Film restoring A-bombed district via computer animation is completed
Aug. 20, 2010
by Yumi Kanazaki, Staff Writer
A film which restores the townscape and the daily life of the former Nakajima District (now, Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park), an area annihilated by the atomic bomb, through computer animation has been completed. The film also depicts in detail the inside of the former Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall (now, the Atomic Bomb Dome). The Film Production Committee for the Restoration of Peace Memorial Park, led by Masaaki Tanabe, produced the film.
The committee will screen the film at the East Building of Peace Memorial Museum on September 3, by inviting residents of the former Nakajima District. The 60-minute film is entitled "Message from Hiroshima: What was Lost in the Bombing." It depicts the former Nakajima District, once a prosperous area with Japanese-style restaurants, shops, and movie theaters through sophisticated computer animation along with footage of 60 former residents speaking about the district.
As many as 50 buildings were restored in the film through computer animation based on the accounts of former residents and materials Mr. Tanabe found both in the United States and in Japan. A scene depicting the atomic blast was also included in the film, highlighting the inhumanity of the atomic bomb which annihilated Hiroshima.
The committee comprised of Mr. Tanabe and experts in Hiroshima involved in visual imagery and architectural engineering spent more than three years working on the film.
A professor and students at the USC School of Cinematic Arts (University of Southern California), one of the top film schools in the United States with many graduates serving in prominent roles in the Hollywood movie industry, depicted the VIP room of the former Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall and other images involving the building.
Mr. Tanabe said hopefully, "I would like the nations of the world, including the nuclear weapon states, to use this film for disarmament education."
(Originally published on August 20, 2010)
Related articles
Computer animated footage of former Nakajima District screened at U.N. (May 7, 2010)
Original appearance of A-bomb Dome prior to atomic bombing will be restored via computer animation (Nov. 6, 2009)
A film which restores the townscape and the daily life of the former Nakajima District (now, Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park), an area annihilated by the atomic bomb, through computer animation has been completed. The film also depicts in detail the inside of the former Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall (now, the Atomic Bomb Dome). The Film Production Committee for the Restoration of Peace Memorial Park, led by Masaaki Tanabe, produced the film.
The committee will screen the film at the East Building of Peace Memorial Museum on September 3, by inviting residents of the former Nakajima District. The 60-minute film is entitled "Message from Hiroshima: What was Lost in the Bombing." It depicts the former Nakajima District, once a prosperous area with Japanese-style restaurants, shops, and movie theaters through sophisticated computer animation along with footage of 60 former residents speaking about the district.
As many as 50 buildings were restored in the film through computer animation based on the accounts of former residents and materials Mr. Tanabe found both in the United States and in Japan. A scene depicting the atomic blast was also included in the film, highlighting the inhumanity of the atomic bomb which annihilated Hiroshima.
The committee comprised of Mr. Tanabe and experts in Hiroshima involved in visual imagery and architectural engineering spent more than three years working on the film.
A professor and students at the USC School of Cinematic Arts (University of Southern California), one of the top film schools in the United States with many graduates serving in prominent roles in the Hollywood movie industry, depicted the VIP room of the former Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall and other images involving the building.
Mr. Tanabe said hopefully, "I would like the nations of the world, including the nuclear weapon states, to use this film for disarmament education."
(Originally published on August 20, 2010)
Related articles
Computer animated footage of former Nakajima District screened at U.N. (May 7, 2010)
Original appearance of A-bomb Dome prior to atomic bombing will be restored via computer animation (Nov. 6, 2009)
