited for her next words. Eventually, the words came out of her slowly opened mouth,
"I drew a lot."
Shinoaki muttered.
"In the work of Kuroda and others?"
"Yes."
It was probably a big job, but I could not read the difficulty from the quiet expression on Shinoaki's face.
However, because it was quiet, the word "a lot" was a heavy one.
"There were times when I didn't understand why I was drawing, but by drawing so many illustrations without thinking about it, I remembered."
The large fin of a manta ray fluttered before my eyes. The water moved and bubbled.
I could feel my heart beating loudly.
"About those days when I started drawing."
Suddenly, the air around me became tense.
The usual soft and warm atmosphere remained the same. Shinoaki's expression was as gentle as usual.
But it was definitely a space I was experiencing for the first time.
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Part 8
This was probably the first thing I did when I came to the University of the Arts. I think it was about finding friends. Someone who moves with a similar mindset. I knew it had to be there somewhere, so I started looking for them from my first orientation.
The first person that caught my attention was Kawasegawa Eiko. However, she was smart and knowledgeable, but she was a problem for me because she and I were both in the same field. I thought Rokuonji Tsurayuki was also good material, but I felt that his hard-headedness was troublesome, so I eliminated both of them as candidates, thinking that I could get involved with them later.
In the end, I couldn't find a staff member in time, so I joined a team that was randomly available.
What awaited me was the same despair as in high school. No, perhaps this one was more troublesome because it was more headstrong.
Some were just looking at Tarkovsky, which they didn't even understand, because it looked cool, others were so focused on entertainment that they had lost all sense of politeness, and still others simply came to the university because it would look cool. Disappointed at our first meeting, I decided to make up a proper profile, saying that my hobby was music and I was not interested in video, and that I would work with them when they decided to do something, and I would be happy to be a bystander.
In the first production, I observed them. I observed the movements of the group, simulating how they would move and talk, and what would happen if I moved them in my own way. I found that there were several types of people, so I thought about how to respond to each of them, and before I knew it, the production was over.
Then, the screening of the 3-minute video. I predicted that the team with Kawasegawa would probably make something reasonably good.
However, it was betrayed in an unexpected way.
The team that Rokuonji worked with hit us with an unusual compositional video. It was a combination of still and moving images in just the right balance, not unlike any other work. It was the kind of work that was allowed only because of its three-minute screening time, and although it was not an optimal solution, it was the kind of work that would receive a "○".
At first, I thought it was Rokuonji's doing. That he must have seen quite a bit of film, so I thought he had successfully appropriated it from around silent or experimental film.
However, in reality, it was different. Not only did he save the film from being canceled, but he also gave it a wonderful personality that would have made it a mediocre film. I hurried to look him up. I didn't know him. He didn't stand out in class, and he was a nobody.
Hashiba Kyoya.
I couldn't help but be happy. I found someone I could compete with in what was going to be an incredibly boring student life.
But if I suddenly approached him and said such a thing, he would only get creeped out. So I decided to take action to make the other party approach me.
I wanted to do something that would stand out even more than he did. If I saw an opportunity and called out to him, I was sure I would get an interesting response.
Therefore, I tried to experiment with the production team in the second half of the year. While deliberately using rough language to upset the staff, what I did was done well, and criticism was contained. It was also a test to see how well I could do with a completely random group of people.
The results were, well, largely as expected. There was no way to do anything but make the unpolished parts of the team look rough and attractive, and I could only feel the limits of what they could do. So I told that to the staff, but they didn't seem to have any ambition, so they rebelled and the team fell apart.
However, now I know. I definitely have a talent for production. I have the ability to drag people around and move them to make things. And that is definitely an element that can be turned into something depending on the creator.
With confidence, I was looking for my next work and came across Shino Aki. I thought I had no choice but to cut to the chase here, including Hashiba's ties to her, so I made my move.
"This is it. What I've done so far."
Sensei remained silent and listened intently to my story.
And as soon as it was over,
"What did you figure out?"
The only thing she asked.
"To work with real creators, I needed to be stronger myself. It wasn't something as vague as being able to do the work, but a level of achievement and numbers that would make me say whether or not I could do the work, that kind of thing."
In fact, if I made something good, there were people who appreciated it. Morito saw that in me and followed me, and Hashiba ultimately entrusted me with Shino because of my track record of producing good work. In this type of industry, talk alone is not enough.
"Therefore, I will make something overwhelming that others cannot reach no matter how they try. If I specialize only in making high-quality products that can be sold as a commodity, I can eliminate all the escapist opinions that say, "You won't know until you launch it". That is the ideal for me."
When I finished speaking, I took a deep breath.
Sensei clapped her hands,
"Haha, that's great. I can't believe you already understand everything necessary for production."
She said, and nodded heavily.
"Good, Kuroda. Don't change anything. Proceed as you wish."
"Of course, that was my intention from the beginning."
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