For many, when watching the dramatic showdowns of Kamen Rider, Super Sentai, or any other tokusatsu programme, it’s easy to spot what unifies these long running shows, more than just the colourful suits and catchy henshin jingles: it’s the filming locations.
From the Saitama Super Arena, to Mount Iwafune (the place to go for all your big climactic battles), these areas of Japan become as much a mainstay of Tokusatsu as the actual characters or the flashy stunts.
Watch any show, and you’ll go from seeing Kamen Rider Fourze unlock his Cosmic States form in the Yori Daiei Kougyou quarry, to Uchū Sentai Kyuranger transforming together at that same location 5 years later.
It’s no surprise then, that when summer films are announced for each franchise, the bigger budgets means bigger expenditures to different places outside of the reoccurring tokusatsu destinations (most of the time).
Such is the case with 2024’s blockbuster Kamen Rider Gotchard: The Future Daybreak. Moving away from the populated districts to the mountainous regions of Japan’s Chūgoku region, Gotchard’s second movie takes him to the Shimane Prefecture, where he and his friends travel 20 years into the future to help Gotchard’s future counterpart Kamen Rider Daybreak against an army of evil baddies. Filming took place between Izumo City and Unnan City, both within Shimane.
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As the second least populous prefecture of Japan, perhaps director Ryuta Tasaki and his team simply picked this spot for its convenience; less people means more room for explosions, after all. Yet, with any good movie, perhaps there was a deliberate choice to travel to and shoot in Shimane. It’s a part of Japan soaked in history, one that takes great pride in protecting and honouring it: from decommissioned train stations with 20th century locomotives, to the only ironworks left in Japan.
Gotchard: The Future Daybreak is a story about the past preserving the future, the crossroads of history where we look back to what came before and find inspiration in our ancestry. There is something more to the coastal views of Shimane than just stage setting for dynamic fight scenes.
The movie seems to acknowledge this too as on July 12th, Kamen Rider socials advertised a special collaboration site between the film and the official Shimane Prefecture tourist guide, listing four key locations filmed in the movie, across Izumo and Unnan City, with behind the scenes photos.
These locations are:
- The Izumo Sports Dome
- Shimane’s Westernmost Cape
- Taisha Station
- Sugaya Tatara Yamauchi Ironworks
In anticipation of the Gotchard movie’s July 26th release, where the past and future collide, we’ll explore the four locales advertised on the website in the lead up to its debut. Aptly named Kamen Riding, this short series will be separated into four articles, one for each respective location.
Without further ado, take a ride with me and let’s journey across the Shimane Prefecture.
Shimane Prefecture
Hidden away on Honshu island, Shimane is often referred to as a secret of Japan, a gem of the country that not many visitors know about. While the neon lights of Tokyo drew in close to 20 million tourists in October 2023, this seashore prefecture goes unnoticed, it’s population reaching only 665,205 (as of February 1st, 2021).
It is bizarre to hear this, as the Shimane Prefecture is so prominent with historical relevance: mythology of ancient Gods woven into the cities, or the presence of centuries old buildings, you would think it’d attract many history nerds or otakus (perhaps a Kamen Rider Store in the mountains would change this). The capital, Matsue, has a prominent place in the legends of Japan’s deities.
Izumo City
Izumo City also holds so much historical significance that it stretches back to the beginning of Japan, the region originally known as the land of the Gods. It featured heavily in the oldest written record of Japan, the Kojiki, which documents many of the real formations and fantastical myths of the country; most of which feature Izumo as the central setting for their stories. Perhaps the most prolific nugget of history is that Izumo was used as the gathering place for all the Gods of Japan, as well as the home of the deity Ōkuninushi.
Look to the city’s Izumo Ōyashiro (Izumo Grand Shrine), a direct tribute to Ōkuninushi, and you will find one of the country’s oldest Shinto shrines, filled with treasures and lore documenting how Izumo was so important to the roots of Japan.
It also brings us to our first filming location of the Gotchard movie: the Izumo Dome.
The Izumo Dome
Completed in 1992, the Izumo Dome is the largest wooden structure in Japan, built specifically to prolong the existence of these kinds of architecture in the country. An all weather sports facility, the Dome was inspired by the shape of umbrellas and it’s translucent exterior allows for natural bright light to shine through; so much so that artificial lighting isn’t necessary (which the filmmakers must have been very thankful for).
The dome is said to have been used for a background involving a motorcycle scene, with interior shots featuring the cast. In the trailers, it’s curved walls feature prominently as the gathering spot for an impressively large army of enemies!
So, this begs the question, why the Izumo Dome? One of the simplest explanations could be that it’s the perfectly huge set piece for a franchise known for it’s exaggerated theatrics, especially when it’s as wide as 143 metres. The dome gives plenty of room for choreographed fights, or big wide shots of dozens of costumed actors. Being a tokusatasu drama so famous for it’s bouts of action, working in a dome as big as this would be a dream.
On a more thorough inspection, the decision might have come down to two key aspects: the preservation of wooden structures, such as the Izumo Dome, and the history surrounding Izumo City itself. If Gotchard: The Future Daybreak is a story about the past informing the future (Gotchard time travelling to save Daybreak), then these parallels can be seen in the foundation of the Izumo Dome: built to preserve the concept of a large, wooden building in Izumo City. Visitors can look to this nearly 30 year old wooden architecture and find inspiration from centuries worth of timber buildings. It ties back to the origins of Izumo City overall, a place that’s served as a landmark of Japan since the earliest recordings of ancient history, where preservation of their Shinto shrines and wooden buildings, such as the dome, is integral to maintaining the story of the city. You could even say that Kamen Rider’s Legend summoning of Legend Riders, the predecessors to Gotchard, in the trailer mirrors this idea of the past returning to help their future. What once was a gathering place for the Gods, is now a gathering place for the Kamen Riders.
Izumo is affectionately referred to as a “stage for history”, which comes as no surprise after digging into the trenches of the city’s background. Being so prolific in the Kojiki and oldest myths of Japan, filming here is like stepping into history. This is more than set dressing for another Kamen Rider movie: it’s thematic of the larger story tying Gotchard: The Future Daybreak together.
That concludes our first destination on this Shimane Prefection journey, with the next blog entry heading over to the Westernmost Cape of the region! The history here is only just beginning to unfold.
Kamen Rider Gotchard: The Future Daybreak premieres in Japanese theatres July 26th.
Are you a fan of touring Japan and exploring it’s history? Are you excited for the upcoming Gotchard movie? Let us know in the comments below!
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