An interview video has been released with director Mamoru Oshii and Kazuhiro Wakabayashi, who supervised the 4K remaster sound design of the legendary OVA (original video animation) "Angel's Egg" released in 1985. The 4K remaster will be released exclusively in Dolby Cinemas from November 14th, and will be released nationwide from November 21st.
Director Oshii said, "Today is the first time I've watched it all the way through (since the production 40 years ago)," reflecting on the experience, saying, "It's a good experience that allows me to objectively see what I was thinking at the time and where I made mistakes." Wakabayashi explained that, in response to Director Oshii's request to "respect the original taste as much as possible and reproduce it faithfully," he separated the mono material with the cooperation of Sony PCL. He reconstructed sound effects such as the sound of rain and wind, as well as music, one by one, and described the process as like "separating the finished dish into its ingredients and then mixing them again."
Director Oshii said that there was a process of sublimating the sound from about 40 years ago into a modern format, and that there were difficulties in trying to create the same impression as the original, and said, "I want people to see and listen to it in a theater (cinema), because the amount of information is completely different."
A 4K remaster will be produced in time for the film's 40th anniversary in 2025. Under the supervision of Director Oshii, the original 35mm film will be scanned and remastered in 4K using the latest technology. It has also been announced that an official pamphlet will be sold at theaters where the film is shown.
"Angel's Egg" is Director Oshii's first original work, an OVA with original concept and art direction by Yoshitaka Amano. It was produced in an ascetic style, with near-monotone colors, very few lines, unusually long takes, and only about 400 cuts, about one-third the number of cuts in a typical anime. It was released as an OVA in 1985 and was screened in theaters for a limited time to commemorate its release.
