Violet Evergarden Director Had an Interesting Relationship with the Protagonist Even Eiichiro Oda Could Relate To
When it was announced that Kyoto Animation, or KyoAni, would take up the production of Violet Evergarden, fans anticipated a breathtaking piece of art. Better known for their work on the movie Tamako Love Story, and A Silent Voice, fans knew that they were in for a treat.
Written as a light novel by Kana Akatsuki, Violet Evergarden follows the story of a young woman who struggles to adapt to the world around her. She serves as a soldier and becomes a weapon of the war, but she also pays a dear cost for it. She ends up losing both her arms and connection with her commanding officer, Gilbert.
Violet is a character who had grown up mistreated and malnourished as a child and the war turned her into a killing machine. It was only Gilbert who had treated her as a human and it was in trying to understand Gilbert’s last confession to her that Violet decides to decipher her own emotions. This spurs a journey of self-discovery and maturation as Violet relearns how to live; this time for herself.
Violet Evergarden‘s Director Shares Something In Common With Eiichiro Oda
Similar to how authors treat their books like children, creators of mangas and animes also share a bond with their characters, given that developing a character is time-consuming and demands so much effort from the entire team.
Taichi Ishidate, the director of Violet Evergarden, is no exception, and neither is Eiichiro Oda, the creator of One Piece. They both seem to favor the protagonists of their series and see them as their own children.
In a special interview with Hatta Shinichirou, the producer of Violet Evergarden, he was asked about the distinctive characteristics of Ishidate and the appeal of his work, to which he replied:
He is a director full of obsessions and skills, from the making of the art to the layouts, up to the action of the animation. Moreover, he strongly loves the young woman named Violet Evergarden as if she were his own daughter, so I guess the fact that he had the resolve to handle and depict her life steadily is appealing of him as a director.
Ishidate is not the only individual who shares this bond with their characters. In an interview with Eiichiro Oda, the interviewer asked him what the protagonist of One Piece, Luffy, meant to him and Oda promptly replied:
Luffy is my ideal child. I wish all children could be like him. He may say some inspirational lines from time to time, but I want him to stay a kid forever.
There’s no doubt that creators get attached to their creations, however considering one’s creation as a child is a different level of commitment altogether, and it goes to show how much dedication is poured into every minuscule detail of a character.
Violet Evergarden‘s Director Carried His Obsession With Details To The Last Minute
In the special interview, the interviewer and the producer discussed Ishidate’s passion and his obsession with perfection. The interviewer stated that Ishidate’s strong feelings towards the characters can be felt through the script. Shinichirou responded:
Director Ishidate’s passion is incredible. From the cityscapes to the landscapes, from the actions to the ways of presenting Violet, every single cut is drawn dynamic and carefully. Not even the smallest detail is compromised, and he carries his obsessions to extremes until the last minute.
Shinchirou also stated that Ishidate’s work was developed to be delivered to people worldwide from the start. The director’s posture during the production transmitted his desire to make the series even better, and the staff was also frantically getting to grips with it, so they were working on it as one.
You can watch Violet Evergarden on Netflix.
