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A Sky Longing for Memories: The Art of Makoto Shinkai
A Sky Longing for Memories is a Makoto Shinkai fan's dream! Featuring art created by the beloved director, this full-color art book is packed with art from the many movies he directed for Studio CoMix Wave. The book is a 175 page LANDSCAPE FORMAT softcover, the majority of which are images, a rare treat in the realm of fanbooks. Inside you will find hundreds of backgrounds from from his award-winning 5 Centimeters per Second , The Place Promised in Our Early Days , Voices of a Distant Star , and a TV advertisement for the Mainichi Newspaper .
In addition to the backgrounds, there is a section about the software and technique behind CoMix Wave's animation, which discuss the key features of the software the studio has developed to use at various stages of production. The English edition also comes with a lengthy interview with Mr. Shinkai and other key members of his studio.
In addition to the backgrounds, there is a section about the software and technique behind CoMix Wave's animation, which discuss the key features of the software the studio has developed to use at various stages of production. The English edition also comes with a lengthy interview with Mr. Shinkai and other key members of his studio.
176 pages, Paperback
First published April 28, 2015
12 people are currently reading
419 people want to read
About the author
Makoto Shinkai
71 books1,498 followersSHINKAI Makoto
Name (in native language): 新海 誠
Associated Names:
СИНКАЙ Макото
Makoto Shinkai
Makoto Shinkai (新海 誠 Shinkai Makoto?), born as Makoto Niitsu (新津 誠 Niitsu Makoto?, February 9, 1973) is a Japanese director of anime and former graphic designer. A native of the Nagano Prefecture, Shinkai studied Japanese literature at Chuo University where he was a member of juvenile literature club where he drew picture books. He traces his passion for creation to the manga, anime, and novels he was exposed to while in middle school. His favorite anime is Castle in the Sky by Hayao Miyazaki. Shinkai has been called "The New Miyazaki" in several reviews including Anime Advocates and ActiveAnime, comparisons which he calls an "overestimation".
Name (in native language): 新海 誠
Associated Names:
СИНКАЙ Макото
Makoto Shinkai
Makoto Shinkai (新海 誠 Shinkai Makoto?), born as Makoto Niitsu (新津 誠 Niitsu Makoto?, February 9, 1973) is a Japanese director of anime and former graphic designer. A native of the Nagano Prefecture, Shinkai studied Japanese literature at Chuo University where he was a member of juvenile literature club where he drew picture books. He traces his passion for creation to the manga, anime, and novels he was exposed to while in middle school. His favorite anime is Castle in the Sky by Hayao Miyazaki. Shinkai has been called "The New Miyazaki" in several reviews including Anime Advocates and ActiveAnime, comparisons which he calls an "overestimation".
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
June 13, 2023
This a beautiful book which is pretty much what the title says - a series of amazing artwork by Makato Shinkai. I am no art expert so I guess there is so much I am missing but have to say so many of the pieces look so detailed I had to do double takes to make sure they really were pictures and not elaborate photographs.
The book is rather small (no fault to the author or artist) but it does I think diminish slightly the art as there are so many details lost to the size however this is a trifle complaint compared to the quality.
I have always been a sucker for the artwork from anime - love it or hate it you cannot deny the amount of work and detail that goes in to some of these productions and I think this book helps highlight the work that goes in to something that may only be seen for a matter of seconds.
The book is rather small (no fault to the author or artist) but it does I think diminish slightly the art as there are so many details lost to the size however this is a trifle complaint compared to the quality.
I have always been a sucker for the artwork from anime - love it or hate it you cannot deny the amount of work and detail that goes in to some of these productions and I think this book helps highlight the work that goes in to something that may only be seen for a matter of seconds.
July 31, 2017
Very beautiful artwork. Definitely recommended for art enthusiasts in general and fans of Makoto Shinkai in particular. I've been a fan of the gorgeous backgrounds that Shinkai's films feature and was happy to finally get a book that collects some of those pieces.
I was expecting the book to primarily feature just the artwork, but the art is also accompanied with explanations on what was done to produce the final pieces which give some insight as to how animation cuts are put together. There is also a section that features brief walkthroughs of the steps taken to put together some scenes and mentions the tools used to create the final products. The final part of the book also contains interviews with Makoto Shinkai himself and some of his colleagues which delve a bit deeper into their thoughts.
Overall, definitely worth the read.
I was expecting the book to primarily feature just the artwork, but the art is also accompanied with explanations on what was done to produce the final pieces which give some insight as to how animation cuts are put together. There is also a section that features brief walkthroughs of the steps taken to put together some scenes and mentions the tools used to create the final products. The final part of the book also contains interviews with Makoto Shinkai himself and some of his colleagues which delve a bit deeper into their thoughts.
