The theatrical version of the episode "Attack on Titan: The Queen~Wings of Freedom~", which was officially released in Japan on June 27, revealed a voice actor conversation between Hiroki Kaji, who played Allen, and Hiroshi Kamiya, who played Levi.

The popular anime "Attack on Titan" brutally depicts the battle between humans and giants who have been reduced to food for giants. The original work is an alternative shonen manga drawn by Sou Isayama. From April to September 2013, a TV anime version consisting of Tetsuro Araki of "**" and Yasuko Kobayashi of "Jojo's Bizarre Adventure" was broadcast, and it became very popular.

Although there were doubts about the intense and bloody action scenes in the original before the anime was broadcast, after the actual broadcast, the anime version became a masterpiece that fans of the original work applauded. It was a hot topic of conversation among anime fans until the end of the broadcast, and with a cumulative sales of more than 40 million units, it showed a high level of popularity that was almost comparable to that of the original manga. After the end of the TV anime version, the theatrical version and the live-action movie version, which fans were looking forward to, were launched at the same time. The first season of the TV anime has also been confirmed to start airing in 2016. I believe this work will continue to be popular.。

The "Theatrical Attack on Titan: Aftermath ~Wings of Freedom~", which is currently being screened in Japan, is a collection of 5.1ch (surround sound output) re-recorded and edited based on the content of episodes 14 to 25 of the TV anime. Now, Yuki Kaji, who played Allen in the anime, and Hiroshi Kamiya, who played Levi, have a conversation about their respective roles and what was going on on the recording set. Let's take a look at what they all talked about.

Pre: Ends with humanity's first victory

Postscript: The price paid for victory

- The release of the post-theatrical version is imminent, what is everyone's mood?

Kaji: Interviews like this, and meetings on the premiere day, I finally felt like I was close to presenting my work to everyone. Speaking of the recent work, I am still recording new episodes and new edits.

Kamiya: But there's no Levi's job.

Kaji: Yes. I have a climax in my bonus scene. I remember it was really hard when I was recording.

INTERVIEWER What are the difficulties?

Kaji: The climax of the post-series is that before the battle between the Ellen Giant and the Female Giant officially begins, Ellen has an inner monologue. In this scene, both myself and Alan are quite complex psychological states. When recording the TV version, that mood was formed over the years of continuous recording, and it was relatively easy to grasp a little, but this time I just cut out the scene separately for recording, so I had to let my feelings reach the peak at the beginning of the recording, which was very difficult.

INTERVIEWER I mentioned that there is no Levi in the newly recorded plot, so while you wait for the theatrical version to be completed, do you care about which shots are used?

Kamiya: Of course I do, rightfully so. "I worked so hard when I was recording!" I have this feeling for almost all episodes. However, from the perspective of the composition of the work, there was a trade-off, and everyone agreed on this, so there was no feeling that it was a pity not to have this scene.

Kaji: The superintendent directed the TV version, and the theatrical version was re-edited, so we fully believe in the feeling of supervising.

Kamiya: There was a time when I had to give an interview before the theatrical version was finished, and that time I got a copy of the supervisor's handwritten opinion on the addition of the storyboard. Because I got such precious information, I knew the director's idea, so I had the speech just now.

INTERVIEWER So, please talk about the highlights of the later edition.

Kaji: The later part tells the story of Allen joining the Survey Corps led by Levi and fighting there.

Kamiya: The first part ends when Allen leads humanity to the first victory, and the second part starts with "The Price of Victory", and the front and back parts are clearly separated, so I think "Attack on Titan" is a very good work. In the later series, the scenes in which Levi is active have increased significantly compared to the previous series. Echoing the pre-editor "Preparing for the battle with the giants", the posterior is ready for battle, and when they step out of the walls, there is a feeling that the world is suddenly expanding.

Kaji: For me, the members of the Levi class have a scene that impresses me from the casual daily life to the tragic ending. The other day I went to Universal Studios Japan (USJ) to collect materials, USJ's "Attack on Titan TheReal" attraction pass guò "クロノイド" (クロノイド is a combination of the words Clone and Android, which is the general name of the dolls made by Universal Studios Japan using the latest technology. Unlike ordinary dolls, the body shape, hair quality, eye color, capillaries, pores, blood vessels, and body hair of the eyeballs are all similar to those of a real person) shows the moment when the Levi Ban members were killed. "Death" is a thing, I can only perform through guò's own imagination, and the most important thing is to make the audience feel real and vivid, and this time USJ Tong guò's carefully made zuò's クロノイド table xiàn shows the scene of the death of the characters in the play, which not only brings a sense of sadness, but also makes people feel the horror of "death" more intensely. With such a mood, I watched the post-theatrical version again, and perhaps I could better appreciate their sense of existence.

