In 1600, the Dutch ship Erasmus washes up in a fishing village, in a Japan at the dawn of a civil war that will mark the century. Lord Yoshii Toranaga, a cunning and powerful lord, finds his existence and power threatened by his political rivals. However, the English captain of ErasmusJohn Blackthorne, holds secrets that could help Toranaga turn the situation around and help destroy his own enemies in the process: the Portuguese Jesuit merchants and missionaries.
Between the two men, Toda Mariko, a Christian noblewoman, last of a disgraced lineage, ensures translation and good understanding. In this tense political landscape, the three sidekicks will have to open up and learn from each other to better respect their commitments, their faith and their promises, and thus realize their destiny.
Adapted from the novel of the same name by James Clavell, the series Shōgun brings up to date a story told many times: that of a dark and mysterious hero who, arriving in a foreign land, falls in love with a culture, and also with a woman, generally, before reaching the potential for glory who slept within him.
The two creators of the series, writers and producers Justin Marks and Rachel Kondo, had never read the novel before being approached for the project. “We were familiar with the silhouette, the basis of the story, as well as the cover of the book, which depicted a man who looks a lot like me, a white American, and who wears clothes that are foreign to his culture, those of a samurai”, indicates the man of the duo, met by videoconference by The duty.
“We first asked ourselves if we had anything new to say about this story. Diving deeper, we discovered a wonderful and modern tale, which shows us what it is to meet other cultures, and to meet ourselves in these cultures. We wanted to tell it, with the technologies and the value system that are accessible to us today. »
Far from clichés
The result is quite seductive. The ambitious and large-scale staging multiplies sumptuous landscapes, memorable battles and thrilling plots, without neglecting the sentimental aspect and inner conflicts. The characters, both mysterious and complex, constantly see their prejudices shattered, and discover, through contact with each other, unsuspected riches and avenues.
“The book raises urgent and timeless questions that it is our duty to ask, collectively. How do we view each other, especially those who are different from us? How can we learn from these differences, study them, celebrate them, discuss them? We wanted to continue this conversation in the series,” emphasizes Rachel Kondo.
Fact, Shōgun moves away from caricature by managing to celebrate Japanese culture without taking the shortcut of exoticism, and does not hesitate to put aside a colonial ideal cruelly lacking in respect and humility.
A long translation process
To bring their vision to life, the two producers first had to undertake the great adventure of translation. As the action takes place in the Land of the Rising Sun, more than half of the dialogue had to be written in Japanese. “We worked with Japanese historians to remain faithful to the era depicted. They helped us add cultural nuances, and they gave us honest and candid feedback on what worked or didn’t work from a Japanese perspective,” says Justin Marks.
The creators then submitted the script to a playwright who had written extensively on 17th century Japan.e century, so that he polishes it and makes it as digestible and natural as possible for the actors. The latter also traveled to the set to make the necessary adaptations during filming.
This intense process continued in post-production. “The actors appropriated the text and played the dialogues, adding their personal touch. So we put a whole system in place. Everything that was said was translated to us in full, so that we could compare it to what was written. Then we determined a flexible middle ground so that the subtitles, what the audience reads, were as close to the performance experience as possible,” says Rachel Kondo.
Filming, which was to take place largely in Japan, ultimately had to be moved to British Columbia, due to health restrictions linked to the COVID-19 pandemic. “We were initially disappointed not to be able to stick to our initial plan. But we found sublime and untouched landscapes in Vancouver very similar to what we had in mind,” emphasizes Justin Marks.
Several of the actors left their native Japan for the first time to be part of the adventure of Shōgun. “There was this energy of discovery, of wonder, of perpetual pleasure of youth on the set. »
The main role, that of Captain John Blackthorne, was entrusted to the British Cosmo Jarvis, seen in particular in the successful series Peaky Blinders. With his hypnotic gaze and his tough-guy appearance, he does not seem, a priori, to correspond to the idea we have of the nobility and calm of a samurai. “When we saw him in the audition, we couldn’t take our eyes off him. However, he did not have the profile we were looking for, continues the producer. After three days of thinking, I couldn’t get it out of my head. In less than three hours, the other decision-makers had viewed his essay and were unanimous. He didn’t fit the role we had written, but he took it and took it in a different direction, unpredictable, but better in every way. »