animated
Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most ani ...
short film directed by Masaaki Ōsumi, which was created around 1969. It is the first animated adaptation of the ''
Lupin III
, also written as ''Lupin the Third'', ''Lupin the 3rd'', or ''Lupin the IIIrd'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Monkey Punch. It follows the endeavors of master thief Arsène Lupin III, the grandson of Arsè ...
''
manga
Manga ( Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is use ...
series, created by Monkey Punch in 1967. The 12-minute film was created by Tokyo Movie and intended to generate interest and secure funding for a larger production. Around 1971 it was reworked as a
television pilot
A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other dis ...
The pilot film, loosely based on the manga chapter ''Camera Tricks'', mainly serves as an introduction to the five major characters, as well as a retired detective named Kogoro Akechi. Each character is introduced to the viewer through several vignettes with narration. The overarching story sees
Lupin III
, also written as ''Lupin the Third'', ''Lupin the 3rd'', or ''Lupin the IIIrd'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Monkey Punch. It follows the endeavors of master thief Arsène Lupin III, the grandson of Arsè ...
,
Daisuke Jigen
is a fictional character created by Monkey Punch for his manga series ''Lupin III'', which debuted in '' Weekly Manga Action'' on August 10, 1967. Jigen is the marksman, aide-de-camp and best friend of Arsène Lupin III. Along with colleague ...
Goemon Ishikawa
was a legendary Japanese outlaw hero who stole gold and other valuables to give to the poor. He and his son were boiled alive in public after their failed assassination attempt on the Sengoku period warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi. His legend li ...
offers to help the police by entering the house to kill Lupin. However, Lupin has already exited the building in disguise as Akechi and facilitates Jigen and Fujiko's escape.
Voice cast
Production
Adapting Monkey Punch's ''Lupin III'' manga into animation was first suggested by animator Gisaburō Sugii to Yutaka Fujioka, the founder of Tokyo Movie (now TMS Entertainment). Although Fujioka was interested in the idea, Tokyo Movie lacked the financial resources to produce such a project on its own. This led to the creation of a
CinemaScope
CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...
''Pilot Film'', which was intended to generate interest in the project and secure funding from potential producers. The ''Pilot Film'', consisting of narrated introductions to the five lead characters of the manga, was scripted and animated by Sugii, Yasuo Otsuka,
Tsutomu Shibayama
is a Japanese anime director of film and television. He is known for directing the 1980 and 2006 ''Doraemon'' series. He was born in Asakusa, Taitō, Tokyo.
In 2012 he won Agency for Cultural Affair Award.Osamu Kobayashi, with supervision by Masaaki Ōsumi and background art by Reiji Koyama. The music soundtrack was composed by Norio Maeda, while the narration dialogue was written by Jiro Saito and Toshiaki Imaizumi. Yasuo Otsuka had left
Toei Animation
() is a Japanese animation studio primarily controlled by its namesake Toei Company. It has produced numerous series, including '' Sally the Witch,'' '' GeGeGe no Kitarō,'' '' Mazinger Z'', '' Galaxy Express 999'', '' Cutie Honey'', '' Dr. Sl ...
to join Tokyo Movie, as working on ''Lupin'' would allow him to use his knowledge and lifelong interest in guns and transport in his animation. The team studied Monkey Punch's style in detail, including the influence of American cartoonist
Mort Drucker
Morris "Mort" Drucker (March 22, 1929 – April 9, 2020) was an American caricaturist and comics artist best known as a contributor for over five decades in '' Mad'', where he specialized in satires on the leading feature films and televisi ...
on the manga, and analysed the characters from all angles; they were initially assisted by Monkey Punch himself until he felt the project was too much for him. Scripts and treatments were also written for a
feature film
A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...
adaptation, one of which depicted Lupin before the start of his thieving career as a
hippie
A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...
in
Shinjuku
is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative centre, housing the northern half of the busiest railway station in the world ( Shinjuku Station) and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the administrati ...
, and explained how he came to be pursued by the police and other criminals.
Although the animation quality of the ''Pilot Film'' was high for the time in which it was made, few financial backers were interested in the project due to its adult themes of
violence
Violence is the use of physical force so as to injure, abuse, damage, or destroy. Other definitions are also used, such as the World Health Organization's definition of violence as "the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened ...
and
sexuality
Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied wi ...
. With the project still unsold over a year later, the ''Pilot Film'' was adapted for television. The animation of the TV version was mostly identical to the CinemaScope version, but it featured a largely different voice cast - the only voices who were retained for both versions were those of
Kiyoshi Kobayashi
Kiyoshi, (きよし or キヨシ), is a Japanese given name, also spelled Kyoshi.
Possible meanings
*'' Kyōshi'', a form of Japanese poetry
*Kyōshi, a Japanese honorific
Possible writings
*清, "cleanse"
*淳, "pure"
*潔, "undefiled"
*清志, ...
Fujiko
Fujiko is a Japanese feminine given name, usually derived from 藤 (''Fuji''), which means "Wisteria", and the suffix 子 (''-ko''), which means "child" or "child of". Notable people with the name include:
*, a Japanese model and actress
*, Japan ...
). In 1971, Yomiuri Television agreed to produce a TV adaptation of the manga. By this time, only Otsuka and Ōsumi were still at Tokyo Movie. Ōsumi was assigned as director, and Otsuka became the character designer; Osamu Kobayashi provided
key animation
In animation and filmmaking, a key frame (or keyframe) is a drawing or shot that defines the starting and ending points of a smooth transition. These are called ''frames'' because their position in time is measured in frames on a strip of film ...
on several episodes. The series was originally planned for 26 episodes, with synopsis created for each one. Kiyoshi Kobayashi was retained as Jigen for the TV series (and continued to voice the role till 2021), while
Gorō Naya
was a Japanese actor, voice actor, narrator and theatre director from Hakodate, Hokkaidō. He and his brother were two of seven children, and was a drop-out of the legal education division of Ritsumeikan University. He was connected to Theatre E ...
and
Chikao Ōtsuka
was a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator. He was most known for the roles of Captain Hook (''Peter Pan no Bōken & Disney's Peter Pan''), Dick Dastardly ('' Wacky Races'' & '' Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines''), Goemon Ish ...
, who voiced Goemon in the CinemaScope version of the ''Pilot Film'' and Zenigata in the TV version respectively, were assigned the opposite of each other's roles for the series.
Yasuo Yamada
was a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator.
Career
Yamada left the faculty of literature of Waseda University, and had performed in many stage, radio, and television productions.
He appeared in performances of plays by Hisashi Inoue. His ...
and Yukiko Nikaido, neither of whom were involved in the ''Pilot Film'', were cast as
Lupin
''Lupinus'', commonly known as lupin, lupine, or regionally bluebonnet etc., is a genus of plants in the legume family Fabaceae. The genus includes over 199 species, with centers of diversity in North and South America. Smaller centers occur ...
and Fujiko. Yamada, known for his
dubbing
Dubbing (re-recording and mixing) is a post-production process used in filmmaking and video production, often in concert with sound design, in which additional or supplementary recordings are lip-synced and "mixed" with original production so ...
of
Clint Eastwood
Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the " Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "'' D ...
, continues to be widely acclaimed for his serious and humorous portrayals of Lupin, and remains synonymous with the role even after his death in 1995. Masuyama played the one-time character of Catherine in an episode of the series, and eventually replaced Nikaido as Fujiko from the second anime series onward until her retirement in 2010.
Release
The ''Pilot Film'' was broadcast on Yomiuri TV on August 17, 1988, and both versions were included on the VHS in 1989. However, animation from the TV version of the ''Pilot Film'' was recycled for several of the series' opening credits sequences, despite Lupin wearing a red jacket in these sequences (it was changed to green for the series at Otsuka's insistence). Both versions of the ''Pilot Film'' were released in North America by
Discotek Media
Discotek Media is an American entertainment company based in Altamonte Springs, Florida, focused on distribution and licensing Japanese anime, films, and television series.
Formed in 2005, Discotek primarily focuses on licensing retro titles f ...
in their 2012 DVD set of ''Lupin the Third Part I''.