Masashi Kishimoto is among the most accomplished manga-ka, or manga illustrators, globally. His enduring series centered around the ninja, Naruto Uzumaki has sold tens of millions of books around the world.
You might have thought that Kishimoto’s creative influences were limited to other manga creators. But his wellspring of inspiration comes from an unexpected source.
During his early years, Kishimoto enjoyed reading manga, and it was the sight of a promotional picture for the movie Akira that motivated him to write one himself.
This encounter prompted him to analyze the visuals designed by Katsuhiro Otomo, the mastermind behind Akira‘s creation, along with Akira Toriyama, another creator Kishimoto admired.
Masashi Kishimoto Came to Understand Storytelling Through Pulp Fiction
Kishimoto delved extensively into the fundamentals of manga, particularly storytelling. He visited libraries, immersing himself in literature subjects like how to write a story, captivating methods, tripartite storyline structure, and character functions, among numerous other adept writing proficiencies.
While these books provided valuable guidance for his journey as a writer, he also found inspiration from watching films, which offered tangible examples and visual insights into directorial methods.
The main instance Kishimoto uses in his published “Personal History” is his encounter with Quentin Tarantino‘s movie Pulp Fiction. Immersed in the tense and gritty world of Hollywood cinema, he wrote out every single line with the purpose of dissecting character and narrative framework.
While there’s no explicit mention of other films he studied or the extent of his cinematic exploration, Kishimoto remained devoted to this process for two consecutive years. He amassed a collection of notebooks, wherein he documented his personal revelations, linking them to the insights he was acquiring. Upon reaching a thorough grasp of the skills and techniques, and feeling prepared to assimilate them as his own, he harnessed his diligent efforts effectively.
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Other Hollywood Movies That Inspired Masashi Kishimoto
In an interview with the L.A. Times, Kishimoto unveiled that certain aspects of his art techniques, as well as techniques he aspires to experiment with, draw inspiration from the creations of live-action directors such as Michael Bay, Quentin Tarantino, and Takeshi Kitano.
“I watch a lot of movies, and I tend to be influenced by scenes that intrigue me, that make me want to use the same effects or technique. I once adopted [actor-director] Takeshi Kitano’s technique of shooting objects from a great distance to stifle the emotion in the scene. I like the way Quentin Tarantino creates a scene using a series of close-ups or showing very cool images of a person or people walking on some ordinary street in slow motion. I wish I could achieve that kind of slow-motion effect in manga, but it’s rather difficult to draw; the only things we can play with are tones of black and white. I also like Michael Bay’s technique of shooting a scene against the background light. I’d like to try this in manga, but again it would be rather difficult.”
Kishimoto arranges each page like a director or cinematographer, frequently comparing a sequence of close-ups showcasing a character’s evolving expressions with expansive depictions of combat sequences.
Source: L.A. Times
