Creator Interview：cherri

cherri

〜Floating Around〜

I don’t remember what triggered it, but I started to get into picture books when I entered high school. I would walk around searching for books.

I went to the bookstore or hang out at the library. I didn’t go to school very much.

Before then, I wasn’t interested in either pictures or design.

It was just the picture books I was interested in during high school. I wonder why?? But I don’t know.

I entered into a design academy, but wasn’t really concentrating.

And then I came across the monthly published magazine “Poetry and Fairy Tales” edited by Takashi Yanase.

Many poems were posted on this magazine. And they had a contest each month to create an illustration for each poem.

I submitted my drawings to this exciting contest. This was the beginning of my drawing career.

I didn’t get a prize but my drawing was posted once. I remember I was very happy.

After graduating from the academy, I joined a design company and designed various sales promoting products and packages.

My design job was very exciting and fulfilling. During this time, I stopped my personal drawing activity.

My wife gave me the inspiration to start drawing again. She was drawing using Adobe Illustrator’s Bézier curves tool (One method to draw a line or a picture on a PC).

I only used Bézier for designing so it was fun drawing with this.

My wife knew how to use Adobe Flash (one of the methods to create animation) and she taught me how to use it.

I’ve been taught a lot, lol. Around my mid 20s, I started to draw my style as you see it now.

Then, I worked as a designer at a freelance company and started my own business.

At the same time, my wife, 3 of my friends and I created a doujinshi magazine in which we drew our own illustration using a Bézier.

And then we sold it at the sokubaikai (art exhibition and sales event) called Comic Market.

The good thing was that I got an offer for drawing an illustration from the client who saw this doujinshi.

Also, I was able to make friends who are Bézier drawers through this doujinshi. I am glad that we issued this magazine.

In spring 2011, a flash anime project called “47 todoufuken” （Click here to see the official website) was launched.

It was only a character designing at first but we also eventually asked to do the animation execution itself. I was very nervous.

I used Flash only for game graphics and illustration materials, creating 30 second character animations and related screenplay.

This was all a first for me and I was anxious whether I could do it or not.

But with big support from my staff, we successfully completed it. Further more, we got a good reputation from our users and I was very pleased.

This experience made me feel strongly that I want to create more animations.

How much fun would it be to make my wife’s hilarious character’s move in weird way!

I enjoy my designing work from my client, surrounded by cheerful, brilliant staffs.

In addition, I found what I want to do in life.

A half of my life sounds like inconsequential, but I am happy that I was able to do what I felt like I wanted to do from moment to moment.

I would like to enjoy life like this from now on, too.

From our Editor

Interviewed month: April, 2014

cherri-san’s company is now in middle of producing an original animation “I really want to become a member of Eto”. Let’s look forward to it!
（Click here for its promoting video.）

The interviewer was fascinated as to why cherri got into picture books so much. But by listening to him talking about what he wants to do now, the idea of “creating a story” must have been inherently interesting to him. It was very interesting to hear his story.

The sokubaikai he often participates in is Comic Market and Design Festa.