beginning

I have been working as a calligrapher for 11 years in U.K.. I have been worked for a film called ‘47 Ronin’ from Jan 2011 to the end of July at Shepperton Studio in west London.
As the film opens now, I will be writing how I worked as a Japanese calligrapher for seven months on thin blog.

I worked as a full time calligrapher / assistant graphic designer in a wedding stationery company in London when I've got a phone call from a buyer of this film production. They needed me for 6 months, I thought its impossible but he said ‘a chance in a life time’. With family and friends backup I resigned and joined the Set Decoration team. There were designer, assistant designers, graphic person and buyers in a team. They needed someone who can read and write Japanese but also can speak to them in English.

They are basically all freelancers, doing film jobs next to another. I was the only one who hasn't got any experiences in film industry.

On a first day, they gave me a script, let me read and also show me around the buildings and materials. Our team was to be decorating all the sets, outside and inside. Chopsticks to cupboards. Next to us was the Art dep, there were lots of draftsmen, graphic designers with loads of photos on every single walls - Japanese gardens, architectures, streets or the knots, joints of buildings. And also lots of mini models of buildings they were going to build.

They wanted me to take memos and mock up simple things that I can possible think of making after I read script and books on material shelves.