>> Sasha Dowdy: Good morning everybody, how's it going? Yay! My name is Sasha, I work here at the Library of Congress in the young readers' center. Thank you guys for being so patient as we surgically extracted our guests from Otacon to bring them to you for a free program right here at the Library of Congress. So welcome. Today we have two very special guests. They are representing really wonderful people in the industry of anime. One of them you might have heard of is Kihara Hirokatsu, he used to be a director with the Ghibli studios. And now he likes to tell scary stories, although he won't today. And our other guest is Diana Garnett, she is a fantastic voice actress and singer and talented Go player, so she has a lot of talents to bring and introduce to you guys. And without further ado, how about we celebrate our two guests and learn about the wonderful art of animated movies. [ Applause ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you all. My name is Hirokatsu and I come from Japan. Looking forward to talking to you all. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So I would like to start by asking you a question. I don't care your age or anything, I just want you to raise your hand if you're interested in doing creative work going forward. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So I would like to show my respect for all of you who are interested in doing creation work going forward. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And I also find it very amazing that I can come here and talk at a place where I have always respected myself, the Library of Congress, since I was a kid. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So to get started, a little bit about myself, I worked with Miyazaki Hayao and I made three films, "Laputa," "Totoro," and "Kiki." [ Speaking in Japanese ] And I brought some materials from Japan about how his inspiration and thought process worked for making some of those films. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And what is very notable about this is they are originals. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So this is "Laputa: Castle in the Sky" and the character here is Sheeta. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So when you do creative work and you think about the characters you want to make if you're to do it in text, it would be thousands of words to describe the character. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So but with Miyazaki Hayao, he drew original, this is the original, and he was like "I want to make a film with a character like this." And we all understood with just that single piece of paper. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And the type of movie he wants to make, the type of scenes he wants to make, he puts it into pictures. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So this is Laputa, the castle in the sky, indeed a floating castle. This is the picture of it. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So when we were originally told like an old castle floating in the sky, you know, you really can't picture that, but then we saw this picture and we were like oh, got it. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So and when we were doing "My Neighbor Totoro," he was describing the different characters that are going to come out and it was like the small one, the slightly bigger one, and then a really big one. [ Speaking in Japanese ] But if that's the only explanation you get, you don't really understand what the characters are supposed to be like, right? But then he was like "It's like this. I want to turn these characters into a movie." On the back, there's like an interesting picture. What is that? No, the old lady's picture... So also there is some girls who appear, Satsuki and Mei. These are the two girls. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And... And while he was doing the drawings, he on the back drew something that he didn't want this to look like, he drew both the good and the bad. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And he would explain to us by using these pictures. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And this is the location where we were actually making "Kiki's Delivery Service" in 1989. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So the animation team room for the film was actually probably smaller than this room. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And in that room, which was smaller than this room, we spent a year making the film. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So as long as you have a desk and a chair and paper and a pencil, that's all that matters, it's not the size of the room. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So for stuff that you guys might know, probably "My Neighbor Totoro" is a famous one. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So this is original poster design for "Totoro" by Miyazaki. And this is the original. So it's the only one in the world. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And what is important to understand is that for all the things that are printed out in color now, the base, the first draft of it was pencil and paper that you see here. [ Speaking in Japanese ] But what's slightly different from the final copy is Totoro's image. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So in the first shot here, Totoro looks something like that. With the hand on the stomach. [ Speaking in Japanese ] But we were like that's a little odd so we made a second version, which looks like this. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And of course, it's carefully drawn with pencil on paper. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So it was changed such that the hands are on the side. I have a question. Did you draw Satsuki with-- [ Speaking in Japanese ] So-- >> Diana Garnett: So basically what I asked was I noticed that it was a different piece of paper that the girl was drawn on, so I asked, because it looked like Satsuki, if that was Satsuki. And apparently that's neither Satsuki nor Mei. [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: So from the neck up, it's Mei, and from below that, it's Satsuki. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So the director just had the very strong opinion that it must be a single girl next to Totoro. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So after drawing on paper, we make it a coloring test shot that you see here. So this is the okay take. But the character design isn't completely decided so the faces are different. They look a little more adult in that shot, don't they? And then once the coloring is decided, this is the test shot. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And as you can see, the very famous poster. This is the first draft of it. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So animation, the process of animation is very similar to the process of this poster, where you make the key animation and then you clean it up afterwards. And then the director makes a storyboard. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And then the animators make the layout. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And then to go from right, the thing on your left, to the thing on your right, that was my job to make that process happen. [ Speaking in Japanese ] But I highly respect that it is the pencil drawing on the left that is what makes the original idea of the film happen. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So for all parts of the film, there is this thing called a layout. It's the background. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So what is important is that in the foreground of the scene, there is the girl, so you can't see what's behind her. So even though you can't see what's behind her, it is actually drawn. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So animators, they put their heart and soul into animation. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So I would like to do a simple explanation of the art here. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So this is an image board drawn by Miyazaki Hayao for "Nausicaa." [ Speaking in Japanese ] So he wanted to make a jungle made of mold in a desert. [ Speaking in Japanese ] But no one has ever seen a jungle made of mold, so. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So to make it clearer, he made some images and this is one of a windmill covered in mold. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And images of the desert being eaten up by mold. >> Diana Garnett: Thinking about it scientifically there really isn't much mold in the desert since it's for humidity so nobody could really picture it. So Hayao had to draw these things. [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: But the director was like "No, these aren't good. This isn't my image." So is it something like this, maybe? [ Speaking in Japanese ] Nope, we got an NG on that as well. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So, like this? Nope. [ Speaking in Japanese ] Okay, this must be it, right? No. [ Speaking in Japanese ] How about this innards of the forest shot? Okay, not too bad. [ Speaking in Japanese ] How about this? Amazing, let's go with it! Wait, what happened to the desert? So... The thing in the foreground here is an ohm and the background was for that but this was an actually NG take of the ohm. And the OK take of the ohm... So we did a lot of trial and error. So... So, I just got a good question from Diana of what happened to the desert? And it turns out it turned into something like this. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And with that, we got the OK. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So the art director did a lot of these different types of takes and eventually got the OK. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And using that frame, which got the OK, everyone used that as the reference to do their drawing. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So the art director who did all these takes, Mitsuki Nakamura, also was the art director for Gundam and apparently it was very difficult to do this much trial and error. [ Speaking in Japanese ] But what is most important for an animation director is to have that strong image and then the power to bring together people and assemble them all to work on that image together without it getting lost. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So everyone here who is interested in doing artistic creation, you are all sort of director inside of yourself. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So, use pencil and paper and believe in your own skill and use that to continue making art... But you know, if I'm just talking the entire time, that's a little boring, right? [ Speaking in Japanese ] We have an amazing entertainer with us today. >> Diana Garnett: It's not boring, Kihara-san. [ Speaking in Japanese ] Super interesting. [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: So I of course do drawing, but she does creation inside of her heart. >> Diana Garnett: He's so nice. [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: And so everyone would love us our-- [ Speaking in Japanese ] So I'm so happy that she was able to come and we could do this together. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So does everyone know the cat bus? >> Diana Garnett: Yay! >> Kihara Hirokatsu: So actually, I am the original model for it. >> Diana Garnett: This is a hilarious story. [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: So I guess I should show you the actual cat bus. [ Speaking in Japanese ] Of course, the things I bring, I need to actually show them. But where did you go, cat bus! >> Diana Garnett: While he finds it, I'll just introduce myself really quickly. I'm Diana Garnett, I'm a singer and voice actress in Japan. And yeah, okay, there we go. He found it, we're good. [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: So it looks a little like Cheshire Cat, right? But different director. >> Diana Garnett: Yeah. So the story behind the Neko Bus smile-- [ Speaking in Japanese ] [ Screaming ] So, apparently what happened, which he's not saying so I'll say it for him, is he was once writing a bicycle behind Hayao's-- yeah. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So, Ghibli-- oh, sorry. >> Kihara Hirokatsu: Ghibli and work ends very early or late in the day, for example, at 2 am... And then starts again at 10. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And I'm always there until the end so I tend to leave with the director. [ Speaking in Japanese ] Okay, the director's car was a very slow, slow car model. And I was on a bicycle. So, on the way back, we'd race each other... And at the traffic light, we'd stop and I'm you know, panting for breath... And then the director would roll down his window, look over, "Great look, I love your expression right now." [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Diana Garnett: That's how we got Neko Bus! [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: That's why he's running and smiling, that's me. >> Diana Garnett: So cute! Okay! >> Kihara Hirokatsu: Your turn! >> Diana Garnett: [Inaudible]. Okay, so today I thought that I would do a little bit of a workshop while also explaining sort of just voice acting and voiceover in Japan as well as how you might be able to get into that. And then we'll do a fun little karaoke workshop, I thought would be really fun. Although, my computer's not currently hooked up so I'm not really sure how to make that go. Do I have a clicker? I've never used a clicker. Alright. So, first off, I just sort of wanted to get a feel for the room and see who was interested in voiceover or music? Alright. And are you interested in voice acting-- oh, you're so cute! So little! Are you interested in voice acting in Japanese or English or both? Both, maybe? Okay. That is actually an option. So, and how about you? You can learn it. You can start now. So, one thing that's actually pretty fun to do, how's this clicker work? Let me pew-- that's not how it works, pew. That's also not how it works. Pew. >> Kihara Hirokatsu: Trial and error, trial and error. >> Diana Garnett: Yeah, I don't know how this clicker works. Pew, pew, help me! Okay, so I'll just talk until then. So, basically I would start with finding out what kind of voice acting you want to do. There's a ton of different kinds, which we can't see on the screen. Oh, there we go! Yay! I can click it now! Says you, but I don't know if I can. Okay, so there's of course, what everybody thinks of when they think of voice acting, there's being the voice of the characters like Satsuki or Mei or any of the other Ghibli characters. Or there's narration, which is stuffy but fun because it pays well. I like that. And then there's dubbing, which is sort of when we do anime, that's technically dubbing. And in Japan, when they dub like "Friends" or "24" that is also dubbing. And that would be specializing in, for instance, if you're in the States, specializing in anime, or if you're in Japan, specializing in like American Marvel movies or something like that. A lot of people do both. But there are some people who only do one or the other. So like in the States, you'll have a lot of people that pretty much only do anime and that's fantastic. And then there's commercial so like "Gatorade," that kind of thing. Literally nobody's ever asked me to do a commercial because I'll just be like "Gatorade!" It doesn't work, so. Every once in a while I try and go for one and they're always like no, you sound like you're 12. It doesn't really work out, does it? We feel like we have no confidence in you. And then you can also be a mascot character, so for instance you'll get sort of characters in Disney parks and stuff like that, the people inside in the suits aren't usually allowed to talk, but sometimes they're sort of voiced