Godzilla director Masaaki Tezuka joins Kyle for a chat about his career in kaiju cinema (originally recorded at G-Fest 2015).
Since the podcast is ending this year, I figured I should probably dig into the archives and find any unearthed gems. This is one of those gems – and it’s a bit shorter than I would have liked so I guess this is before we really had a lot of kaiju clout! 😛
Waaaaaaay back in 2015, I was lucky to interview some of the guests at G-Fest 22 and one of those guests was the director of three Millennium series films, Masaaki Tezuka. Tezuka directed Godzilla X Megaguirus (2000), Godzilla X Mechagodzilla (2002), Godzilla X Mothra X Mechagodzilla: Tokyo SOS (2003), some seriously great entries in the franchise’s legacy.
I’m a massive fan of his movies, and impressed that in an era where each film was supposed to have its own direction, continuity and director, Tezuka was able to come back to the series twice!
I would love to see him return to the Godzilla series some day. Come on, Toho – Bring back this fan turned director!
MUSIC:
1. Fateful Confrontation by Michiru Oshima from Godzilla x Megaguirus (2000)
2. 20 Returning To The Sea by Michiru Oshima from Godzilla x Mothra x Mechagodzilla: Tokyo SOS (2003)
Keith Aiken and Kyle finally have an opportunity to sit down and chat about all of the awesome stuff Keith has been involved in.
In the history of me of saying “this interview has been a long time coming”, this one might take the cake. In the very first year of the podcast, I spoke with Keith Aiken about coming on the show to talk about some of the knowledge he had… ten years later, the conversation is finally happening but it’s much more about all of the super cool stuff that Keith has been working on.
If you don’t know Keith Aiken, you will after listening to this episode – he’s essentially been working in the background for a huge number of projects for kaiju fans: the Classic Media releases, commentaries, the 98 Godzilla Animated series – and that’s just the tip of the iceberg!
I truly hope you enjoy this almost entirely unedited conversation with one of the guys who I’ve been consistently impressed with for well over ten years: Keith Aiken!
ULTRA MUSIC:
1. The Science Patrol Returns by Kuniyo Miyauchi from Ultraman (1966)
2. Two Giant Monsters by Kuniyo Miyauchi from Ultraman (1966)
Jeff, Kyle, Gretchen and Rachel after our presentation at Rose City Comic Con 2019!
Once again, the Kaijucast stomps through Portland’s own pop culture extravaganza, Rose City Comic Con!
This episode serves up the audio from our presentation at the convention: Release the Kaiju with my co-hosts playing the role of Monarch Outpost researchers and scientists… just a little fun with the subject matter. Obviously none of us work for an organization that tracks and studies titans across the world!
After the panel, stick around to find out what other shenanigans the crew was up to during the convention!
Oh, here’s that definitive list of our panels from the life of Rose City Comic Con:
2013 The Kaiju of Pacific Rim
2014 Godzilla vs Everything
2015 GIANT MONSTER HAPPY CHALLENGE Game Show Panel
2016 Monster Oddities
2017 Expanding the Legendary Monsterverse
2018 How Godzilla Got His Groove Back
2019 Release the Kaiju (or Mega Fauna Co-Existence and You)
Hope to see you there next year!
MUSICAL MOMENTS:
1. Welcome to Monarch by Bear McCreary from Godzilla King of the Monsters (2019)
2. Mothra vs. We Are Scientists by We Are Scientists from Safety, Fun, and Learning (in That Order) (2002)
GALLERY Since we had such a great time talking about things you should see from the con, check these photos out!
Motion Capture performer TJ Storm chats with Kyle about his experience in bringing the King of the Monsters to life!
Over the past 65 years, Godzilla has been played by all sorts of awesome people: Haruo Nakajima, Kenpachiro Satsuma, Tsutomu “Tom” Kitagawa (just to name a few). Not all Godzilla actors hail from the land of the rising sun, however. We are thrilled to share this conversation with a new kind of Godzilla actor. He doesn’t wear a foam rubber suit in order to play the role of the King of the Monsters; he instead wears a lycra suit covered in ping pong balls. He grapples with other actors in similar lycra suits, and the end result is history’s and Hollywood’s beefiest beast of all, Legendary Pictures’ Godzilla. Our guest for this episode is none other than TJ Storm, the man who has brought life to the CGI Godzilla from Godzilla (2014) and Godzilla King of the Monsters (2019).
Big thanks to Jessica Tseang for helping to arrange the interview and to Bob Johnson and his crew from Bay Area Film Events for the opportunity to steal some of TJ’s time during Godzilla Fest!
Godzilla gets his motivation from actor TJ Storm during the filming of Godzilla King of the Monsters
Please make sure to visit the links below to learn more about our guest and all of the awesome stuff that TJ helps organize!
MOMENTARY MUSICAL MINUTES:
1. Godzilla King of the Monsters “Intimidation Display” TV Spot (2019)
2. Old Rivals by Bear McCreary from Godzilla King of the Monsters (2019)
Michael Dougherty, director of Godzilla King of the Monsters, joins Kyle in this episode of the Kaijucast. [Photo credit: Robert Moreno]
In this episode I sit down to speak with the director of Godzilla King of the Monsters (2019), Michael Dougherty, to discuss his love for the genre, his work on the newest film and even how his world view aligns with some of his characters’ motivations. If you haven’t seen Dougherty’s Godzilla King of the Monsters, you might want to wait until you’ve seen the film.
Consider this an obvious SPOILER WARNING that we talk at length and depth about his film. Also, please take note that I really enjoyed this new entry in the new era of American monster movies.
This guy gets it, kaiju fiends! Also, make sure you keep an ear out for a twitter challenge from Dougherty himself 😉
Major thanks to Bob Johnson, Bay Area Films Events and the Balboa Theatre. Please make sure you check out the show notes below for more information about some of the subjects we chat about during the interview.
Also, thanks to Michael Dougherty for taking the time to speak with me during his time in San Francisco!
MUSICAL MOMENTS:
1. UK TV Spot for Godzilla King of the Monsters (2019)
2. Godzilla King of the Monsters Theme by Artificial Fear (2019)
Kaijucast #275 Godzilla Millennium Series director Masaaki Tezuka [ 36:34 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download
