It has been announced that the first full 3DCG animated film by Studio Ghibli “Earwig and the Witch” will be released in theaters nationwide on August 27, 2021.
The original story of this film is a children’s book written by Diana Wynne Jones, a British author who is also known as the “Queen of Fantasy” and the author of Miyazaki Hayao’s “Howl’s Moving Castle” (2004). The film was planned by Miyazaki Hayao and directed by Miyazaki Goro.
“Earwig and the Witch” has been selected as an Official Selection for the 2020 Cannes Film Festival, and has already been released in theaters in North America, and Australia, and will be in Europe, and Asia. With great attention and expectations overseas, the film was broadcast in Japan on NHK General TV on December 30, 2020.
Now, after a four-month postponement from the original release date of April 29, the main character, Earwig, is coming to the screen.
In addition, a new exhibition “Earwig and the Witch” is currently being held at the Mitaka-no-Mori Ghibli Museum.
Director Miyazaki Goro himself planned and supervised the exhibition, which introduces the production process of 3DCG animation, and in the exhibition room, visitors can actually create the facial expressions of the main character Earwig, as well as view the stop-motion animation “Kubo and the Two Strings” (2016/LAIKA), which greatly influenced the creation of the character. Admission is by reservation only.
The movie “Earwig and the Witch” will hit the theaters nationwide on August 27, 2021.
(C) 2020 NHK, NEP, Studio Ghibli
