Good news for Yoshix/FCDA#0466 and everyone else who loves Yamada’s earlier

work. Which begs the question, what’s been the most challenging project she’s
worked on in her career? A question posed by Yogurt of the Yoshi/donial#0986.

“Every one of my projects has been challenging really,” admits Yamada. “Because I
always feel like I’m starting from zero and then building something up. So always it’s
a challenge to think and really decide what I will do. It’s a constant challenge. It’s
difficult to pick one. It’s just an ongoing process.”

So how does it feel when a project is finally out there in the wild?

“It’s interesting because once the project is completed, once the films are done, my
soul just gets detached from that work,” explains Yamada. “Love remains always for
the creations, but it doesn’t feel like I am attached to what is, and what has happened;
what has been done. So once it’s completed, it’s out there, it’s separate from me, but I
always love what was created.”

Is there a manga, novel, or story that she would like to adapt if she got the chance,
asks BurgahBoy#3510.

“If I were to name something, it would be Beneath the Wheel by Hermann Hesse.
He’s a German writer,” says Yamada. “I think that would create a very beautiful
animation.”

The 1906 novel is far from a comedy, but it does focus on a child of school age – a
gifted boy sent to a boarding school where academic excellence is the focus at the
expense of personal development. His performance starts to decline with the onset of
symptoms of mental illness, and he is sent home, after which he finds it difficult to
adjust.

It’s not difficult to envision this story in anime form but no doubt in Naoko Yamada’s
hands, it will become something personal, unique, and, needless to say, compelling.
Let’s hope she gets to make her dream project sooner rather than later.