Overall, definitely worth the read.
June 13, 2024
Арт книга, която включва илюстрации от първите три филма, които Макото Шинкай е направил, което става дума до 2008 година, независимо, че книгата е издадена 2015.
Интервютата с останалата част от екипа, работещи по тези филми, е доста интересна и любопитна. Получаваш поглед над това какво е да си background artist и не изглежда никак розово. Дано са се подобрили условията. :)
Беше много приятно отново да се потопя в света на Makoto Shinkai, да се насладя на илюстрациите и да науча повече за методите му на работа. Жалко, че няма по-нова арт книга, която да покрива цялата му филмография.
Интервютата с останалата част от екипа, работещи по тези филми, е доста интересна и любопитна. Получаваш поглед над това какво е да си background artist и не изглежда никак розово. Дано са се подобрили условията. :)
Беше много приятно отново да се потопя в света на Makoto Shinkai, да се насладя на илюстрациите и да науча повече за методите му на работа. Жалко, че няма по-нова арт книга, която да покрива цялата му филмография.
May 14, 2018
4.5? This is how most art books should be honestly. At least content wise though I know some might need space for character design too. The majority of the book was background images with captions about artistic decisions. I’m also happy it had a section about the process behind the images and interviews with other artists that have also worked on these films with him.
My only complaint is that it should be larger and have a hard cover. Especially for the tutorial section at the back. It’s extremely difficult to see what details are being added or removed from the original reference photo.
My only complaint is that it should be larger and have a hard cover. Especially for the tutorial section at the back. It’s extremely difficult to see what details are being added or removed from the original reference photo.
August 16, 2021
Full confession: didn't read every page, nor study each background, but what I saw was enough and reading Shinkais interview convinced me to revisit his films. Kind of odd watching 5 cm per second years ago and not seeing his impact back then. Golden shelf worthy.
April 10, 2020
This guy uses lens flares more than J.J. Abrams.
June 19, 2024
As a fan of Makoto Shinkai, I've always wanted to have this book ever since last year. I didn't know exactly what the content of this book (I assumed it was a book full of images), but as long as it's related to Makoto Shinkai, one of my favorite directors of all-time, I would want to have it.
This book caters more to people who aspire to be an animator, art designer, visual effects artist, or any role in the animation industry. This is not a book that focuses on Makoto Shinkai's works, specifically The Placed Promised in Our Early Days, 5 Centimeters Per Second, Voices of a Distant Star, and Say Something Important, on the lenses of a storyteller, scriptwriter, and director (though there are some touches here and there), but this is mostly an art book of the works mentioned. Not saying this as a negative implication, but something that people who plans to read the book should keep in mind.
Since this is an art book, the language and terms used can mostly be understood from the point of view of an artist. There is a glossary section in the beginning for people to read and understand certain terms used in the world of digital animation. As a reader, I mostly appreciated the descriptions of certain shots. I love animation as a medium, but animation lies outside of my skills and expertise. Nevertheless, I still enjoyed reading the book and it was interesting to know the process of creating certain cuts of the works shown.
This is not a major issue of the book, but more of my personal preference. I have watched all the works mentioned in the book. In terms of Makoto Shinkai's directed feature-length films, he has not directed a critically-bad film yet for me. However, the works mentioned aren't really my favorite of his. I think 5 Centimeters Per Second is the best of the films discussed in the book, but I am not a huge fan of The Place Promised in Our Early Days, Voices of a Distant Star, and the commercial he worked on which he did not direct, Say Something Important, which I did not get what the message was. They're okay, but I would not consider them as his best works. This book was published in 2015, and his other films that were released before that year were Children Who Chased Lost Voices and The Garden of Words, which I would have liked it more if each of them has a segment in the book because those are better than The Place Promised in Our Early Days and Voices of a Distant Star or, instead of replacing them, they should've been included. Also, the book was published one year earlier before the release of my favorite movie of Makoto Shinkai, Your Name, which was released in 2016. I would have loved if it is in the book because that is, generally, his best work. It's one of my favorite movies of all-time.
As someone who has more of an interest in scriptwriting and directing, I was more invested in the section called Testimonials of Makoto Shinkai, where him and his co-workers were interviewed. It's ironic because that's not the main meat of the book, but I appreciated direct transcripts from actual people who worked on the film who shared their experiences working with Makoto Shinkai, experiences with work, how they started, etc.
This book caters to a lot of audience from fans of animation to anime lovers to fans of Makoto Shinkai and to people who aspire to be in the animation industry.
