art director Akira Inoue – art director Development Due to the commercial success of Gamera, the Giant Monster, the follow-up, Gamera vs. Barugon, had an expanded budget that effects director Noriaki Yuasa stated was ¥80 million. Producer and studio head Masaichi Nagata promoted the film into an A-list production, assigning acclaimed director Shigeo Tanaka and acclaimed composer Chuji Kinoshita to the film. Yuasa, director of the previous Gamera film, was demoted to special effects director for Gamera vs. Barugon, despite the previous film being a financial success. Despite his demotion, Yuasa later stated the he had a father/son relationship with Tanaka. Yuasa recalled that Daiei wanted to target the film to an adult audience, stating, "I thought that mixing melodrama and monsters was difficult to do." With the film being produced as an A-list production, Nagata chose Kojiro Hongo for the lead after wanting him to headline a film for some time, despite Hongo's uncertainty. Hongo felt "stuck" with performing in the film and initially attempted to drop out by faking an illness, which caused production to delay for a month. Upon learning that the production manager and section manager were coming to see him, Hongo placed blood-stained tissues in the trash and pretended to have chills, which convinced the managers and agreed to wait for his recovery, to Hongo's dismay. Hongo did not read the script after receiving it, believing that little acting was involved due to Yuasa telling him where the monsters would be placed. However, Hongo was unaware there were two directors: one for special effects and one for acting scenes. Years later, Hongo admitted to being grateful and proud to have been involved with the Gamera and Daimajin films. A scene that featured Osamu Abe's character slipping on a banana peel was cut to remove the comedic tone of the scene. Principal photography for the drama scenes directed by Tanaka began on February 20, 1966, and wrapped on April 5, 1966. Writing Screenwriter Niisan Takahashi was told to write a "lavish spectacle" and to treat the monster elements seriously. The film was originally developed as Gamera vs. the Ice Giants, which featured humanoid ice monsters bringing forth a new ice age on the world until Gamera returns to challenge them. The story outline was written by Yunosaburo Saito. This version began with volcanic eruptions and flying saucer sightings. The volcanic ash pollutes the atmosphere and ushers