Though not exactly a masterpiece, I quite enjoyed Shimoyama Ten’s fantasy/period ninja film Shinobi (released back in 2005) for its fantastic character and costume designs. In fact, the sleek and impressionable characters and their well designed costumes were pretty much the highlights of the film – no surprise, considering they were created by manga artist Yamada Akihiro, who gave us the classic manga Record of Lodoss War.
(above) Shinobi posters featuring the lead protaganists Oboro ( Nakama Yuki ) and Kouga Gennosuke, ( Onigiri Joe ) and their original character designs by Yamada-san below, faithfully reproduced in the film.
(above) Yakushiji Tenzen, an immortal with sacred bloodworms not unlike the swordsman Manji from Samura Hiroaki’s Blade of the Immortal.
Yamada Akihiro’s exceedingly detailed character design sketches are not only a pleasure to look at but an invaluable resource for concept artists looking for some reference material. The same goes for his studies for the set designs. ( below )
Anyone else a fan of Yamada Akihiro’s work ?
Folks who are interested in getting a copy of the book can find a used copy on Amazon Japan.
Buy From Amazon.com | Buy From Amazon CA | Buy From Amazon UK
You might also be interested in these items –
RahXephon Art Works – Yamada Akihiro Art Book Review
Yamada Akihiro – A Collection Of Paintings Book Review
The Twelve Kingdoms – Yamada Akihiro Art Book Review
Yamada Akihiro – Geijutsu Shincho Magazine 2022 Book Review
Twelve Kingdoms Vol 2 – Yamada Akihiro Art Book Review
February 16th, 2009 at 8:51 pm
I fell in love with Yamadas art with his original draft work on Rahxephon. I sought out his artbook for the show and its absolutely wonderful, so much detail and thought put into the designs.
February 17th, 2009 at 12:53 am
The drawings are so darned beautiful!
February 17th, 2009 at 6:13 am
He’s soooooooooooo good with watercolor
We need another major work like Rahxephon from him
February 18th, 2009 at 12:36 am
Wow this is incredible… a super designed art for a superb designed movie
February 18th, 2009 at 10:18 am
His art for Lady of Pharis was breathtaking!
so much so that i bought a bootleg copy of one of his artbooks without knowing T.T
February 18th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
I saw this movie recently, and while the movie itself was crappy, I really enjoyed the set pieces and the character designs. The characters themselves, not so much. And the anime that later came on wasn’t so great either, but again very beautiful to look at.
I don’t know, maybe it was too gloomy for my tastes.
On a different note, I just found about your blog today 🙂 Read your About page, I saw Freedom last month, and it was beautiful! Also, glad to know a fellow trance listener. I my self love The Thrilseekers, but AvB is my favourite XD
PS: Linked you on my blog.
February 20th, 2009 at 3:13 pm
AlexR/Olivia – Rahxephon is a big favorite among his fans alright.
Brandon/João Paulo Rosman – Glad you guys enjoyed the artwork, I can stare at it for the whole day too.
tragic comedy – Haha, there are still bootlegs in Singapore ?
th – Thanks for visiting and for supporting Freedom ! So AVB for you huh, he’s good alright. I’ve got your on rss now, so I’ll be visiting often. :]
April 13th, 2011 at 6:32 am
I am a huge fan of Yamada san & would like to become his apprentice some day
April 19th, 2011 at 4:56 pm
I am a frustrated illustrator. I’ve been doing sketch ever since i was a child but i am not satisfied with the result. It seems i am not improving.I envy this works. This is the level i want to achieve.
October 10th, 2011 at 7:59 pm
Wow, this is so great, another master of drawing discovered today thanks to you.
i wish i had this book right now. ..
February 11th, 2012 at 3:33 am
I loved that Yakushiji Tenzen ! 😀
May 10th, 2012 at 4:55 pm
Ok….. I just browse your blog and I stumbled into this… do they sell it in bookstore? do you still have it?