Kamiya: We often encounter "death" in our work, such as "There are two or three people in this place who will be killed, so we have to scream." But don't the people who died in that moment have their own lives? Ever since I recorded Attack on Titan, I've experienced the difference between the dead characters in this work and the other very stylized dead characters. Each character in this work has their own story, and Guò's contact with the protagonist Allen naturally reveals a strong human attachment to survival. So I think it's a very special work.

Because of the atmosphere of the recording studio

to create the lifelike characters on the stage

- The aftermath has greatly increased Levi's appearance, so what is Mr. Kaji's impression of Levi?

Kaji: He has an overwhelming aura (laughs). Even as a voice actor who plays Allen, I can feel Levi's overwhelming popularity on various stages (laughs). I think everyone's favorite is Levi.

Kamiya: It's incredible (laughs).

Kaji: Well, let's not mention this for now, sure enough, Levi's strength and sense of existence are overwhelming. I felt this way when I read the original work, even when I performed it, and I even felt horrified when I recorded the scene in the deliberation room. In fact, he has no malicious intent, but because of this, it seems even more terrifying, he is a being who cannot be defeated no matter what others do.

INTERVIEWER Did you feel that overwhelming sense of existence from Kamiya's voice acting?

Kamiya: It's hard to say (laughs).

Kaji: It's absolutely overwhelming (laughs). Personally, I've never seen Kamiya play a role like Levi's, and when I first heard "Levi is voiced as Kamiya", it was amazing how quickly I accepted it...... Why is that? It's because I feel that he has the potential to play Levi (laughs). I don't know how to describe it, but it's not momentum or power, but something like "flexible and powerful" that can be felt from Kamiya's performance. This is very close to the feeling of Kamiya itself.

- "Levi is terrible" and "Kamiya may have a place like Levi...... (laughs)

Kaji: No, no, no, it's two different things (laughs). What I'm trying to say is that there will always be parts that are close to the characters.

Kamiya: Well, I can understand Levi's neurotic part because I'm that type of person too. But other than that, it's quite difficult to find a place that resonates. When it comes to Levi, the most important factor is probably the atmosphere in the studio. Everyone gathered in the recording studio, facing microphones and monitors, and the sound supervisor Araki (Tetsuro) and Miken (Masafumi) were also present. First, Supervisor Araki listened to the voices of the voice actors, and on this basis, Mr. Mima made adjustments. In this regard, it is absolutely impossible to do without everyone's cooperation. So recently, when I saw the performances of the actors who were incarnated as characters in Attack on Titan in another form, I thought they were really hard.

Kaji: It's really hard (laughs).

Kamiya: I've been dubbing since the anime stage, and it's hard but it's rewarding. If I was asked to "please dub it" alone, I really wouldn't know what to do. From this point of view, "Attack on Titan" is a work that cannot be without any crew. I've always had this strong feeling.

- In other words, if you are simply told to "voice Allen" and "voice Levi", maybe you won't be able to do the job?

Kamiya: It's not impossible, but the essence may be different.

Kaji: What should Alan's voice look like? I probably didn't think about these details in this work.

Kamiya: When you are asked to "express such a mood with a voice in such a scene", the corresponding voice naturally springs up. A process similar to this.

Kaji: Eren is always easily irritated (laughs). Even when asked to have a cheerful voice, I still didn't know where to start.

Kamiya: If it's a finished work, maybe you can figure out the characters more deeply, and you can also reduce the sense of disobedience in the performance. But because we ourselves are like being in a fog, when we are asked to "perform as Alan" or "Please perform as Levi", we start to wonder "where is the timeline?" and is it a peaceful world? Is it a world where giants are there now? In the wall or outside the wall? It's possible to record head-on when you're not sure about the situation, but neither Kaji-kun nor I are the kind of people who can be flexible, and once we are separated from the plot, we are at a loss.

Kaji: It can't be separated from the plot, or rather, Alan is originally my true colors, and I didn't deliberately use acting skills.

Kamiya: Suddenly I couldn't continue my work. I know that feeling too. It's so difficult.

Relationship between Alan and Levi

How will it change?

- In Kamiya's opinion, how is Kaji-kun who plays Allen?

