Howllo Fellow Basset Hound and Ghost in the Shell 2 lovers:

This is going to be a very long and interesting post about someone I really admire.  I have been wanting to blog about this person for a long time.

I have followed Mamoru Oshii’s career as a writer and director since 1995 when he released his cyber punk animated film, Ghost in the Shell.

Why you ask?  It’s very, very simple – Mamoru has a basset hound named
Gabriel (ガブリエル).  Gabriel became the feature of his 2004 film, Innocence.

Mamoru Oshii

I have tried for years to get an interview with Mamoru Oshii.  I had hoped to ask him more about his beloved Gabriel and perhaps even get some pictures.  I have not given up hope yet!

Here are parts of an interview he did give to Judit Kawaguchi that might show you why I am so intrigued by him.

INTERVIEW WITH MAMORU OSHII – 3-13-07

Tools of the trade deserve respect. Everything has a spirit, and we Japanese sense it, whether it is in a mountain, a doll or a kitchen knife. Therefore, we usually give names to our tools; we treat them as partners. Once they are broken, we make elaborate ceremonies to thank them for their service and hard work. For example, we place old needles in tofu, and we pay our respects to them in a Shinto ceremony called harikuyo- (literally “mourning needles”). I named my first NEC computer Basset 68,000 and I still keep its brain, its hard disk, in a drawer. I can never throw it away.

Women run Japan and not in the right direction. Japanese wives boss their husbands around, and the smartest way to deal with these overpowering women is to give in to them. At home, I behave just like a dog: I show my appreciation to my wife and always apologize in advance, even if I have done nothing wrong. Of course, she gets mad anyhow, so it is best to stay at work. I think this is universal, though: Men are struggling and losing out to stronger women, but I find many foreign women a lot gentler than their Japanese counterparts.

Dogs have instincts, and it’s wise to follow them.I adore my two dogs, Daniel and Gabriel, and I listen to them; if they like someone, he or she is definitely a good person.

Animals need more protection. My dream is to set up an animal rescue force, similar to those that exist in other countries, where the officials not only help animals but have the authority to arrest those who hurt them.

Those who torture animals deserve severe punishment. I feel like giving them all the death penalty because it’s the worst kind of crime, and I rather suspect that such predators usually move on to children next. Also, if a man hurts a woman, he should get a life sentence.

Pamper those you love while you can. Atami, in Shizuoka Prefecture, has the best climate for my dogs, so I moved there. We walk the mountains, take onsen (hot spring) baths together and enjoy the good life. They eat better food than me. I get soba noodles and they chew on veggies, meat and rice. They deserve it!

One can never be the same after losing a loved one. I’m in constant fear about the inevitable death of my two dogs, Gabriel, 13, and Daniel, who is maybe 16 now. I’ll never be the same without them. Even now, I have a big hole in my heart for my cat, which died years ago.

Little white lies make people happy. I love people and I often resort to telling them what they want to hear. When I say such things, I even believe it myself.

END OF INTERVIEW

Today I saw on the internet wires that Mamoru’s Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, is being released on DVD.

The year is 2032.  With the advancement of medical technology humanity has grown into a more technologically driven creature, creating a breed of cyborg citizen.  Along with the development of cybernetics the world has seen rapid development in the field of artificial intelligence, making androids a commercially viable venture. A recent string of murders perpetrated by a prototype female android has drawn the attention of Section 9, a unit specializing in counter cyberterrorism.  With none of the victims families pressing charges, suspicions arise regarding the nature of the androids and their production.
Months have passed since the end of the Puppet Master incident, and with the Major still missing, investigative duties fall to her cyborg commando partner Batou and his newly recruited biological partner, Togusa.  Can the two overcome their differences and discover the truth behind the string of murders?

For the most part the films are very hard to understand.  Experts on Mamoru’s work watch each film over and over to gain enough knowledge to write a review.  Mamoru’s films have to  be viewed in order and each film has to be viewed several times.

Also, you have to be into Japanese animation.  I have seen several of his films and I will buy this one.  I love having the collection and supporting Mamoru in his passion.  I will also buy the soundtrack.  How cool is that cover?  The basset hound standing over the injured robot/cyborg thing? From what I understand, the basset serves as a guadian angel to the cyborg.  Maybe that is why Mamoru’s basset is named Gabriel.  I better write down that question and keep it when I get to interview him.

Here is another interesting shot of the basset hound that appears in GIS2.

American Justin Leach (right) lived in Japan and worked for Production I.G. for almost three years. Among the projects Justin worked on was the basset hound in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence. Photo credit: Kazunori Suga. All GITS2 images courtesy of Go Fish Pictures.

One more picture.  Here is the basset hound under construction.

Mar. 3, 2003 – Justin Leach
Right now, I am compositing a shot with a 3D basset hound. This particular shot is a little tricky because the render times are quite long. At high-resolution, high quality, it takes about 13 minutes a frame, which means in order to finish 10 seconds of animation, it takes about two days of continuous rendering.  Here is the shot in it’s completed form. Look for it in the YouTube video clip I found at the end of this blog.

Let’s end with another interview I found on line:

Interviewer: You’ve been credited as a major influence on contemporary animators. Is there anything in particular you’d like them to learn from you?

MO: I would recommend that they not go into animation. It won’t do them any good.

Interviewer: Why is that?

MO: You won’t make money, it’s hard, and you’ll lose all your friends.

Interviewr: And yet you’re still an animator.

MO: Well, I don’t care whether I have any friends.

I think I could have turned in a term paper for college on the subject of Japanation of a basset hound.  LOL

I really enjoyed looking at a lot of this information on the net.  I hope you enjoyed it as well.

Mamoru Oshii, if you are out there I am a fan.  I would love to see some pictures of your precious Gabriel.

More about Gabriel Mamoru Oshii later….Love, Cat, Chaps and Emma

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