Thank you for taking time from your vacation to talk with us. I hope you are enjoying your stay in the United States so far?

Kitazume: Yes, thank you.

In the United States, you are best known for your work on ZETA GUNDAM, GUNDAM ZZ, and CHAR'S COUNTERATTACK. What about in Japan?

Kitazume: I think that's probably the same in Japan. I'm best known for my work on Gundam.

How do you feel about being identified so closely with one series?

Kitazume: I like Gundam. I started working [in the industry] on MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM and it was very good for me. I appreciate both Tomino [Editor's note: Tomino Yoshiyuki is the creator of GUNDAM] and his work very much.

What are you working on right now?

Kitazume: Nothing has really been decided at the moment. I was working on some designs for the A.D. POLICE series, but that was handed off to someone else. I'm between projects.

Back to your previous works. I recently did the English translation for an esoteric show called DRAGON CENTURY, for which you did the character designs. What do you remember about working on that?

Kitazume: [laughs] That was a very long time ago! Hmm.. I remember the schedule was very tight.

Anything else?

Kitazume: Well, since it was on such a tight schedule, the staff was very tired from working long hours all the time. I also remember that we didn't have the time to do as much with it as we would have liked. And the dragon designer, Etsutomo Hiroyuki, was the director for ARMITAGE III.

What do you think is most important when designing characters?

Kitazume: Wow. Such a tough question. Well, in a drama, you have to create characters that viewers can visually relate to in some way. When you look at the character, it has an impact on you, just from seeing it. That is the first thing that makes a good character.

Do you have a favorite character?

Kitazume: I like them all. [laughs] Since I put so much of myself into working on them, I really am not able to pick out one as my favorite above all others.

Can you offer any insight into the popularity of Four Murasame from ZETA GUNDAM? She seems to be perennially popular with the fans.

Kitazume: [laughs] I didn't design her. Yasuhiko [Yoshikazu] did. I never worked on her. As for her popularity, I think Yasuhiko managed to create her so that viewers had an immediate reaction to her.

Is there anyone you see as a role model or an influence on your career?

Kitazume: For art, probably Yasuhiko. I learned a lot working with him. And for anime, I would definitely have to say Tomino Yoshiyuki. My first work on IDEON and DUNBINE was under him, and he really influenced me.