"First of all, there's the 'movement' and the 'space'. The theme comes later." Special interview with animation artist Jun Wada: "New Artist Picks Jun Wada Exhibition | My Swamp"

-- I heard that you started self-studying animation while you were still in college around 2002. What was the trigger?

Wada : I majored in art when I was a student, but I was actually more interested in video. I always loved watching stand-up comedy and skits, and I wondered if I could express the tension and pauses that come with laughter. That's how it all started. Also, looking back, I think I may have had a slight complex about not being as good at drawing as the people around me.

--So first there was something you wanted to do, and then you came up with the animation method later.

Wada : That's right. At first, I had almost no knowledge or skills in animation production. It was almost by chance that I started working on my own projects. One day, I made a short animation out of curiosity, and my university professors and friends around me praised it. I was very happy about that.

--So your motivation was simple (laughs).

Wada : Yes. To put it simply, I thought, "Maybe there's an opportunity for me to exploit this as well" (laughs). It's still the same now. Even though the places where I present my work have changed to overseas film festivals and television, the biggest motivation is still getting praise from people close to me and having them say, "That was interesting." I'm sure the timing was good too. Computers were just starting to become more widespread, and the environment was becoming more and more conducive for beginners to try their hand at animation production on their own.

--Is the fact that you're from Kansai probably a factor in being inspired by the tension and timing of comedy?

Wada : I don't know (laughs). It was something I was naturally exposed to in my daily life, so I don't think I was ever conscious of it... However, unlike live-action, animation is something that you can control down to the smallest details by yourself if you put in the time, so I thought it was better for expressing "tension" and "pause."

--For example, what kind of manzai or sketch comedy did you like?

Wada : I watched them without discrimination, but I especially loved Downtown. I also vividly remember their skits in variety shows such as "Gottsu Ee Kanji". I think I was most influenced by the original video work "HITOSI MATUMOTO VISUALBUM" (1998-99) produced by Matsumoto Hitoshi. There are three volumes in total, each containing five short stories, and each setting is very interesting and the visual quality is high. Above all, because he created them without worrying about the broadcast length, you can feel the unique "interval" that only Matsumoto can create everywhere.