over backgrounds. And they're sort of like mime along with that. It's actually pretty amazing. And so people specialize in just those voices as well. You may know Yamadera. He does everything. He's P-Chan in "Ranma," he's literally every, he's Spike in "Cowboy Bebop," but he's also Stitch from "Lilo & Stitch" in Japanese. So he does a lot of the, you know, dubbing in the Disney parks because there's like this whole Stitch thing where he actually talks to the crowd. It's pretty amazing, yeah, it's super. Also Yamadera is God. Anyway. So what are the differences? Well the first major difference is in Japanese animation, you'll get everybody in one room. So there's going to be like 8 to 12 people using four, maybe five, sometimes three mics and they like, they have this whole dance that they do. But they can't make any sound. Because if you make any sound, everybody's got to start all over again. And then they hate you. So you've got to be really careful. So you have to like walk silently like that's, Japanese people are ninjas. They walk silently. And then there's no paper rustling allowed or they might kill you. So it's pretty intense. I'm going to show you some scripts. Kihara also brought a whole bunch of scripts because he's super nice, thanks Kihara. One of these scripts is like older than me, though. So, oh-- [ Speaking in Japanese ] So this one's-- yeah, I wasn't born yet. My mom wasn't born yet either, right? >> Kihara Hirokatsu: Like 40 years ago. >> Diana Garnett: 40 years ago? You weren't born yet, no, no. Yeah. Me, too. Bum bum bum. >> Kihara Hirokatsu: Yeah it's the script for it. >> Diana Garnett: Yeah it is. Kya! >> Kihara Hirokatsu: And slightly newer, this is for "Code Geass." >> Diana Garnett: That's what other people my age like. There's good-looking boys everywhere. This is one that I've done myself, "Neko Neko Nihonshi," this is one of the scripts I took home. You can see where I've marked my parts in the green. [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: And this is some of the script that she is currently doing. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And if you look at this one from 40 years ago, it's of course text, so nothing has really changed. >> Diana Garnett: Nothing's changed in probably a thousand years. Japan's like you know what, we still like fax machines. That's right! Japan still has fax machines. This is a problem. They don't change the way they do things, guys. [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: Of course the technology has changed from analogue to digital, but you're actually asking from that voice actor hasn't really changed. >> Diana Garnett: Yeah, although now they sometimes make us do samples at home. Which I'll get to later by the way how you can do those at home. But generally how we hold the script is like, we don't have to turn the page for a while, we'll hold it like this. If we have to turn the page, we'll hold it like this and then we like ninja page turn. Like... Like that. It takes forever. But this is a skill you got to learn. But in western voice acting, generally speaking, it's all, you're by yourself in a little closet. And it's wonderful because nobody makes any sound. But it's also really lonely and you also don't get the same sort of actual communicative feel that you get from a lot of like anime. I think that's why anime has such good voice acting is that you're literally yelling at the person, you're not looking at them, but they're right next to you. So you're like, you know, [Japanese]! And then you're like [Japanese]. So it's like right next to you so you can like react more naturally. But in sort of English dubbing, sometimes the voice will be there and sometimes it won't. Like if you're the first person in it's just like silence, silence, and then you're like Onii-chan! And then silence. And then you're like, Onii-chan's gone. So yeah. As far as like how the Japanese voice industry has changed recently, it hasn't. But the way that it has changed is there's a little bit more sort of them thinking about maybe hiring foreigners. They're thinking about it. So this would be a good time to be all like hey, you could hire me, I'm around. So if you're going to sort of try to break into the Japanese industry, I think within the next five years you'll start seeing things, especially for bilingual voice actors because we don't need to be double cast! And I'll get into that very soon. Next slide, that's me! I do that. Okay. Can I voice act in Japan? Yes you can! So, there's actually a lot of different avenues for voice acting in Japanese. Do you need to speak Japanese? Nah. Would it help? Yes, it would help. But you don't really need to. So there's actually a whole industry for people who voice act in English in Japan. You can come into Japan on like a different visa, like a student visa, or a teaching visa and then there's these dispatch agencies. There's one called Freeway that's really big. There's another one called Remix that's really big. Solely Consultants. Or you can be a free agent and work with everybody. And then they'll throw you things like commercials, they'll also throw you things like sort of educational material, things that [inaudible] and that stuff is actually a really good way of padding up your resume and then sometimes you end up with sort of character roles and that can stream