Co-creation with Shochiku in Turmoil: Digitization and Opportunities for Kabuki in the Covid-19 Pandemic Vol.1
This article is reprinted from an article published on the site "MUGENLABO Magazine" operated by KDDI
A series that spins the words of key people involved in co-creation and open innovation in Japan.
While the spread of infectious diseases has had a major impact on kabuki and performing arts, Shochiku has partnered with LINE in September of last year to come up with a proactive digitization policy. Based on the "Shochiku DX (Digital Transformation) Consortium", there is a growing movement to drastically change the way entertainment is performed, the relationship with Kabuki actors and talents, and the future of content.
How will Shochiku's vision of entertainment in the near future change?
In the first half of the interview, Mr. Naoto Funakoshi, a director of Shochiku who is in charge of business promotion and production centering on kabuki, will talk about the present and future of performing arts centered on kabuki. In the second half, we interviewed Mr. Takahiro Inoue, who is also in charge of promoting innovation at the company as a director, about the digitization that Shochiku is promoting. ).
Before asking about Shochiku's business co-creation activities, could you tell us about the situation of Kabuki and the stage that have greatly influenced you?
Funakoshi: The influence of not only Shochiku but also the theater world is immeasurable. Mr. Hideki Noda and others called out to him to create an ``emergency stage'' where about 200 or 300 companies, such as large and small entertainment companies, theater companies, and stage production companies, were ``related to theatre.'' An organization called Art Network was also established. Rather than trying to do some kind of joint movement, the purpose is to convey to the administrative side as a voice summarizing the reality of the theater scene. Among them, Shochiku plays a role in communicating the current state of Kabuki as a genre of theater and how theaters are operated.
As with all theaters, the situation is that the number of customers has completely decreased. The word "unnecessary and non-essential" is often repeated, but in the mood where it may be pointed out that live entertainment itself is the best of them, I started by asking myself, "Is our livelihood unnecessary?"
I'm an amateur and come up with the idea of ``If you can't go on stage, you can do it on TV or on the Internet.''
Funakoshi: Up until now, there have been quite a few actors who were reluctant to have Kabuki delivered to their living room as a video, such as through a TV broadcast. There may have been a strong tendency to believe that ``you can only understand and be appreciated only by seeing live performances. There were people who didn't agree with recording it as a video, let alone internet distribution... it was a dream come true.
Advancement in video technology is not always good for theater.For example, in the era of 4K and 8K, you may be able to see unnecessary things such as the boundary between the wig and the skin, and the shaving marks of the actor acting as a female role. I can't do it... if that happens, it will be ruined.
But in the end, with Corona, such a sense of resistance became almost meaningless. In a world where real communication is blocked, does theater really have a reason for existence? and.
It's quite a crisis
Funakoshi: I think Axel started to think that this corona might last longer. In March of last year, all the performances were cancelled, and the actors felt that it was a pity that the work they had made was not released to the world at all, so we decided to distribute it free of charge. The pros and cons of this issue, which had been debated for a long time, suddenly turned into progress in just a few months.
Even in this kind of situation, isn't there a certain number of people who want to keep their previous way of thinking? Funakoshi: I think there are some. However, while respecting traditional methods, there is also a gradual shift toward making good use of streaming as a means of expression, especially among young actors. In the sense of a collaboration between the real world and the digital world, "Super Kabuki", in which a kabuki actor named Shido Nakamura and an idol in a virtual space named Hatsune Miku co-star, may be the forerunner. I've had this kind of challenge before, but it feels like the corona crisis has suddenly accelerated the search for it.
Could you change the subject a little and tell us more about the digitization of Kabuki? I think there are many things that need to be done, but where are you starting?
Funakoshi: First of all, we are trying to establish a "delivery room" that has never existed before, and to properly organize the internal system of Shochiku.
Until now, Kabuki has created a sense of enjoyment in a space called “dense”. As the corona crisis covers the world and people are looking for a space that is not "dense" but "sparse", I think it will be important to find a way to deliver an experience that is close to what was obtained in "dense". This is my personal opinion, but for example, we have been providing live broadcasts of stage performances up until now through means such as TV broadcasting and DVDs, so simply changing to a channel called Internet live distribution will not bring about a big change, and it will be an attractive experience. My impression is that it will not work.
That's exactly what Kabuki actors were concerned about.
Funakoshi: For example, “Super Kabuki” realized what many people had expected to some extent, by co-starring real actors and avatars in digital space. It was an unprecedented attempt, but I was able to predict it. Other than that, what was shocking was that during the live broadcast, various comments from viewers were displayed on the screen. At the climax, the screen was so full of text that the performers could not be seen, just like when the applause did not stop after the chanting of the actual stage. This is just my personal opinion, but it was this phenomenon that was the most shocking to the theater producers. Covering the actor's face with comments or hiding his face was unacceptable.
I see.
Funakoshi: The flood of comments that hide the performer's face is a manifestation of the viewer's exhilaration, and the feeling of participating is embodied, and what the viewer wanted was rather this experience. I thought maybe not. I think it's important to have the simultaneous experience of sharing a demonstration that's going on, rather than a one-way street.
When I attended the opening of the new Kabukiza theater as manager, there was a grandmother, daughter, and granddaughter who came to the Kabukiza for three generations. “It was my dream to go to Kabukiza with all three generations,” he said. It was 7 or 8 years ago, so it may be difficult for an old woman who used to be in a wheelchair to go out now. It's an extreme theory, but if you can provide a virtual experience similar to that with VR or AR to those who can't go out anymore, but who said, "I was looking forward to going to Kabukiza", such technological progress would be better than 4K or 8K high-definition images. It can mean a lot to theater.
Even if you distribute the video, for example, if you give the viewer a function to switch viewpoints, it may be possible to have a special experience unique to distribution that cannot be experienced even if you go to the theater. yeah. We may be able to unearth new demand by leaving the reserved seats and sitting in various seats depending on the scene and watching Kabuki from different angles.
Even if you say digitalization in one word, the technology is wide. From what point will it be tackled?
Funakoshi: It's true that having a stage and being analog is attractive. It's important to take on the challenge of digital technology, but I think it's right to start by filling in things that are far away. For example, the digitization of ticket sales is progressing, so shouldn't we start by improving convenience?
Our company started a distribution service called "Kabuki On Demand" last year, but so far, this is for the domestic market. Originally, we should expand overseas, and I think there is demand for that as well. In fact, Kabuki has a history of performing overseas for nearly 100 years. I believe that the high level of recognition of "KABUKI" is a result of the efforts of our predecessors. Streaming is a revolutionary way to reach people who can't access the actual stage, so I think it's the best way to reach fans living overseas.
It is certainly interesting to look at the overseas market as a new business opportunity.
Funakoshi: However, if we simply digitize Kabuki content, we may lose sight of its essential value. Currently, having people directly feel the heat is a negative factor, so there is nothing we can do about it, but there are some things that can only be conveyed through this method. Actors and other performers must first recognize that value, raise it to something unique, and devote themselves to sharpening their skills to embody it. If it is not a value that cannot be replaced by others, it can't be helped even if it is classified into the "unnecessary" category. It's important for both the people in charge of the performance and the people who create Kabuki to think seriously about what is attractive about it, and whether it's really attractive now.
(Continued in the second half)
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