Anime, Mamoru Hosoda, West Coast Premiere

Belle

Mamoru Hosoda
Japan · 2021 · 121 min
Japanese with English Subtitles

From the celebrated Oscar®-nominated director Mamoru Hosoda and Studio Chizu, creator of Mirai, Wolf Children, Summer Wars, and more, comes a fantastical, beautiful and contemporary thematic story of one girl’s growth in the age of social media. Suzu is a 17-year-old high school student living in a rural village with her father. For years, she has only been a shadow of herself. One day, she enters “U,” a virtual world of 5 billion members on the Internet. There, she is not Suzu anymore but Belle, a world-famous singer. She soon meets with a mysterious creature. Together, they embark on a journey of adventures, challenges and love, in their quest to become who they truly are. A GKIDS release. (GKIDS)

Anime, Masashi Ando

The Deer King

Masashi Ando
Japan · 2021 · 114 min
Japanese with English Subtitles

In the years following a vicious war, the Empire of Zol now controls the land and citizens of rival Aquafa – except for Aquafa’s Fire Horse Territory, where wild dogs that once carried the deadly Black Wolf Fever continue to roam free. When a pack of dogs race through a Zol-controlled mine, Van, an enslaved former soldier, and a young girl named Yuna are both bitten, but manage to escape as the sole survivors of the attack. Finally free, Van and Yuna seek out a simple, peaceful existence in the countryside. But as the deadly disease once again runs rampant, they find themselves at the crossroads of a struggle much larger than any one nation.

THE DEER KING is a sweeping fantasy epic that marries timeless themes with thrilling, high stakes adventure. The film marks the directing debut of acclaimed animator Masashi Ando, whose work on such landmark films as Spirited Away, Paprika and Your Name helped shape the world of modern Japanese animation. – GKIDS

Anime, Ayumu Watanabe, Los Angeles Premeire

Fortune Favors Lady Nikuko

Ayumu Watanabe
Japan · 2021 · 94 min
Japanese with English Subtitles

Lady Nikuko is a brash, jolly, scattered and passionate woman in an otherwise sleepy, small seaside town in northern Japan. She’s also the mom of 11-year-old Kikuko, who is her opposite in many ways. Kikuko is a stringbean of a young girl, pensive, quietly curious and methodical in how she approaches life in this sleepy, harbor town. Nikuko embarasses Kikuko as any mom of a preteen would, but Nikuko’s bold spirit makes her well-known in the town at a point when Kikuko is trying to blend in. While Kikuko actively tries to avoid the social dramas of middle school she finds herself drawn to her mysterious classmate Ninomiya. One thing that draws everyone together is the delectable, mouth-watering food at the restaurant Nikuko works at. While the two try to navigate their own distinct paths in life, a shocking revelation uproots their core connection.

Director Ayumu Watanabe’s (AIF ‘19, Children of the Sea) unique attention to detail and artistry he brings to every-day life is on full display in Fortune Favors Lady Nikuko, which is based on a popular book by author Kanako Nishi. Watanabe finds the magic and mystic in the worlds naturally occurring around us as well as the ones we create for ourselves. (ANIMATION IS FILM)

Anime

Weathering With You

Makoto Shinkai
Japan · 2019 · 111 min
In Japanese

Weathering With You is the highly-anticipated new film from director Makoto Shinkai and producer Genki Kawamura, the creative team behind the critically-acclaimed, global smash hit Your Name.

The summer of his high school freshman year, Hodaka runs away from his remote island home to Tokyo, and quickly finds himself pushed to his financial and personal limits. The weather is unusually gloomy and rainy every day, as if to suggest his future. He lives his days in isolation, but finally finds work as a writer for a mysterious occult magazine. Then one day, Hodaka meets Hina on a busy street corner. This bright and strong-willed girl possesses a strange and wonderful ability: the power to stop the rain and clear the sky. With stunning visuals, depicting both the intricate detail of the Tokyo streets, to the sweeping beauty of a rain streaked sky, Weathering With You combines the artistry and powerful emotional pull that has come to define director Makoto Shinkai’s films.

Already a box office hit in Japan, Weathering With You is Japan’s official International Feature Film entry to the 2020 Academy Awards®.

A GKIDS release.

Anime, Beijing 2019, Mamoru Hosoda

The Boy and the Beast

Mamoru Hosoda

The latest film from award-winning Japanese director Mamoru Hosoda (Summer Wars, Wolf Children): When Kyuta, a young orphan living on the streets of Shibuya, stumbles into a fantastic world of beasts, he’s takin in by Kumatetsu, a gruff, rough-around-the-edges warrior beast who’s been searching for the perfect apprentice.
Despite their constant bickering, Kyuta and Kumatetsu begin training together and slowly form a bond as surrogate father and son. But when a deep darkness threatens to throw the human and beast worlds into chaos, the strong bond between this unlikely pair will be put to the ultimate test – a final showdown that will only be won if the two can finally work together using all of their combined strength and courage.

