Voices of a Distant Star

This short film is without a doubt a feature that showcases the abundance of talent that the animation industry has yet to see. Makoto Shinkai has well rounded character designs that although may appear unusual to most anime fans, is actually an interesting take on how we normally perceive the sub-culture. After all, anime woul become rather dull if all of the characters looked the same right? In any case, as the story evolves it becomes evident that what we the audience find as far as character depth is established within the first few minutes, is as deep that Shinkai had scripted the characters to be personalized throughout the rest of the short film. In other words, what we discover about the characters within the initial ten minutes is all that we will end up knowing. And with Voices of a Distant Star lasting approximately 25 minutes, it is almost as if Makoto Shinkai knew there was not going to be enough time to fully develop their characters; so instead, he delved into their independent similarities and had decided to wrap the plot around the personalities.

As mentioned before, this anime tugs on the edges of science fiction, partially taking place in the outer space where Mikako alone sits in her mecha's cockpit. The balance of space scenery as the foreground and as the background is fairly accurate, and the action scenes are flashy, colorful, and imaginative and are choreographed quite well in Voices of a Distant Star; it makes me wonder why animation companies have not hired Shinkai yet to help out with detailed work for large projects. In reference to detailing various plot sequences and the visuals in general, Makoto Shinkai stated in an interview, "I don't know much about animation..." but through this short film it is apparent that even with little knowledge of the trade, Shinkai is obviously in working hard to harnes the skills he displayed in this movie short.

Taking more than seven months to complete in its entirety, I enjoyed Hoshi no Koe because it is very rich in color and definitely brings to life past reveries that we all may have once had, and perhaps potential thoughts that we are destined to dream of in the future.

In the DVD there are a few bonus features that need to be taken note of here. One of them including a short, five minute, independent monochrome anime; named Kanojo to Kanojo no Neko or rather, She and Her Cat. It was this small animation production created by Shinkai that jump-started his career late in the 1990's. Winning awards and magazine featurettes; the short is narrated by a cat; and the story follows the cat a year or so under a new owner, referred to fondly as "She." I absolutely loved the small five-minute story, but I can only say that if you are not interested in independent films of any kind, than this may not be for you. Other DVD extras include an interview with the young creator Makoto Shinkai, movie trailers, and more interesting features.

Granted that this amateur production has some small downsides, such as the integration of a plot with both intense action and a romancic drama, as there are times when the balance of such just seems awkward. But even so, this short film is exciting visually, and quite touching emotionally. The creator of this film noted that one of the greatest pleasures of making anime on his own was that the animation was, and I quote, "...something where an individual’s taste comes out more."

Voices of a Distant Star is a bargain anime (at less than $20) for those fans wishing to see a producer or director in the earliest stages of his or her soon to be very successful career. And may also perhaps serve as an inspiration for those fans interested in creating their own (computer or cel) animation work in the future. The detail in the animation and the coloring was good, and although sparse at times the piano themes are wonderful; but do not expect everything to be perfect in this small feature, with it being the creator's first anime and all, but do expect much to be improved upon when Makoto Shinkai finishes his second animated work very soon.