This book caters more to people who aspire to be an animator, art designer, visual effects artist, or any role in the animation industry. This is not a book that focuses on Makoto Shinkai's works, specifically The Placed Promised in Our Early Days, 5 Centimeters Per Second, Voices of a Distant Star, and Say Something Important, on the lenses of a storyteller, scriptwriter, and director (though there are some touches here and there), but this is mostly an art book of the works mentioned. Not saying this as a negative implication, but something that people who plans to read the book should keep in mind.
Since this is an art book, the language and terms used can mostly be understood from the point of view of an artist. There is a glossary section in the beginning for people to read and understand certain terms used in the world of digital animation. As a reader, I mostly appreciated the descriptions of certain shots. I love animation as a medium, but animation lies outside of my skills and expertise. Nevertheless, I still enjoyed reading the book and it was interesting to know the process of creating certain cuts of the works shown.
This is not a major issue of the book, but more of my personal preference. I have watched all the works mentioned in the book. In terms of Makoto Shinkai's directed feature-length films, he has not directed a critically-bad film yet for me. However, the works mentioned aren't really my favorite of his. I think 5 Centimeters Per Second is the best of the films discussed in the book, but I am not a huge fan of The Place Promised in Our Early Days, Voices of a Distant Star, and the commercial he worked on which he did not direct, Say Something Important, which I did not get what the message was. They're okay, but I would not consider them as his best works. This book was published in 2015, and his other films that were released before that year were Children Who Chased Lost Voices and The Garden of Words, which I would have liked it more if each of them has a segment in the book because those are better than The Place Promised in Our Early Days and Voices of a Distant Star or, instead of replacing them, they should've been included. Also, the book was published one year earlier before the release of my favorite movie of Makoto Shinkai, Your Name, which was released in 2016. I would have loved if it is in the book because that is, generally, his best work. It's one of my favorite movies of all-time.
As someone who has more of an interest in scriptwriting and directing, I was more invested in the section called Testimonials of Makoto Shinkai, where him and his co-workers were interviewed. It's ironic because that's not the main meat of the book, but I appreciated direct transcripts from actual people who worked on the film who shared their experiences working with Makoto Shinkai, experiences with work, how they started, etc.
This book caters to a lot of audience from fans of animation to anime lovers to fans of Makoto Shinkai and to people who aspire to be in the animation industry.
July 21, 2022
Bought this during a short trip to New York City at Kinokuniya. I went to read it on a sunny day in July at Bryant Park.
I'm so glad to have this book my hands now. I've been longing for this artbook since.......maybe 2015?
I love this filmmaker's work. The story, script, backgrounds, animation, music, and themes and symbolism are done so amazingly well. I first watched 5 cm per second in high school. When I found out Shinkai was a literature major in school, it made me really happy to hear! :D
This is a gorgeous book featuring work mostly from 5 cm per second and The Place Promised in our Early Days (my favorite movie!). There are small explanations and blurbs accompanying the art that you might find interesting.
This is an art lover's dream - a must-have.
I'm so glad to have this book my hands now. I've been longing for this artbook since.......maybe 2015?
I love this filmmaker's work. The story, script, backgrounds, animation, music, and themes and symbolism are done so amazingly well. I first watched 5 cm per second in high school. When I found out Shinkai was a literature major in school, it made me really happy to hear! :D
This is a gorgeous book featuring work mostly from 5 cm per second and The Place Promised in our Early Days (my favorite movie!). There are small explanations and blurbs accompanying the art that you might find interesting.
This is an art lover's dream - a must-have.
Want to read
January 2, 2025Glossary of Terms
5 Centimeters per Second
Act 1: "Cherry Blossom"
--Spring - Hometown
--School Buildings
--The Tono Household
--Railways
--Rendezvous
--The Morning of Their Separation
Act 2: "Cosmonaut"
--The Sky That Leads to Her
--Island Life
--A Girl's Ocean
--Path to the Stars
Act 3: "5 Centimeters per Second"
--Lonely Room
--Winter Skies - Tokyo at Night
--Scenes from Days Gone by
--Cherry Blossoms - A New Season
The Place Promised in Our Early Days
--Distant Time
--A Secret Place
--Lost Time - Tokyo
--Laboratory
--Parallel Universe - Sayuri's Loneliness
--Outbreak of War
--Reunion at the End of the World
Voices of a Distant Star
--From Here to Eternity - Endless Summer
Say Something Important.
--Shinano Mainichi Shimbun TV Commercial
Makoto Shinkai's Colors
--Makoto Shinkai's Desktops
--Makoto Shinkai's art production environment
--Fundamental techniques for creating background artwork
--Basic layer structure used in background art production
--Methods for drawing buildings, etc.