Courtesy of Funimation Entertainment

Anime, Beijing 2019

Modest Heroes: Ponoc Short Films Theatre, Volume 1

Yoshiaki Nishimura · Hiromasa Yonebayashi
Japanese · 2018 · 53 min
In Japanese with English Subtitles

Studio Ponoc, the new animation studio founded by two-time Academy Award^®-nominee Yoshiaki Nishimura (The Tale of The Princess Kaguya, When Marnie Was There) and featuring many artists from the venerable Studio Ghibli, made an immediate splash with their acclaimed debut film Mary and The Witch’s Flower, a 2017 Animation is Film selection. The studio returns to the festival this year with Modest Heroes, an ambitious collection of three thrilling tales created by some of the greatest talents working in Japanese animation today.

In Kanini & Kanino, directed by Academy Award^®-nominee Hiromasa Yonebayashi (When Marnie Was There, Mary and The Witch’s Flower), two crab brothers embark on a grand underwater adventure to find their father, after an accident carries him far downstream. Depicted as tiny beings in a large and merciless natural world, the brothers must evade a series of freshwater predators if they are ever to reunite with their family again.

In Life Ain’t Gonna Lose, acclaimed animator Yoshiyuki Momose (key animator on Isao Takahata’s films at Studio Ghibli, and animation director of the video game Ni No Kuni) makes his directorial debut with a very different kind of story. Eight-year-old Shun loves baseball and to run. Only eggs defeat him. With the love of his strong-willed mother (Maggie Q), Shun faces the challenge of an everyday life threatened by a deadly allergy.

Lastly, in Invisible (the directing debut of Akihiko Yamashita, a talented key animator on many of Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki’s best-known films) a man wakes up one morning and goes through his day in a world where no one can see him. But just when he seems to have reached his limit, a momentous decision gives him the chance to reclaim his humanity.

Together, the stories explore ideas of heroism large and small, and the infinite potential of the short film format allows the directors and Studio Ponoc to experiment with breathtaking, action-packed visuals, concise human drama, and gorgeous fantasy worlds, in this unforgettable short film anthology that is further demonstration of the studio’s exciting future.

Anime, Beijing 2019, Mamoru Hosoda

Mirai

Mamoru Hosoda
Japan · 2018
In Japanese

The latest from acclaimed director Mamoru Hosoda – whose The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Summer Wars, Wolf Children and Boy and the Beast are also playing the festival. Mirai is a daringly original story of love passed down through generations and brings together two of Hosoda’s most resonant themes: the importance of family and the ability to pass through time. When four-year-old Kun meets his new baby sister, his world is turned upside down. Named Mirai (meaning “future”), the baby quickly wins the hearts of Kun’s entire family. As his mother returns to work and his father struggles to Run the household, Kun becomes increasingly jealous of baby Mirai… until one day he storms off into the garden, where he encounters strange guests from the past and future – including his sister Mirai, as a teenager. Together, Kun and teenage Mirai go on a journey through time and space, uncovering their family’s incredible story. But why did Mirai come from the future?

An official selection at Cannes Directors’ Fortnight, and the epic capstone of director Mamoru Hosoda’s career, Mirai is a sumptuous, magical, and emotionally soaring adventure about the ties that bring families together and make us who we are.

A GKIDS release

Anime, Mamoru Hosoda

The Boy and the Beast

Introduction by Mamoru Hosoda

Courtesy of Funimation Entertainment

Anime, Mamoru Hosoda

Wolf Children

Mamoru Hosoda
Japan · 2012 · 117 min
In Japanese with English subtitles · Recommended for ages 8 and up

Hana was a student before she was a mother. She was bright and pretty, and her future held endless possibilities. Then she met a man, who turned out to be a wolf, and together they built a family. Hana loved her mate fiercely, but fate took him from her, leaving her alone with two unusual kids she didn’t know how to raise. Frightened of being discovered, Hana and her wolf children fled to the countryside to build a new life. Raising her little wild things was an adventure. It left Hanna bruised, scratched, exhausted, and joyously overwhelmed as her pups grew stronger and wandered further every day. This is a mother’s journey. Teach your children to chase their dreams – and smile through the tears as they disappear into the world in search of who they will become. Hana wasn’t always a mother, but it was always what she was meant to be.

Courtesy of Funimation Entertainment

Anime, Mamoru Hosoda

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time

Mamoru Hosoda
Japan · 2006 · 99 min
In Japanese with English Subtitles · Recommended for ages 8 and up

After waking up late, flunking her pop quiz, embarrassing herself on numerous occasions, and starting a fire in her home economics class, high school student Makoto Konno figures she’s just having one of those days. Just when she thinks she’s made it through, the brakes on her bike malfunction putting her on a collision course with a speeding train. The life-ending accident would have been the perfect end to the worst day ever, but the strangest thing happens – she leaps backwards in time.