into anime in the future. Video games are also another big one. A lot of times Konami will only really cast inside of Japan. So "Bomberman," "Castlevania," that's all done in Japan. So that's actually not a bad avenue. Recently we're looking at simul-dubbing. So things like "Netflix," they don't have time to send the script to America and get people in the actor's union to act it out for them. It takes too much time. The contracting process is difficult, the casting process is too difficult. So they're actually looking inside Japan for more streaming services recently. So that's also another avenue within the next five years, I think it will likely end up that way. Also Funimation and Sony have come together and so that might be something that they look for in the future. So you know, something to think about. And then when it comes to voice acting bilingually or in Japanese, basically nobody does it. So you can sort of make an entire career out of that. There's a Russian woman named Jenya and she's somebody that's made her career out of specializing in Japanese but then she also does Russian. And for myself, while I have done some Japanese, most of my characters are random foreign characters that show up or they're characters that speak English or something like that. So that's something that you guys can definitely make sort of your thing. Bush! So how do I become a good voice actor? You practice. My biggest recommendation is to just like... Find your favorite anime and just like talk to your characters that you like. So you know, Kamina's all like "Believe in the me that believes in you!" And be like "Okay, I do!" So that kind of thing's really good. You can also buy pretty-- I should have brought my mic. There's mics that you can buy that are just USB mics and they're pretty good, Snowballs are not bad. I use Audio Technica as well. They're not very expensive, you can find them on Amazon for maybe like a hundred bucks. And you can record pretty good demos and samples and then you can send them to people. So for example, "Bee and Puppycat" usually doesn't use actual voice actors. Pretty much anybody can get into that. So you can just be like I love you, Natasha! On Instagram. And then send her your samples and she might consider it. Natasha's good people. There's also being familiar with equipment is kind of important. So get your way around a mic. Make sure not to like "puh" too much, like the air going in your mic? What's that called in English, puffing? Puffing. There you go. I was like [Japanese]. So, try not to do that and then it will be fine! And what to not do, don't move! If you're in a voice acting booth, your legs belong on the ground and you do not move. You see sometimes these people that are used to stage acting and they're like "Wait!" that gets in the mic. So like you gotta, you gotta not do that. Also I see people hit mics a lot. They're like "Wait!" And like, so just be careful. I've also had somebody, I was directing her and she was like slamming her hand on the table. She's like "No!" And I'm like you gotta not. You gotta not do that. That makes everything a bad take. So yeah, just be careful of moving. You can move from like here up, and that's it. But you look basically like an Irish dancer except without the bouncing. So, except like, reversed. You just don't move here. Alright [inaudible]. So I'm getting the feeling you guys are going to be a little shy, but the one I kind of really want you guys to do is the laughing. Because this is usually the biggest test of how good you are as an actor. There's several different kinds of laughs, right? There's like evil laughs. There's happy laughs. There's like sarcastic laughs. So I just want you guys to pick a laugh, any kind of laugh you want, and do it! On the count of three. Good job! Augh, I didn't even count to three yet! Thank you, mom. Alright. So on the count of three, let's all give our biggest laughs. One, two, three. [ Laughing ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: Are you serious right now? >> Diana Garnett: That was amazing! Oh, that made me so happy. Silly. So Kihara's like oh my god, are we stupid? Yes, we are. So, let's see, that one's all in Japanese but like, for instance, the first line here, "Wow, thanks a lot, I really love spinach and mushrooms," so that could be super sarcastic. I mean spinach and mushrooms, shoot, I like it. But I wouldn't expect like, you know, 7-year-old me to like it. So you can say that a million different ways. So what I recommend is we've given you print-outs. Take these home and just practice them. So like the Japanese would be like [Japanese]. And there you go, you can be like that. Or you can be like [Japanese]. So, you know, you can be all like I'm shy! So but what he's saying is like, I'm like the big thief, he's actually a real person. And he was a ninja. I really like ninjas. So yeah, take those home and practice them. >> Kihara Hirokatsu: I want to do it, too. So this is originally Kabuki, right? [ Speaking in Japanese ] You have your own mic, right? Oh sorry, I forgot. