Jun Shirasaki and the Jinguji sisters, Rumi and Naori, are childhood friends who have been together since they were little and have been like family ever since they were little. The relationship between the three of them, who have been interacting without having any specific relationship, changes one day into a twisted love triangle with one word uttered by Rumi.
To commemorate the broadcast, Animate Times is running a series of interviews! After the broadcast of episode 7, we spoke with director Nakanishi Motoki about the behind-the-scenes of the production and looking back on the episodes so far.
–ROLL2, the animation studio producing this work, is a new production studio.
Nakanishi: This is the first time we have been the prime contractor for ROLL2. As they are a new studio, the majority of the staff involved are young people in their 20s and 30s. We are doing our best with our young energy.
–You yourself are young.
Nakanishi: I’m 32 years old.
— (laughs) It seems like having a lot of young staff members makes for a lively atmosphere.
Nakanishi: In the industry, there is a saying that the anime production site is like “the preparation period for the school festival continues forever.” I think that the production site of this work is like that saying, where everyone is motivated to take the initiative and create a good work. To be honest, compared to long-established studios, there are still some things we are not used to, but we are working with a small but elite team in a homely atmosphere.
–As this is your first time as a general contractor, it seems like it will be a great experience for all of your staff.
Nakanishi: I hope that this production will be a turning point for some of our staff members. I would be happy if I could create an environment where they can work freely.
–Was there many challenges in terms of production?
Nakanishi: We didn’t do anything particularly unusual in the work. Since the original is a light novel, the dialogue is the most appealing part, so we try to focus on the dialogue rather than trying to stand out in terms of the visuals. However, there are some scenes where the animator’s individuality comes out, so I hope viewers will also take a look at the visuals and direction.
–What kind of efforts do you make to make this kind of dialogue captivating for the audience?
Nakanishi: One is the otaku talk between Jun and Naori. It’s natural that viewers won’t know all the originals of parodies, but I try not to explain each one. I think that’s how real conversations between otaku are. I make it so that when you watch it as a whole, you can enjoy the conversation between the two even if you don’t understand all the little jokes.
–Speaking of parodies, “Back to the Future” and “Star Wars” are great.
Nakanishi: I thought that many people would understand those works, so I deliberately tried to express them in a way that would not be too explanatory. There are many other titles that are more obscure than those, but if you are interested, please search for them. Nowadays, if you look on social media, there are many people who explain things. We place importance on creating a comfortable sense of tempo.
–So what do you think about the conversation between Jun and Rumi?
Nakanishi: I think Rumi is more serious about her relationship with Jun than Naori. She also tries to be honest with everyone, even outside of her relationship with Jun. That’s why her conversations with Rumi are like straight punches. Every word she says carries weight. Naori, on the other hand, is a bit tsundere and doesn’t throw any punches. Given the differences between the sisters, the conversations with Rumi inevitably have a serious atmosphere and there are fewer lines. But I think that makes it easier to portray natural conversation scenes.
–The differences in the sisters’ personalities are quite clear.
Nakanishi: I think the difference between Rumi and Naori is a big element of this work. In particular, the character of Rumi makes me think, “I wonder if there’s a heroine in a romantic comedy who has such raw emotions.” She doesn’t have a clear guiding principle like, “I like him, so it would be nice if we could go out,” and her goal isn’t just, “I like him, but I just want to go out with him.”
This is because she thinks about the people around her and is unable to make the choice to just be objective when it would be best to just interact with her. This is her charm, but I think it’s also the cause of the three of them worrying.
一方で那織というキャラクターは、琉実と比べて子供っぽさがあります。子供の頃のような3人の関係を続けていきたい、という想いが前提にあるから純に踏み込むことを恐れていて。今後、3人の関係性に変化がありますが、結局、彼女が目指しているものは純を攻略することよりも、今の生ぬるい関係を続けることなんですよね。そこが琉実と目的を共有できない理由であり、違いなんだと思います。そして、そこが複雑に絡み合っていくことで話がこじれていくんですよね。
ーー以前、純役の坂田将吾さんのインタビューの際、原作者の髙村先生が「結婚するなら琉実で、彼女にするなら那織かもしれない」とおっしゃっていたとお話されていました。
中西：先生がおっしゃった理由はわかります。今のお話と繋がっていて、琉実は責任を持って真剣に人と向き合おうとするけど、那織はそこまでの関係になりたくない、と。やっぱり那織は子供で、琉実は大人だということなんでしょうね。
ただ、第6話までの段階では、那織がどうしたいのかがまだハッキリとしていないんですよね。これまでの話で那織は、純と付き合っているつもりはないと言ったり、琉実のことを手玉に取っていたりと、主導権を握っているような立ち位置に見えました。ですが、実際は那織がドヤっとしているときほど、内心は不安定で、決して全てを思い通りに操っているわけではないんですよ。
実際は純と琉実が関係を進めたら自分が置いていかれてしまう、仲間はずれにされちゃうかもしれない、だから場をひっかき回して、なんとか自分を間にねじ込んでいて。そこは彼女の魅力でもありますし、第7話、第8話くらいから本音に迫っていく展開になっていきます。
ーー今後、より那織の魅力が伝わっていきそうですね。
中西：那織の魅力はここからです。これまでのオタク友達としての一面だけではなく、めちゃめちゃかわいいところが出てくるのでぜひ注目してほしいです。
ーーずばり、監督ご自身、琉実と那織のどちらが好きですか？
中西：逃げるわけではないんですけど（笑）、琉実と那織は純のものなんですよ。もっと言えば、純、琉実、那織の三角関係って誰も割って入れないんです。なので、僕としてはあの3人の関係を見守っていたい派です。どちらかというと森脇（豊茂）や亀嵩（璃々須）といった友達のほうが好きですね。みんな大人ですし、琉実や那織を支えてあげている姿が良いなと思います。
ーーサブキャラクターたちも魅力的ですよね。
中西：純、琉実、那織の3人は思い悩むこともありますが、友達たちが支えてくれるから元気にやっているんだろうなと思います。
ーーキャストのお芝居をご覧になっていかがでしたか？
中西：めちゃめちゃぴったりなキャスティングでしたし、やっぱり双子のバランスですよね。経験豊富な内田さんと新人の後本さんの組み合わせがすごく良いなと思いました。
あと脇を固めるキャストさんたちもバッチリハマっていましたね。慈衣菜役の石原（夏織）さんはかわいい部分とギャルっぽい部分、押しの強さみたいな部分をすごい精度で演じられていて。正直、負けヒロインといえば石原さんの印象があったのでそこは流石だなと（笑）。亀嵩役の大野（柚布子）さんのお芝居も、「こんな腐女子いたなー」なんて思わされて（笑）。平成の感覚かもしれませんが、良い意味でオタク女子感が出ていました。
ーーキャラクターたちに親近感が湧いたのは、キャストのお芝居の力も大きそうですね。
中西：そうですね。キャストさんにキャラクターの魅力をブーストしてもらったんじゃないかなと思います。難しいセリフが多く、そこを上手く読みこなしていただいたという意味でも感謝しかないです。
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