‘The Colors Within’ Character Designs Shared by Director Naoko Yamada

Japanese creator Naoko Yamada, whose latest film “The Colors Within” screened in the main competition at this year’s Annecy Animation Festival, continues to challenge herself.

“Animation provides me with hope, yearning and challenges. It allows me to expand my imagination infinitely and, at the same time, it challenges me to see how much imagination I actually have,” she told Variety via an interpreter following the premiere of her latest.

“I want to see what I can do without limiting myself to any particular subjects.”

It introduces a young Totsuko, a closeted synesthete who can actually see others as colors. She becomes fascinated with honor student Kimi – and her dazzling shade, who has dropped out of school but pretends to attend for her grandmother’s sake. 

Kimi also has a hidden talent – she loves to play the electric guitar and dabbles in songwriting. Later, when the two start to become friends, they form a band with Rui, a quiet boy who loves music but whose mother expects him to become a doctor.

“I chose music because it’s a tool that can connect emotions without using words,” said Yamada, who previously made the shorts “Garden of Remembrance” and “The Heike Story.” A Kyoto Animation alumni, she’s also behind “Liz and the Blue Bird.”

“I think this is a story about the…