Godzilla 2016

[Gabe99]

Variety:
Japan’s Toho to Produce New ‘Godzilla’ Movie

TOKYO — Ten years after “Godzilla: Final Wars,” the last Toho Godzilla movie, trampled across the screen, the Japanese studio is gearing up to make another film featuring its iconic character.

The movie is scheduled to begin production in the summer of 2015 and bow theatrically in 2016, Toho sources have revealed. Details, including director and cast, have yet to be announced.

The inspiration is the success of Gareth Edward’s 2014 “Godzilla,” which earned $525 million worldwide and JPY3.2 billion ($26 million) in Japan, with Toho and Warner Bros. Japan co-distributing.

Toho has launched what it calls the Godzilla Strategic Conference (Godzi-Con), a committee of studio executives and directors whose aim is to reboot the Godzilla brand, including the new “Godzilla” pic.

The head of the new Godzilla project, veteran producer Taichi Ueda, told the press that, though Toho will not spend the $200 million reportedly lavished on the American “Godzilla,” “The time has come for Japan to make a film that will not lose to Hollywood.” Ueda added that Toho hopes to make Godzilla a character that “will represent Japan and be loved around the world” by the time of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

As part of its effort to reacquaint a new generation of Japanese with the country’s signature monster, Toho plans to erect a giant Godzilla statue in its Toho Cinemas Shinjuku theater by April of next year.

Meanwhile, Edwards has been signed to make “Godzilla 2,” which is set for a June 8, 2018, bow, with Legendary and Warner Bros. again co-producing.

The 28th Godzilla pic since Ishiro Honda’s first in 1954, Ryuhei Kitamura’s “Godzilla: Final Wars” earned a disappointing $12 million following its 2004 release, prompting Toho to put the character into cold storage.

 

[Gabe99]

The Good, The Bad, and Godzilla:
THE "JAPANESE GODZILLA" WILL RISE AGAIN!
Toho to Produce a New "Godzilla" in 2015

Godzilla's 60th Anniversary isn't over, it's just beginning!

Kaijucast:
12.09.2014: BREAKING GODZILLA NEWS!

Big news straight from Japan’s Toho Co. Ltd. this week, folks! I’m sure many of you have heard the news about Toho’s announcement this past weekend about their plans for a new Godzilla movie. And that’s not all, Godzilla will be making an appearance on the rooftop of a Shinjuku hotel. Still want something cool, but maybe not as cool as a new movie? Godzilla’s finally going to be part of bar trivia history be being named the Guinness Book of World Record’s “Longest continuously running movie franchise” – not too shabby, right?

To discuss this in much more detail, I asked the author of Eiji Tsuburaya: Master Of Monsters, August Ragone to elaborate on his article about this news (which you can read here). He goes into a lot of detail about announcement and the history surrounding some of these plans. August also speculates on some of the unknowns as well.

THR:
Japan's Toho to Produce New 'Godzilla' for 2016, First in 12 Years

"This is very good timing after the success of the American version this year: if not now, then when? The licensing contract we have with Legendary places no restrictions on us making domestic versions," a Toho staffer told The Hollywood Reporter.

Toho also announced the formation of a Godzilla Strategic Conference (Godzi-Con), consisting of executives and directors that will look for ways to leverage the Godzilla brand through merchandising and other activities. The launch of Godzi-Con suggests that Toho is planning on creating a new Godzilla series, though the studio will not confirm anything beyond the 2016 film.

Toho Makes 1st Japanese Godzilla Film in 12 Years

TOHO proclaimed, "The time has come to make a film that will not bow down to the Hollywood film," thanks to a combination of rapidly improving filmmaking techniques (as exemplified by the ongoing Parasyte films) and know-how developed over the years in Japan.

YouTube:
Parasyte - Official Live-Action Trailer

Film Review: ‘Parasyte: Part 1′
Bigscreen adaptation of Japanese body-snatcher manga in good hands with vfx whiz Takashi Yamazaki, who builds on blockbuster success of his most recent hit, 'The Eternal Zero.'


Taichi Ueda was a producer on Takashi Yamazaki's The Eternal Zero.
I bet they team up again for Godzilla 2016.

 

[GR8GODZILLAGOD]

There's already a thread on this http://forums.superherohype.com/showthread.php?t=490525

 

[Gabe99]

"EVANGELION" CREATOR HELMS NEW "GODZILLA"
Hideaki Anno & Shinji Higuchi Revive the King!

Perhaps you don't realize what this means. It is momentous.

Evangelion's Hideaki Anno Is New Japanese Godzilla Film's Chief Director, Writer
Live-action Attack on Titan's Shinji Higuchi is director, special-effects director on Summer 2016 film

Evangelion director Hideaki Anno is the chief director and writer of TOHO's upcoming Godzilla film, the first new Japanese one in the franchise in 12 years. Shinji Higuchi, the director of Japan Sinks, Nobō no Shiro, and the upcoming live-action Attack on Titan films, is directing the new film and serving as special effect director as well.

The two longtime tokusatsu (special-effects) fans have been close friends for three decades. They previously collaborated on "Kyoshinhei Tokyo ni Arawaru" (Giant God Warrior Appears in Tokyo), Ghibli's live-action tokusatsu short. Anno planned and wrote this short that draws inspiration from the Giant God Warriors in Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki's Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind manga and anime film, and Higuchi directed the short.

Higuchi worked as a storyboarder for the Evangelion television series and the three recent films, and he served as assistant director on Royal Space Force - The Wings of Honnêamise. (Anno was an animation director on that film.)

Higuchi has also served as the special effects director for the Gamera: Guardian of the Universe, Gamera 2: Advent of Legion, and Gamera 3: Awakening of Irys films. With Higuchi's collaboration, Anno curated a tokusatsu exhibition that drew 291,575 visitors at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Tokyo in 2012.

Anno (left in photo) received the offer to work on the film at the end of January 2013. Mentally exhausted after 2012's Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo, he declined the offer once. However, TOHO's earnestness and Higuchi's enthusiasm eventually won him over, and he agreed to work on the project.

Anno is working on Studio Khara's fourth and final new Evangelion film, and the new TOHO Godzilla film is limited in budget and production time compared to Hollywood. However, Anno said that he has pride in the new Godzilla project as a film, and is making both that film and the new Evangelion film with all his effort.

Higuchi (right in photo) entered the film industry when he worked on the 1984 Godzilla film, so he remarked with delight on directing the new Godzilla film, "Finally, the time has come." He added, "Playtime is over," and acknowledged the pressure on him. Still, he vowed, "Next year, I will deliver the greatest and worst nightmare to everyone."

TOHO unveiled an image (pictured above right) of the foot of its new Godzilla on Wednesday. According to Cinema Today, the foot is indicative of the new Godzilla being the tallest one yet, towering over the 108-meter-tall (about 355-foot-tall) incarnation in Gareth Edwards and Legendary Pictures' 2014 Hollywood film. The setting of TOHO's new Godzilla flm is Japan.

Anno is now writing the new Godzilla film's screenplay. Filming begins this fall, and TOHO will release the film in theaters next summer.

Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi to Direct ‘Godzilla 2016′

Top Japanese filmmakers Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi will team up to co-direct “Godzilla 2016”, the new Japanese version of the iconic Godzilla monster movie franchise.

Anno will also be responsible for the screenplay while Higuchi will oversee the picture’s VFX.

 

[Gabe99]

THE DIRECTORS OF "GODZILLA 2016" SPEAK:
"I'll Give You the Greatest Worst Nightmare!"
These men are planning to destroy Japan next summer. Again.

 

[Gabe99]

Japan’s new anime king Hideaki Anno haunted by fears of nuclear apocalypse

Famous for the hit sci-fi franchise "Evangelion," Anno draws inspiration from the darker recesses of the human soul, haunted by the threat of nuclear holocaust growing up as a child in Japan during the Cold War era and in the shadow of the US atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

"The fear of the Cold War was in essence the fear of nuclear war," Anno told AFP in an interview during the Tokyo International Film festival, where 53 of his films were being showcased.

"There was a real sense that if atomic war broke out, the world would be destroyed. If someone pushed the nuclear button it would lead to the destruction of the world—that was the reality at the time, that fear of Armageddon."

 

[TheVileOne]

Hideaki Anno will fire the entire staff halfway through the film, remake it from scratch, and then it will be an utter, confusing mess.

 

[Gabe99]

Japan’s Toho To Seek Remake, Co-financing Opportunities

Toho, Japan’s leading film studio, is to spread its wings with an expansion of its international activities into remakes and co-financing.

“As a strategic first step to expanding and strengthening the global operations, Toho will be committed to the intellectual property it represents by connecting it to adaptation opportunities and financing its production,” the company said in a statement. “Toho intends to grow the business and bolster the presence of Japanese IP.”

It has appointed existing Toho executives, director, Hiroyasu Matsuoka to oversee the division and Yukio Kotaki as general manager.

Toho’s international sales business has to date largely focused on licensing its motion picture, animation and character properties.

The new emphasis on making its entertainment properties go further reflects the government’s drive to export Japanese culture further, efforts by other companies with Japanese IP, and Toho’s 83-year film industry legacy and its strong finances.

Toho is internationally best known for its 28 film “Godzilla” series. The franchise last year saw Warner Bros release a Hollywood remake, directed by Gareth Edwards, which grossed $529 million worldwide. That in turn has given rise to another now-in-development Warner sequel and caused Toho to revive plans for its own Godzilla, to be directed by Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi, and released in 2016.

The policy takes immediate effect and will see the new team make their market debut next month in Cannes.

 

[redhawk23]

I am intrigued by Shinji Higuchi's involvement in the special effects direction. Higuchi is a big proponent of practical effects but also doesn't shy away from integrating digital effects, as seen in his work with Attack on Titan.

Higuchi and Anno worked on a short film about a giant monster that acts a prequel to Nausica Valley of the Wind. That short too had a very stylized look, blending practical and digital effects.

It will be very interesting to see what kind of aesthetic they go for.

 

[Gabe99]

AP Interview: Japan's 'Godzilla' Director Wants to Surprise

Shooting begins next month, much of it at Toho studios in Tokyo. Animation master Hideaki Anno just finished the script and will help oversee direction.

Higuchi's special-effects techniques were amply demonstrated in "Attack on Titan," a new release received favorably in Japan.

The work combines computer graphics with manipulating a towering doll of rippling red muscle that resembles a giant biological anatomy chart, as well as special-effects filmmaking, using actors moving through miniatures, to depict grotesquely enlarged humans.

Applying to Godzilla that kind of technology, which Higuchi calls "hybrid," has never been attempted in Japan. Higuchi is promising just that.

“Attack on Titan” Invades Movie Theaters: An Interview with Director Higuchi Shinji

 

[redhawk23]

http://augustragone.blogspot.com/

Some information from an often reliable source about who is designing the new Godzilla.

 

[DaddlerTheDalek]

http://augustragone.blogspot.com/

Some information from an often reliable source about who is designing the new Godzilla.

Sounds like a very good choice.

 

[Sithborg]

http://www.superherohype.com/news/349655-new-godzilla-movies

I do find it interesting that Legendary is going with the heroic Godzilla, while Toho is going back to a more darker version. Scary Godzilla almost hints at them going with a GMK tone, with a downright villianous Godzilla. Which I would love for them to do. Really seperate the two series.

 

[Lencho01]

I think it kinda ties into how both cultures react to atomic power/bombs, generally speaking. In the US, they turn people or things into heroes. In Japan, you get monsters.