--Methods for creating background art using 3DCG
--Differences in expression using animated backgrounds
Testimonials of Makoto Shinkai's World
--Interview with Makoto Shinkai
--Shinkai Works staff interviews
--Takumi Tanji and Akiko Majima
--Akira Hirosawa
--Minako Shimada
--Kaori Izumiya
--Yoshitaka Takeuchi
--Yumi Ishii
--Tasuku Watanabe
--Takayo Nishimura
--Koichiro Itoh
Credits
5 Centimeters per Second
Act 1: "Cherry Blossom"
--Spring - Hometown
--School Buildings
--The Tono Household
--Railways
--Rendezvous
--The Morning of Their Separation
Act 2: "Cosmonaut"
--The Sky That Leads to Her
--Island Life
--A Girl's Ocean
--Path to the Stars
Act 3: "5 Centimeters per Second"
--Lonely Room
--Winter Skies - Tokyo at Night
--Scenes from Days Gone by
--Cherry Blossoms - A New Season
The Place Promised in Our Early Days
--Distant Time
--A Secret Place
--Lost Time - Tokyo
--Laboratory
--Parallel Universe - Sayuri's Loneliness
--Outbreak of War
--Reunion at the End of the World
Voices of a Distant Star
--From Here to Eternity - Endless Summer
Say Something Important.
--Shinano Mainichi Shimbun TV Commercial
Makoto Shinkai's Colors
--Makoto Shinkai's Desktops
--Makoto Shinkai's art production environment
--Fundamental techniques for creating background artwork
--Basic layer structure used in background art production
--Methods for drawing buildings, etc.
--Methods for creating background art using 3DCG
--Differences in expression using animated backgrounds
Testimonials of Makoto Shinkai's World
--Interview with Makoto Shinkai
--Shinkai Works staff interviews
--Takumi Tanji and Akiko Majima
--Akira Hirosawa
--Minako Shimada
--Kaori Izumiya
--Yoshitaka Takeuchi
--Yumi Ishii
--Tasuku Watanabe
--Takayo Nishimura
--Koichiro Itoh
Credits
December 28, 2024
I have been a fan of Makoto Shinkai since his famous Your Name. However, for some reason, I ended up watching other movies he created as well, including 5cm/s, The Garden of Words, and Children Who Chase Lost Voices during my university days. Frankly, I did not think much of 5cm/s back then, and even a couple of years ago, it still did not leave a strong impression. That changed when a friend gave me the 5cm/s novel. After reading it, I found the story much more captivating and decided to watch the movie again. It is fascinating how something that did not interest me years ago could leave such an impression now.
As for this book, it is a beautiful collection of artworks from Shinkai’s movies, filled with intricate details. For instance, I learned that the station Takaki and Akari run through is Sangubashi Station, a place I have never visited although I liked Yoyogi Park nearby so much. I did not read everything in the book but enjoyed skimming through the artwork from the movies I have watched. It is a wonderfully relaxing book to end the year with.
As for this book, it is a beautiful collection of artworks from Shinkai’s movies, filled with intricate details. For instance, I learned that the station Takaki and Akari run through is Sangubashi Station, a place I have never visited although I liked Yoyogi Park nearby so much. I did not read everything in the book but enjoyed skimming through the artwork from the movies I have watched. It is a wonderfully relaxing book to end the year with.
August 30, 2018
I am quite disappointed in this artbook, book is a bit small, the layout is not very appealing, most of the pictures are too small to see the details, I realize this is a background artbook but without the characters it is less attractive.
January 15, 2023
So much beautiful art and I loved the detailed descriptions regarding the technique and the ideas behind it. Also the in depth interview and detailed explanation how the team works was amazing. Gem in my collection!
March 1, 2019
This book keeps motivating me to do background arts, and every single piece of his arts is so detail. Totally, his arts are my inspiration.
August 16, 2020
good book. i got it on amazon. you can also get it https://amzn.to/3iGXmMf
May 10, 2024
Just beautiful
November 2, 2024
I agree with the reviewer who said the images were too small in some places, but otherwise a beautiful art book.
September 12, 2023
Incluye fotografías y escenas nunca vistas (al menos, no desde la perspectiva mostrada en la película) de las diferentes obras del autor. Asimismo, añade comentarios acerca de su realización, y te sorprenderás al ver el significado e intención de diferentes escenas. Definitivamente, es un 'behind-the-scenes' de Makoto Shinkai.
January 11, 2017
I love the idea of this book, photographs of skies from different perspectives (including lighting and shadows), some of which made me think. Amazing photos!
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews