Local samurai legend is immortalized in rockin’ new short animated film by Production I.G

It’s not every day that a real-life historical figure receives the anime and J-rock tribute treatment.

Kamimine in the eastern part of Saga Prefecture is a small town with a local legend–that of samurai military commander Minamoto no Tametomo (c. 1139-1170). The town’s PR department is now promoting their historical resident through the lens of pop culture in the form of a newly released short animated film which functions as a music video as well.

Tametomo, nicknamed Chinzei Hachiro Tametomo, lived during the end of the Heian Period (794-1185) just prior to the Genpei War between his clan and that of the Taira, which resulted in the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate. He was noted to be a master archer who built a castle on nearby Mt. Chinzei and whose forces are said to have once defeated 50,000 enemies in one battle. Visitors to Kamimine today can view both the castle ruins and the on-site Gomaga Pond, the name for which is written using the kanji for “Pond of 50,000.”

Check out the four-minute 45-second film below which showcases a mix of humor, edginess, and badassery suitable for a historical anime protagonist:

The video is set to a song called “Time-to-More” which was composed specifically for this project by Japanese rock band Unicorn, who also provided the first opening theme, “Feel so Moon,” for the 2012 Space Brothers anime. Animation was provided by Production I.G of Ghost in the Shell, Psycho-Pass, and Haikyu!! fame.

▼ Tametomo in his anime debut

Despite having a bit of a wild personality, Tametomo is said to have also been overflowing with human kindness–referenced in the video by a blossoming romance.

▼ The video pays tribute to his master archery skills.

▼ Getting ready for battle

While the film doesn’t illustrate Tametomo’s full life story, in real life it ended in tragedy after he was banished to the Izu Islands and subsequently committed seppuku.

All in all, we think this approach of using an actual historical figure to encourage local tourism is a good strategy on Saga Prefecture’s part. It at least seems to make more sense than that time they partnered with Pokémon‘s evil Team Rocket to recruit 10 million people to join their ranks.

Source, images: PR Times
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