After unlocking her new ability, Makoto does what any teenager would do. She re-takes tests, corrects embarrassing situations, and sleeps in as late as she wants, never thinking that her carefree time travelling could have a negative effect on the people she cares about. By the time she realizes the damage she’s done, she’ll have to race against time to set things right.

Courtesy of Funimation Entertainment

Anime, Mamoru Hosoda

Summer Wars

Mamoru Hosoda

Kenji is your typical teenage misfit. He’s good at math, bad with girls, and spends most of his time hanging out in the all-powerful online community known as OZ. His second life is the only life he has – until the girl of his dreams, Natsuki, hijacks him for a starring role as a fake fiancé at her family reunion. Things only get stranger from there. A late-night email containing a cryptic mathematic riddle leads to the unleashing of a rogue AI intent on using the virtual world of OZ to destroy the real world. As Armageddon looms on the horizon, Kenji and his new “family” set aside their differences and band together to save the worlds they inhabit in this “near perfect blend of social satire and science fiction.”

Courtesy of Funimation Entertainment

Anime

I Want To Eat Your Pancreas

Shin’ichirô Ushijima
Japan · 108 min
In Japanese with English Subtitles · Recommended for ages 10 and up

Since Yoru Sumino posted his novel online in 2014, it has spawned a manga adaptation, a hit live action film, and now an animated feature. It’s no wonder, because this heart-melting story will surely move you to tears. This is the tale of a burgeoning teenage romance between two high school classmates on opposite ends of the popularity spectrum. The un-named protagonist is a socially awkward librarian who can’t hold eye contact. He finds the diary of a girl, Sakura, and discovers she only has a few months left to live. Despite her illness, Sakura has an optimistic disposition – she may be dying, but she is not throwing in the towel and wants to hit as many highs as possible in the time she has left. A cheerful dying girl teaching a mopey boy how to live may not be new (think Harold and Maude) but it is easy to buy into their blossoming love, and when things get messy you can’t help rooting for them. Ultimately the film tells a universal story about friendship, and treasuring each moment of the precious time we have together in this world.

Anime

Penguin Highway

Hiroyasu Ishida
Japan · 2018 · 118 min
In Japanese with English Subtitles

It’s hard not to love this brightly colored, fantastical, sci-fi adventure, where any number of insanely cute penguins mysteriously begin to appear in a quiet suburban neighborhood. Aoyama is a brainy fourth-grader. Obsessed with experimentation, he is counting down the 4,000 days to his first Nobel prize. He also has a crush on young dental hygienist, or more specifically, an infatuation with her boobs – why do they make him feel different then his mother’s do? (Actually, Aoyama might just be a tad on the spectrum, which would make this more innocent than lecherous. Without social awareness, he is just applying the scientific method to own pre-adolescent hormonal sensations.) It turns out that the dental assistant may have something to do with the penguins, which have been the focus of Aoyama’s most recent research. Meanwhile, his classmate Hamamoto has stumbled upon a discovery of her own. Deep in the forest is a suspended orb of water she’s coined “The Ocean.” Just as the kids begin to uncover the cosmic connection between penguins and the orb, a team of government scientists threaten to ruin everything and plunge the world into disaster.

An ELEVEN ARTS Anime Studio release

Anime

Okko’s Inn

Kitarô Kôsaka
Japan · 2018 · 94 min
In Japanese with English Subtitles · Recommended for ages 7 and up

After losing her parents in a car accident, Okko goes to live in the countryside with her grandmother, who runs a traditional Japanese inn built on top of an ancient spring said to have healing waters. While she goes about her chores and prepares to become the inn’s next caretaker, Okko discovers there are ghosts who live there that only she can see – not scary ghosts, but playful child ghosts who keep her company and help her feel less lonely. A sign outside says the spring welcomes all and will reject none, and this is soon put to the test as a string of new guests challenge Okko’s ability to be a gracious host. But ultimately Okko discovers that dedicating herself to the happiness of others becomes the key to taking care of herself. The latest feature from famed animation house Madhouse (home to Satoshi Kon and the early Mamoru Hosoda) is a beguilingly simple children’s tale that sneaks up on you with a deepfelt message of hope and acceptance.

Anime

Mind Game

Masaaki Yuasa
Japan · 2004 · 103 min
In Japanese

Buckle in and prepare to surrender yourself to an exhilarating and wildly entertaining ride. Mind Game is a psychedelic explosion of unconstrained expression – gloriously colorful mages ricochet in a cacophony of rapid fire associations that mimic the thought process, like Masaaki Yuasa’s brain splattered onto the screen in all its goopy glory. Audiences will begin to grasp what they are in for early on as loser Nishi, too wimpy to try to save his childhood sweetheart from gangsters, is shot in the butt by a soccer-playing psychopath. The bullet travels through his ass to his brain and beyond, projecting Nishi into the afterlife. In this limbo, God – shown as a series of rapidly changing characters – tells him to walk toward the light. But Nishi runs like hell in the other direction, forestalling death and returning to Earth a changed man, driven to live each moment to the fullest.

Comment: Film depicts violence and sex.