As part of the run up to AFA, the organisers of the event have kindly agreed to a request by both Bonkurasu and us for an interview with Kunio Okawara. Similar to the interview with May’n, we are opening up the proverbial floor for questions from you guys for Okawara-sensei. Questions will be broken up into the following categories:

• Idle Banter : Questions regarding anything about Singapore other miscellaneous queries are directed to this segment.
• General : Other mecha-related questions are allocated to this segment.
• Real Robot : Gundam and other more ‘realistic’ mechanical designs are answered over at this area.
• Super Robot : Your favourite classic Super Robots and more could be answered in this area.
• The Industry : Thinking of following his footsteps, but not sure how it really works?

Here are some of the questions that he has generously answered under the Idle Banter and General Categories. Our thanks to the organisers for letting us reproduce the interview on our site.

Idle Banter-
Q1: Good day, Okawara-sensei. We are honoured that you have granted us the privilege of this interview. We understand that your upcoming trip to Singapore is your first time here. What do you think about Singapore?

こんにちは、大河原先生。この度はインタビューにご対応いただきまして、ありがとうございます。先生はシンガポールにいらっしゃるのは初めてだとお聞きしましたが、シンガポールについてどういうイメージをお持ちですか？

A: マーライオン。非常に美しい都市国家。

I know the Merlion, and I think Singapore is a very beautiful city state.

Q2: Singapore is well known as a food paradise all around the world. Do you know any food from Singapore?

シンガポールといったら「料理」だとよく言われますが、先生はシンガポール料理で何かご存知のものはございますか？

A: ごめんなさい。シンガポールの料理に関しては分りません。

Sorry, I don’t really know much about Singaporean food.

Q3: The durian is known as the king of fruits. Have you tried it and what do you think of it? If so asked, how would you incorporate it into a mecha design?

「果物の王様」との別名を持つドリアンを食べたことがありますか？もしドリアンをロボットのデザインにするなら、どういったデザインになるでしょうか？

食べた事は有りません。大きな果物で臭いに耐えられれば癖に成るほど美味しいと聞いて居ります。（ダイビングが趣味でしたので、映像でよく見ました。）

全身ごつごつしたロボットで、必殺武器は臭いミサイルとか！！

I haven’t tried it before. I know that it has a really strong stench and that those who can stand the smell find the fruits very delicious. (I used to be into diving, so I often saw them in related videos.)

It would probably be a very angular mecha. Maybe its special attack will be stink missiles!

And this was our entry in the 13th Gundam Fight, the Ashura Gundam.

General

Q1: You have been designing mecha since the early 70s. How did you get your start in the mecha design business and what were your inspirations?

先生は７０年代からメカニックデザインを担当されてきました。最初のきっかけを教えてください。

A: 格好良く言えば、結婚を期に新しい世界にチャレンジ。

After I got married, I wanted to challenge myself in a new environment. That’s the cool version of the story.

Q2: Mecha fans know designs by two categories, super robot and real robot. From your perspective as a designer, how would you distinguish a Super Robot mecha from a Real Robot Mecha? Many fans are often left wondering how to classify them, like King Gainer and G Gundam.

「スーパーロボット」と「リアルロボット」という二つのカテゴリについて、デザイナーとしてその違いはなんでしょうか？例えば、「Gガンダム」は先生にとって、どのカテゴリに属しますか？

A: スーパーロボットは、対象年齢が低い場合が多い。強そうで派手な演出が出来る、格好良いデザイン。

リアルロボットは、現実にそこに有ると言う想像力。そして日常良く目にするメカのテイストをデザインに盛り込む。何と言っても、リアルに見せる演出が一番大事。

「Ｇガンダム」その作品の世界観に合わせたデザインコンセプトを考えますが、どちらと言われればスーパーロボット的かな？

Usually super robots are targeted at a younger audience. The designs are cool and the attacks are flashy and powerful-looking.

Real robots are based on real-life imageries. Mechanical elements seen in everyday life are incorporated into the designs. The most important thing is to make the designs look realistic.

The designs in G Gundam are made to match the worldview of the story. But I’d say that it’s probably closer to the super robot category.

Super Robot. He said so, don’t bother him.

Q3: Related to the last question, which genre do you prefer to work on?

先生は「スーパーロボット」と「リアルロボット」ではどちらの方がお好みでしょうか？

A: どちらとも言えないのですが、どの作品でもデザインコンセプトを考えるのが一番楽しい。

I would say neither. The most fun part for both is to think of the design concept that matches the particular work.

Just a request from the organisers though. Please keep your questions civil and refrain questions that you yourself would not answer. I am expecting a flood of backpack questions.

The dateline is this Sunday, the 16th of November. Thanks for the support.