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So this line is originally from Kabuki. [ Laughing and Speaking in Japanese ] [ Applause ] [ Laughing ] >> Diana Garnett: This is why I like you. >> Kihara Hirokatsu: Usually like that. [ Speaking in Japanese ] But that's a little odd, so usually animation characters and stuff is a little more approachable. Yeah, you wouldn't like a kid to be like ah, what the hell, what's that? >> Diana Garnett: I think he terrified like half of us. Also if you did that, the mic would do this thing called clipping and you would, he would break the mic. You'd break the mic. Got to make sure to get the levels and the cues right. So I thought maybe you guys could do like a practice conversation piece with the person next to you. So there's Oliver and Kaname. Oliver's a boy from LA and he just moved to Japan and he loves sushi. Kaname lives in a sushi shop and hates sushi. But she really likes Oliver. So it's a problem. So turn to the person next to you, pick whether you want to be Oliver or Kaname and act this out any way you want. That last "what" is definitely the best part of this. [ Audience Conversing ] So I'm going to do a sample with the translator here. >> Alright. I've been drafted into doing this practice. >> Diana Garnett: Kihara won't do it with me. Okay, Oliver. I'm actually Oliver in the actual show. But. >> Okay. I'll do my best. >> Diana Garnett: I'll be Kaname. >> What do you normally eat? >> Diana Garnett: Let's see, I eat like chicken, curry, sandwiches. >> Oh, your dad's a sushi chef, right? You can eat sushi everyday! >> Diana Garnett: I don't like raw fish. >> What? >> Diana Garnett: There you go! Yay! Thank you, translator! Alright, so there you go. Alright, that's voice acting. So anybody have any questions? Okay. Alright. Now it's time for the sing-along. Where's my sing-along? I don't know where my sing-along is. Do we have lyrics for the sing-along? We're going to do "Totoro" I thought. >> Kihara Hirokatsu: So in the meantime, does anyone have any questions for me? Anything you want to know about? I'm so sad-- oh! >> Diana Garnett: Everybody's so shy! Oh. >> Okay, so my question is, do you think with traditional animation as being a lost art form with the newer CG that's coming up today? [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: So I do believe it is slowly being lost but I don't believe it will ever be fully lost. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So I think you might know it, but there is a very famous company which does 3D works called Pixar. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So they of course use a lot of different methods to do their work. But the majority of animators are using pencil and paper. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So last month, I went to the headquarters of Pixar and was quite impressed. [ Speaking in Japanese ] They showed me like an actual film of people moving. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So humans have certain numbers of joints, right? [ Speaking in Japanese ] So but they believe with just the number of joints that people normally have, it's not possible to do really good animation so they have almost like 2,000 pins. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So they have amazing technology where they use almost 2,500 pins to move the bodies. [ Speaking in Japanese ] But despite all that amazing technology, the biggest work that is being done is being done with pencil and paper. Why do you think that is? [ Speaking in Japanese ] So if you work with just technology from the beginning, it will feel very technological and not like actual human, you won't feel the human spirit in it. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So when a human actually draws something, you can feel sort of the warmth that comes out of it. [ Speaking in Japanese ] Of course, the original work by Walt Disney, there wasn't any technology used in that at all. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And I think that due to that, you can make characters that are even more human than an actual human is. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And I think that's because it's a different way of thinking about just moving people around versus making the work come alive. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So I believe strongly that the basic fundamental pencil and paper won't disappear. >> Diana Garnett: Me too. There's actually a new studio opened in Fukuoka and it's run by a foreigner that will only do cell animation. So I think it's actually coming back in its own way. [ Speaking in Japanese ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: So when we were making "Kiki" actually, someone from Pixar came and said they wanted to check things out. John Lassater. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So I answered the phone at the time and he was like "I really just want to check things out. Can you do something for me?" [ Speaking in Japanese ] "And also I'll bring a digital animation that I've been working on, won't you look at that?" [ Speaking in Japanese ] And that seemed interesting so I gave the okay. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And what he brought was the little light that's jumping up and down, you might know it, that's the animation that he brought. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And when Miyazaki, director Miyazaki looked at this, he was like wait, was there no original drawing for this? [ Speaking in Japanese ] And Lassater was like "In fact, it is all digital." [ Speaking in Japanese ] And the director was like that's no good... And the reaction was what? Why? [ Speaking in Japanese ] I believe that animation is hand drawing work. [ Speaking in Japanese ] While their end product can be digital, I believe that the original work should be by hand. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And if you were to just continue going down the path of digital, digital, people would rely on software too much and lose their expressive power of art done by hand. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And these is of course a story from 1989, but it feels like today almost. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And of course technology is amazing and can be useful, but it's not all powerful. So we should continue doing things from scratch as well. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So the pictures that you can draw and the drawings that you can draw, it's unique to you all. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So I want you to all take that unique drawings inside of you and continue to grow it inside of you. [ Speaking in Japanese ] And of course what she's talking about with voice acting is almost the same. The voice that each of you have is your unique voice. [ Speaking in Japanese ] So you should take that voice inside of you and have confidence in it and continue bringing it out into the world. >> Diana Garnett: Nice segue. So music's also gotten very digital as well. Music and just voiceover work in general. A lot of people rely on tuning, a lot of people now create songs with vocaloid programs, which is great! I think that's great in its own way. You can create things that you couldn't create with vocals. But at the same time, a lot of some of the new music coming out is created people who have only worked with vocaloids and therefore they're not as expressive as they could be, perhaps. So right now, we're going to do like a little karaoke workshop for all of you guys that like "Totoro." We'll be doing an English or Japanese, you can pick whichever version you like, of "Sanpo," which is I think called "Stroll" in English. But there was an original English version and then there was the Japanese version, you can pick which one you like and you've got both of the lyrics there. I'm going to use both. Because that'll be fun. Does anyone not know this song at all? Okay, a couple of you. It's super easy. You'll get it immediately. It basically goes like "Hey, let's go! Hey, let's go. I'm happy as can be." And then you're set, that's most of the lyrics. There you go. Alright. Music, start! [ Speaking in Japanese ] There it is. [ Music ] I'll tell you when to start. [ Music ] [ Singing "Sanpo" ] Alright. So that's the first verse. And for legal reasons, that's all we can play. [ Laughter ] >> Kihara Hirokatsu: Even in the Library of Congress? >> Diana Garnett: So it's because it's the Library of Congress, this is the home of the American copyright so we've got to be careful. We'll play a little bit more afterwards but basically that's the song. The Japanese version's also there. So we're going to lead out with the Japanese version. Alright, there we go, thank you so much! [ Applause ] >> Sasha Dowdy: How about our special guests today? Kiharu-san and Diana! [ Applause ] And Darius, the interpreter! [ Applause ] I just want to say thank you to our performers today and thank you to all of you who came. The library is really happy to do this series of programs called "Anime for All" in conjunction with Otacon. And we really want to keep this thing going. The library is the home of 168 million items. I know. 1.8 million of which are movies. 22 million pieces of music. Like 5 million pieces of photos. There are also newspapers. We have the largest collection of comic books. 160,000 comic books just here. >> Diana Garnett: I'm gonna have to go check some stuff out here. >> Sasha Dowdy: Of course, you're here! This is the advantage of being a performer. Just kidding. The Library of Congress is open to everyone, so even if you don't have a citizenship in America, if you're over 16 and if you have an ID, you can get your reader's card today! So enjoy the collections, enjoy the 2 million collections online. And add to the collections of the library with the new animated movie you make, with the non-animated movie, with the songs that you write, with the stories you write, and come put them through copyright, they'll be protected. Thank you, everybody! [ Applause ] >> Diana Garnett: I wanted to thank you guys so much. I didn't mention it in my introduction but I'm actually a DC native and this is the first time I've been back in 10 years. The Library of Congress, I mean it's the library. So, and one thing that's really amazing to me is I'm able to come back as an adult in the anime industry and I'm able to meet people like, you know, Hirokatsu-san who's just like so, he's brought so much to so many people and it's just absolutely amazing to be able to come here in tandem with him and talk about different crafts within the anime industry. One thing that's really important is that the animation have a lot of heart so that those of us who perform either the vocals or the music for it are able to also put our heart and soul into it and have it be something so collaborative and so beautiful that can hopefully touch the hearts of everyone here today. [ Applause ]