This will be Ponoc’s second time adapting a British children’s book, as Mary and the Witch’s Flower is based on Mary Stewart’s The Little Broomstick). The Imaginary is an extraordinarily touching and beautiful hand-drawn fantasy film in which Rudger and his new friends in “The Imaginaries Town” embark on an adventure no one can see at the risk of the futures and fates of those they love. Studio Ponoc describes the anime’s premise with:īorn from a young girl’s imagination, Rudger is a boy no one can see who lives in a world where imaginations can live and be eaten by others. ▼ The film’s poster, featuring its Japanese title Yaneura no Roger, or “ Rudger in the Attic.” As a director, he helmed the 2019 Ni no Kuni anime movie, and well as Ponoc’s Tomorrow’s Leaves and one segment of Modest Heroes. Harrold’s children’s novel of the same name. Serving as director on the project is former Studio Ghibli member Yoshiyuki Momose, whose credits include key animation and visual design on Spirited Away, Whisper of the Heart, Pom Poko, Only Yesterday, On Your Mark. The title might sound familiar to fans of children’s literature, as the anime is an adaptation of British author A.F.

Now, though, Studio Ponoc is finally returning to feature-length theatrical animation with the announcement of a new anime film, The Imaginary. Since Mary, their only releases have been Modest Heroes, a 53-minute short film anthology, and Tomorrow’s Leaves, an eight-and-a-half minute production to help promote the Tokyo Olympics.

Ponoc, though, has since been on a sort of hiatus itself. So during the extended blank that followed the release of 2014’s When Marnie Was There, a number of key creators left Ghibli and banded together to create Mary and the Witch’s Flower, the first anime film from the newly formed Studio Ponoc. There’s a remarkable consistency to the quality of Studio Ghibli’s anime, but the same can’t be said about the pace of their releases. Harrold novel marks Studio Ponoc’s return to feature-length theatrical anime.

Live action anime movies