by Samantha Hii, staff writer, Inside AX- Anime Expo

Hey all, we had a quick interview with Henry Liao, one of the individuals from InterTrend Communications working with Toyota to bring you Hatsune Miku to Anime Expo 2011! Check it out!

Please tell us a bit about yourself and what you do for those who may not know.

Well, I’ve been a long time AX Artist Alley participant. I was actually discovered at AX by different publishers/studios on several occasions, one of the more notable ones being Cartoon Network. My notable work includes my involvement on The Lion King, The Swan Princess,SpongeBob Squarepants, Avatar: The Last Air Bender and several MarvelMasterpieces cards from Upper Deck. I have proficiency in creating dynamicsequential images for both comic books and storyboards. I am currently work full time as an illustrator at a reputable advertising agency in Long Beach,California, called InterTrend Communications. We represent State Farm,Toyota, AT&T, JCPenney and several other clients in the Asian American market. Having Toyota as one of our clients, of course, was how I have the opportunity to participate in the Corolla Miku project.

As someone who is involved with the Toyota Miku project, did you know about Miku beforehand?

I did. Not much of her besides seeing some cosplayers and that she’s a virtual idol that sounds like a singer using auto tune for mixing.

Why has Miku, a Japanese virtual idol, been chosen for this particular Toyota Corolla campaign?

We have to look at this from Toyota’s perspective first: The Corolla is a vehicle targeting at young adults, who may be recent graduates, college
students, adventures people that are curious about the world that is waiting for them to discover. So on an immediate level, we know that our target
audience contains a large group of anime fans. Going more specific, we at InterTrend are targeting the Asian American, 1.5 – 2nd generation, young adults market with the Corolla, so anime is even more relevant. Then we look at the underlying message of the Corolla vehicle: it’s one of the best component to help an young adventurer to seek out their dreams and discover the life ahead of them. The Vocaloid technology relates to the Corolla and
its drivers in that it represents the possibility of what future can be like: It’s here and Hatsune Miku is literally “driven by the sound of
success.”

What is the biggest challenge you have faced in advertising for the Miku project?

With an advertising campaign, you’re always dealing with the unknown reaction of the audience, which can make or break a campaign. Also, funny this may sound, Hatsune Miku is celebrity and has a reputation to keep. So using her require a lot of care. On a general, personal level, creative work is always subjective, and unfortunately, often the scapegoat when a campaign doesn’t work out.

How does the company feel about the response so far to the Toyota Miku Project? Did you anticipate Miku’s concert selling out?

I am not surprised. Miku is after all a very popular personality. We’re happy with the exposure for Toyota and Miku, and very happy to the reception of this campaign by the American audience.

What can AX attendees and Miku fans expect from Toyota and other affiliates in regards to the Miku concert and any other aspects of the events planned for AX?

I can’t talk about that. But do come to AX and check out the Toyota booth.

Since you do story-boarding and are sketching Miku art, do you have any suggestions for individuals who want to go into advertisement or do something with art in the future?
Be flexible about the changing times. I was an Economics major in college, so obviously I didn’t come from art background. Technology changes, so the
execution and application of art changes. But one thing that doesn’t change,is your knowledge in fundamentals. It’s more important that you know how to draw than being dependent on a piece of software, because software is a tool that will be replaced every decade. Your creativity, however, will remain
with you. Chances are, you’ll run into a lot of people telling you to change your drawing style. But by saying those things, you already know that those people don’t know what a “style” is. So be humble and take advice, but don’t bother with the advices that do not teach you anything. A phrase like “…you need to improve…” is worthless, because, one, oh wow, I did not know that, and two, the person that said that didn’t show you what and how to improve whatever that you’re doing. It’s very discouraging. But you have to have faith in yourself, because at the end of the day, you can’t be a replica of someone else, just because someone tells you to draw like another person he/she likes.

Any thing else you want to tell readers of Inside AX or Miku fans?

Thank you, everyone, for supporting Toyota and Hatsune Miku. Please keep up the support.

Tags: Crypton Future Media, Henry Liao, Miku, Toyota