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Isao Takahata & Ghibli's Kaguya-hime no Monogatari Cast Announced
posted on by Karen Ressler
The official website for Isao Takahata and Studio Ghibli's upcoming film Kaguya-hime no Monogatari (The Tale of Princess Kaguya) has updated to list the film's cast. Aki Asakura will lead the cast as Kaguya, and Takeo Chii, who passed away in June of last year, will still play the role of Okina (Old Man), as he had recorded his part before his death. Kengo Kōra and Nobuko Miyamoto round out the main cast as as Sutemaru and Ouna (Old Woman), respectively.
Other cast members include Atsuko Takahata, Tomoko Tabata, Tatekawa Shinosuke, Takaya Kamikawa, Hikaru Ijūin, Ryūdō Uzaki, Nakamura Shichinosuke, Isao Hashizume, Yukiji Asaoka, and Tatsuya Nakadai.
The famous Japanese folktale Taketori Monogatari (The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter) centers on princess named Kaguya who was discovered as a baby inside the stalk of a glowing bamboo plant. Taketori Monogatari has inspired dozens of manga and anime stories, such as Reiko Shimizu's Kaguya Hime and Arina Tanemura's Sakura-Hime Kaden.
Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies, Only Yesterday, Pom Poko) revealed in 2009 that his next film will be based on the folktale. The tagline for the film reads, "A princess's Crime and Punishment."
Joe Hisaishi (Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke) is composing the film's soundtrack, and singer-songwriter Kazumi Nikaidō's new song “Inochi no Kioku” (Memory of Life) is the main theme song. Takahata conceived the story and co-wrote the screenplay with Riko Sakaguchi. This will be Takahata's first film since My Neighbors the Yamadas about 14 years ago. The film will open on November 23.
[Via Temple Knights]