Kamiya: That's amazing. I may not know much about Kaji-kun as a person, but judging from this collaboration, he is really powerful. First of all, his personal energy is completely different from mine. Because he has a unique energy, it is difficult for the sound supervisor to get him to translate this energy into the correct pronunciation. I watched the work of the three sound supervisors and occasionally fell into the feeling of watching an Formula 1 race. I think there are very few people who work hard no matter what they do, so it is natural that Kaji-kun, who is active as a voice actor, can have his current achievements in a sense. But it's because he has so many talents that I'm worried. Capable people should be getting busier and busier, and although the quality of the work will improve if you work with such people, Kaji-kun is only one person after all, so I'm very worried.

Kaji: No, no, no, you're too famous......

Kamiya: When I was involved in the recording of Attack on Titan, I saw the back of "TopRunner Moving Forward".

Kaji: I'm almost sweating when I hear you say it (laughs). I don't think you're a liar like that...... Ah, but thanks for your compliment, I'll have to work harder.

Kamiya: And then, he's still a grinding bastard guy (laughs).

Kaji: Bastards all say it? Well, but that's right (laughs).

Kamiya: Look, I've been praised in a hundred places, but I just care about the bad ones. But that's true for me.

- When will the day come when Ellen will be praised by Levi?

Kaji: I don't understand what Levi really thinks, but I'd be happy if Alan was really praised by Levi, because Levi was his boss. But I can't help but wonder, is there a conspiracy behind it? What the hell is going on? For me, Kamiya is a very good friend of mine, and a senior who always takes care of me. And Alan and Levi have always spent a lot of time together in the place where death accompanies them, so they have a different kind of relationship from us, and that is bonding. The bond is indeed between them. Levi shouldn't praise Eren lightly, but in his heart, Eren should be his important partner...... That's what I think (laughs).

- What does Mr. Kamiya think of Levi's opinion of Alan?

Kamiya: As Levi has always said, Alan is an inexplicable guy. According to Levi's mode of thinking, "surviving" is the primary goal. As for whether Alan can enter the range of "surviving", I don't know. For now, Levi is keeping Alan by his side on Alvin's orders, but I don't think he would have done so without the commander's orders. Because Allen is, after all, an uncertain factor. Although Eren has the power of a giant, and even Levi is not necessarily his opponent in the event of an accident, Levi still believes that he can hunt him with his own hands. It's just that, as Kaji-kun said, the two have always been in a state of companionship with death, and the longer they stay together, the easier it is for Levi to sprout a sense of partnership in his heart. Therefore, I think they are on guard and at the same time giving birth to something similar to "feelings".

Tired and happy?

A premiere press conference with a unique atmosphere

– The schedule for the press conference has also come out. The "Childhood Friend Trio" consisting of Mr. Kaji, Yui Ishikawa who plays Mikasa, and Marina Inoue who plays Amin, will be promoting it in various places.

Kaji: They're all familiar members (laughs). I haven't discussed my thoughts on the second part with Mikasa (Ishikawa) and Armin (Inoue). Including the director, I would like to take the opportunity of the stage meeting to hear what everyone thinks about the post-production.

Kamiya: Attack on Titan didn't have any stage events before, and my last stage was at last year's MBS Anime Festival, so I tried not to shake my legs on the day of the meeting (laughs).

Kaji: The atmosphere of the audience is different from other premieres...... The air is heavy (laughs). There was still a sense of tension at the press conference before the screening, but after the screening, everyone felt tired. After entering the introduction session, everyone nodded in agreement from time to time, which shows that they have true love for this work. The premiere of the first part of the film is still fresh in my memory.

INTERVIEWER So, please leave a message to the fans who went to the cinema to watch it.

Kamiya: In the interview, I also mentioned that this is a very good pre- and post-script version of the animation, and I hope that everyone can enjoy the two-hour visual feast that condenses the essence of the original work, especially for those who missed the TV anime version. If you want to know more about this work after watching this theatrical version, you can go to watch the original work or watch TV animation; For those of you who haven't watched this work yet, the theatrical version of "Attack on Titan" is a very suitable primer, so please watch it in the cinema anyway. In addition, I read the dubbing script and realized that the last scene of the theatrical version condenses the emotions of the superintendent, because this opportunity is rare, and I will disclose it to you here. "After the film screening, the auditorium headlights came on. I hope that the viewers will feel unsatisfied on the way home! This is a work made by the superintendent with such an idea, so please feel our heart.

Kaji: When we held a press conference for the pre-production of the theatrical version, we asked, "Are there any people who have seen this work for the first time?" and many people raised their hands. I was very happy because the audience who had heard of the title of the work but didn't have time to watch it, or "didn't see the content because they thought it was a little scary" took this theatrical version as an opportunity to get their hands on the work. So, those of you who came to see the front part of the book made me even happier if they could come to see the back part. I'm looking forward to it after reading the pre-editor