Special Exhibition for the 30th Anniversary of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake 2025

Part 1: Special Feature:

Disaster Legacy × Special Effects. "The 5:46 am Shock." playback

Recreation of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake by Special Effects Art Director Toshio Miike

This section revisits the film which captures the moment the earthquake struck using special effects techniques. Rare documents and behind-the-scenes stories from the time of production are being publicly revealed for the first time.

We are presenting, for the first time, a behind-the-scenes look at the production of the "1.17 Theater" film, which is the first thing visitors see at our center. While today's CGI technology allows filmmakers to freely depict situations as envisioned, at the time of DRI's opening, such technology was not yet mainstream. The earthquake reenactment in the "1.17 Theater" was created using miniature models and a method known as "special effects filming (tokusatsu)," where the models were physically built and destroyed. This work, unique to its time, has now become an even more valuable film.

How was the massive earthquake recreated through live-action footage? This exhibition focus on Toshio Miike, the special effects art director behind the project. For the first time, we publicly showcase a collection of his invaluable materials, including original blueprints, studio photographs from the shoot, and testimonial videos. Through these materials, we revisit the background of each scene depicted in the film and highlight how "tokusatsu" took on the challenge of recreating real events. In doing so, we highlight its important role in preserving and passing on the memory of the disaster.

Exhibition Highlights:

• Overview of "The 5:46 am Shock" Created Through Special Effects
• Scene Blueprints, Design Drawings, and Studio Photos with Commentary by Director Miike
• Screening of an Interview Video with Director Miike (Filmed in March 2025)
• Comparative display of actual disaster photos and recreated model photos

Profile: Director Toshio Miike

Born in Kumamoto Prefecture in 1961. After graduating from the Faculty of Engineering at Kyushu University in 1984, he studied under special effects director Nobuo Yajima. He worked on Toei's Super Sentai series, Metal Hero, and Kamen Rider, and has been working as a freelancer since 1989. He has contributed as a special effects art director to major franchises such as Toho's Godzilla series, Daiei's Gamera series, and Tsuburaya Productions' Ultraman series. He is currently affiliated with the Tokusatu Kenkyujo Co., Ltd. in Tokyo.

Notable Works: "Gamera: Guardian of the Universe" (1995), "SINKING OF JAPAN" (2006), "ULTRAMAN SAGA" (2012), "Giant God Warrior Appears in Tokyo" (2012), "Shin Godzilla" (2016), "Fukushima 50" (2020), "Shin Kamen Rider" (2023), among others.

In the deluxe catalogue art book, "The Works of Special Effects Art Director Toshio Miike," published by Take-shobo in 2024 as a comprehensive retrospective of his career, the film "The 5:46 am Shock" which is shown at our center, was selected as one of his ten best works that left a lasting impression on him among his many achievements.

About "Tokusatsu" (Special Effects):

"Tokusatsu" refers to a filmmaking technique that uses special techniques to create and shoot scenes that do not exist in reality or cannot be captured through traditional filming methods. It is also known as "special technology filming." In films featuring giant creatures like monsters or dinosaurs, or in works depicting wars or large-scale disasters that are difficult to reproduce through conventional means, a separate team dedicated solely to special effects is often formed, distinct from the main team that films live-action performances.

The deluxe catalogue art book "The Works of Special Effects Art Director Toshio Miike is scheduled to be available for purchase at our Center's museum shop.

Part 2: "Spatial Re-creation - The City Right After the Earthquake" reloading

An immersive space designed to give visitors the sensation of stepping into a disaster-stricken city. The motifs embedded in the space are explained with concrete examples.

On the 4th floor of our center, the corridor connecting the "1.17 Theater" and the "Great Earthquake Hall" is a space recreated with life-size diorama models of the city affected by the earthquake which visitors walk through. The damage to buildings and scenes of fires are all modeled after actual events, but due to the emphasis on dramatic presentation, no explanatory materials are provided. In this exhibit, we will present actual photographic records of the events that were modeled after in the space, allowing visitors to re-examine the elements in the dioramas and understand the intentions behind the display.

Exhibition Highlights:

• Explanatory Photos of the Diorama Models
• Disaster Archive Photos That Inspired Each Scene

Part 3: The 30 years of "Living with This City" look back

A short film told in the first person, tracing the 30-year journey of recovery and reconstruction since the earthquake.

The short film "Living with This City" is a documentary-style drama composed entirely of actual news footage, narrated in the first person to convey symbolic stories from the disaster-affected areas. At our Center's "Great Earthquake Hall," the original version has been screened since the center opened in 2002, with the partially revised "Version 2" shown since 2008 - still being presented to visitors today.

Although dramatized, it is a semi-nonfictional piece that reflects experiences shared by many of the actual disaster survivors. The events depicted in the film are based on real occurrences and the recovery process during the approximately 13 years following the 1995 earthquake. This exhibit extracts key scenes from the film as still shots, explaining the specific meaning behind each one. It also reflects on the passage of time from the film's production to the present, offering a broad overview of the 30-year journey since the disaster.

Exhibit Topic Examples:

• Rescue of People Buried Alive - Mutual Aid Among Neighbors
• Outbreak of Fires - Subsequent Fire Prevention Measures
• Evacuation Shelters - Support from Volunteers
• Temporary Housing - Home Visits for People Living Alone
• Public Housing Built After the Disaster
• Mutual Aid Systems - Establishment of the Phoenix Mutual Aid System