Exploring the real world locations of ‘Your Name’
Hello again! This is my first update following my arrival in Tokyo last month. Today we did something that I have been wanting to do for a long time: stepping into the world of one of my all time favorite movies: Your name (君の名は) by Makoto Shinkai. If you haven’t seen it, I highly encourage you to do so before reading further, firstly because it contains some mild spoilers, and secondly because it’s a really touching and emotional work of art (duh)!
Ready? Alright, here we go! As a basis for this trip, we used a handy guide by Tofugu, which describes all of the locations featured in the movie in a mostly geographically sensible order.
A bit early at the Salon de the Rond
Our first stop was the National Art Centre in Tokyo, where the popular cafe Salon de the Rond is located. The entire building’s architecture was very interesting and artistic, with the cafe hovering over the lobby like a giant UFO. It quickly becomes clear why the artists chose this location to feature, it’s simply fun to look at. If it’s good to eat at we unfortunately cannot judge, as it hadn’t yet opened for the day, and we had a tight schedule ahead of us. So, let’s move on!
A breathtaking view, art and … cars?
Next on our list was the Tokyo City View in Roppongi Hills. Following their meal at the cafe and visit to the museum, the two lovebirds in the movie go up to see Tokyo from above. The view was fantastic, although it was unfortunately occluded by some sort of art gallery, which also included a futuristic car thing (?!). Definetely did not help with the crowdedness and I am not sure who would pay and go up a few hundred meters just to look at art, but who am I to judge, right? Now it’s time to hop onto a train and go to the next destination!
Now arriving at: Yotsuya Station
After a short train ride, we arrived at JR East’s Yotsuya Station. Apart from how tidy and clean everthing is there (thanks Japan!), it’s nothing exciting, and even avid fans of the movie might not recognize it, as it only appears in a single montage shot. But we are now nearing the most famous spot of the film, so let’s keep going.
Suburbs of Shinjuku
Close to Yotsuya Station, we come across this seemingly innocuous street sign, which you might recognize more easily if you watched the movie. Without a guide, finding this exact sign is pretty much impossible though, so follow a guide if you can (thanks, Tofugu!). Still, I really like this picture because it provides a little capsuled glimpse into the traditional suburbs of Tokyo and Shinjuku in this case. Following the road to the end, we get to the most famous destination on this list!
The stairs
This is the one you’ve been waiting for: the stairs at Suga shrine in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Prominently featured on the movie’s poster and promotional art, the scene at these stairs is the climax and ending of the movie. Honestly, this was the spot we really wanted to go to, all the other ones were nice to have on top (haha).
We weren’t the only ones there though, with other anime enjoyers from around the world queueing up to take that one picture of themselves, much to the confusion of the locals. Still, the place has a magical energy to it and meeting the other people there was a fun experience! As the day grew closer to nightfall, we moved on to the remaining stations.
A big LCD screen
When arriving in Shinjuku and exiting the main station, it is almost impossible to miss the Yunika vision screen, which also makes a brief appearance in the movie. Adding itself to the array of strange but cool advertising boards in Shinjuku (remember the giant Shinjuku cat?), this spot also makes for a great meeting point for a night out in the restaurants nearby (and karaoke of course). Moving onto our final destination…
End of the journey
With the day closing, we arrive at our final spot close to the Shinjuku Police Station. This one is another one that you need to know beforehand to even recognize it, and even then I had to go around the intersection twice to get the right angle (whoops). But I am really happy with how close the final picture looks to the scene in the movie, so a nice end to our journey.
And thats a wrap, folks! I had to skip many of the spots we visited since this post would have been way too long otherwise. But if I peeked your interest and you happen to be in Tokyo soon, feel free to take on the journey on your own. Funnily enough, it is a great tour of the Roppongi Hills and Shinjuku areas, with a great mix of popular tourist attractions and more quiet but beautiful spaces. Have fun!