 

[Sithborg]

Eh, Godzilla did become a child hero in the 60's and 70's. Legendary's Godzilla is probably going to be sticking closer to that version. Whereas it sounds like Toho is going back to the more anti-hero of the popular 90's era, or even to the villain as seen in GMK.

 

[Consona]

What was great about the original 1954 film was dr. Serizawa's ethical/philosophical story. That was something really special. I'm really curious whether we gonna get something as interesting as that.

 

[Sithborg]

With the sucess of Resurection of F and Attack on Titan getting theatrical release here, I'm really hopeful and excited that I will be able to see this in theatres.

 

[Lencho01]

Eh, Godzilla did become a child hero in the 60's and 70's. Legendary's Godzilla is probably going to be sticking closer to that version. Whereas it sounds like Toho is going back to the more anti-hero of the popular 90's era, or even to the villain as seen in GMK.

True. I'm just saying as far as the US films go, from the get-go the dude was heroic/not a straight up villain. Like I don't see him ever getting a Cloverfield type of film, where he really needed to be taken down since he's actively killing humans.

 

[redhawk23]

http://augustragone.blogspot.com/2015/09/next-godzilla-now-entitled-shin.html

A Japanese publication has announced a title, casting and production details.

The title of the film is confirmed to be "Shin Gojira" which can be interpreted as either "New" or "True" Godzilla.

Though made in Japan and portrayed by Japanese actors, the plot appears to include American characters.

Here's the official site, in Japanese.

http://shin-godzilla.jp/

 

[Galactus123]

I wonder if they are going to make it serious like 2014 Godzilla? I hope they do and not make it campy.

 

[GR8GODZILLAGOD]

I wonder if they are going to make it serious like 2014 Godzilla? I hope they do and not make it campy.

They're going darker than the 2014 film. More along the lines of the original 1954 version. The director has gone on record saying this will be the scariest Godzilla yet. Super pumped.

 

[Consona]

They're going darker than the 2014 film. More along the lines of the original 1954 version. The director has gone on record saying this will be the scariest Godzilla yet. Super pumped.

Whoaaa, that's great! I loved original Godzilla, philosophical/ethical story of dr. Serizawa was just fantastic.

 

[Gabe99]

New Japanese Godzilla Film Unveils Cast, Title
Attack on Titan's Hiroki Hasegawa & Satomi Ishihara, Yutaka Takenouchi star in Shin Godzilla

Executive producer Akihiro Yamauchi (Trick, Densha Otoko, Bakuman.) explains that the film's title, Shin Gojira or Shin Godzilla, signifies that it is not a "revival" or a "rebirth." While it can be translated as "New Godzilla," it can also mean "True Godzilla," "God Godzilla," and other connotations. Chief director Hideaki Anno coined the title to incorporate various possible meanings.

Filming began in the Tokyo suburbs in August and will wrap up at the end of October. According to Sankei Sports' source close to the production, the story is mainly set in modern Japan, and America is also involved. The new Godzilla will be the tallest one yet, towering over the 108-meter-tall (about 355-foot-tall) incarnation in Gareth Edwards and Legendary Pictures' 2014 Hollywood film.

Anime director Hideaki Anno and live-action Attack on Titan film director Shinji Higuchi are currently collaborating on the film. Anno is serving as chief director and writer, while Higuchi is directing the new film and is also serving as the special effects director.

Higuchi promised that this will be the scariest Godzilla yet, quoting the horrors of the real world, like 9/11, the March 11 tsunami, and subsequent Fukushima nuclear crisis having stripped the the world of its innocence. The film will use a hybrid of actors moving through miniatures (a staple of the early Godzilla films), computer graphics, and special effects.

 

[Sithborg]

That's a pretty good shooting schedule. Can't wait for this.

 

[redhawk23]

At a marketing expo it was revealed that the international title for the new Toho Godzilla film will be "Godzilla Resurgence". It is keeping the "Shin-Gojira" title in Japan.

Also similar to how EON only counts their own James Bond films, Toho is not recognizing the two American films in their counting.