Production I.G Announces Keiichi Hara New Animated Feature Film Miss Hokusai
Tokyo-based animation studio Production I.G is pleased to announce MISS HOKUSAI (original title: "Sarusuberi") the new animated feature film from Annecy-winning director Keiichi Hara ("Summer Days with Coo," "Colorful"). The film is based on the original manga, "Sarusuberi" by Hinako Sugiura, and it is scripted by Miho Maruo ("Colorful"). The main staff includes character designer and chief animator Yoshimi Itazu ("Dennō Coil," "The Wind Rises," "Dreaming Machine") and background artist Hiroshi Ono ("A Letter to Momo," "Wolf Children"). MISS HOKUSAI is slated for theatrical release in Japan in 2015. Production I.G will handle international distribution for the movie.
STORY
The time: 1814.
The place: Edo, now known as Tokyo. One of the highest populated cities in the world, teeming with peasants, samurai, townsmen, merchants, nobles, artists, courtesans, and perhaps even supernatural things.
A much accomplished artist of his time and now in his mid-fifties, Tetsuzo can boast clients from all over Japan, and tirelessly works in the garbage-loaded chaos of his house-atelier. He spends his days creating astounding pieces of art, from a giant-size Bodhidharma portrayed on a 180 square meter-wide sheet of paper, to a pair of sparrows painted on a tiny rice grain. Short-tempered, utterly sarcastic, with no passion for sake or money, he would charge a fortune for any job he is not really interested in.
Third of Tetsuzo's four daughters and born out of his second marriage, outspoken 23-year-old O-Ei has inherited her father's talent and stubbornness, and very often she would paint instead of him, though uncredited. Her art is so powerful that sometimes leads to trouble. "We're father and daughter; with two brushes and four chopsticks, I guess we can always manage, in a way or another."
Decades later, Europe was going to discover the immense talent of Tetsuzo. He was to become best known by one of his many names: Katsushika Hokusai. He would mesmerize Renoir and van Gogh, Monet and Klimt.
However, very few today are even aware of the woman who assisted him all his life, and greatly contributed to his art while remaining uncredited. This is the untold story of O-Ei, Master Hokusai's daughter: a lively portrayal of a free-spirited woman overshadowed by her larger-than-life father, unfolding through the changing seasons.
MAIN STAFF
Original Story: Hinako Sugiura (from the graphic novel Sarusuberi)
Screenplay: Miho Maruo (Colorful)
Chief Animator: Yoshimi Itazu (The Wind Rises)
Background Art: Hiroshi Ono (A Letter to Momo)
Directed by: Keiichi Hara (Colorful)
Animation: Production I.G (A Letter to Momo, Ghost in the Shell)
Presented by: Sarusuberi Film Partners
ABOUT THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR: HINAKO SUGIURA
Hinako Sugiura (1958-2005) was a manga artist and researcher in the lifestyles and customs of Japan's Edo period. Her distinctive style unique storytelling made her win the Japan Cartoonists Association Award for "Gasso" (Joint Burial, 1984) and the Bungei Shunju Manga Award for "Furyu Edo Suzume" (A Refined Edo Sparrow, 1988). She also wrote numerous essays, and frequently appeared in the media as an expert on the period. Her manga, "Sarusuberi" on which MISS HOKUSAI is based, was published between 1983 and 1987, and gained cult status ever since for the vivid and and compelling portrayal of O-Ei, Hokusai's daughter.
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR: KEIICHI HARA
Keiichi Hara (1959) has worked extensively on popular family and children animated shows, such as "Doraemon" and "Crayon Shin-chan." His 2002 Shin-chan movie, "Crayon Shin-chan: Brilliant! The Great Battle of the Warring States" (2002) was recommended by Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs. International recognition came with Japan Academy Prizes-winner "Summer Days" with Coo (2007) and especially with "Colorful" (2010), greeted with the Jury's Special Distinction and the Audience Award at Annecy 2011. Both movies received theatrical distribution in France and other countries. Hara admires classic Japanese filmmakers such as Keisuke Kinoshita, to whom he dedicated his first live-action movie in 2013, "Dawn of a Filmmaker: The Keisuke Kinoshita Story."
ABOUT PRODUCTION I.G
Established by Mitsuhisa Ishikawa in 1987, Production I.G is one of the world's leading animation studios. With its cutting-Edge Works, such as "Ghost in the Shell" (1995), "Jin-Roh" (2000), "Blood: The Last Vampire" (2000), "Kill Bill: Vol. 1" (animation segment, 2003), "Innocence" (2004), "The Sky Crawlers" (2008), and heart warming family feature films such as "Oblivion Island" (2009), "A Letter to Momo" (2012) and "Giovanni's Island," (2014) I.G has gained high reputation around the globe, inspiring Hollywood creators such as James Cameron, Quentin Tarantino and the Wachowskis.
Official Website: www.production-ig.com
STORY
The time: 1814.
The place: Edo, now known as Tokyo. One of the highest populated cities in the world, teeming with peasants, samurai, townsmen, merchants, nobles, artists, courtesans, and perhaps even supernatural things.
A much accomplished artist of his time and now in his mid-fifties, Tetsuzo can boast clients from all over Japan, and tirelessly works in the garbage-loaded chaos of his house-atelier. He spends his days creating astounding pieces of art, from a giant-size Bodhidharma portrayed on a 180 square meter-wide sheet of paper, to a pair of sparrows painted on a tiny rice grain. Short-tempered, utterly sarcastic, with no passion for sake or money, he would charge a fortune for any job he is not really interested in.
Third of Tetsuzo's four daughters and born out of his second marriage, outspoken 23-year-old O-Ei has inherited her father's talent and stubbornness, and very often she would paint instead of him, though uncredited. Her art is so powerful that sometimes leads to trouble. "We're father and daughter; with two brushes and four chopsticks, I guess we can always manage, in a way or another."
Decades later, Europe was going to discover the immense talent of Tetsuzo. He was to become best known by one of his many names: Katsushika Hokusai. He would mesmerize Renoir and van Gogh, Monet and Klimt.
However, very few today are even aware of the woman who assisted him all his life, and greatly contributed to his art while remaining uncredited. This is the untold story of O-Ei, Master Hokusai's daughter: a lively portrayal of a free-spirited woman overshadowed by her larger-than-life father, unfolding through the changing seasons.
MAIN STAFF
Original Story: Hinako Sugiura (from the graphic novel Sarusuberi)
Screenplay: Miho Maruo (Colorful)
Chief Animator: Yoshimi Itazu (The Wind Rises)
Background Art: Hiroshi Ono (A Letter to Momo)
Directed by: Keiichi Hara (Colorful)
Animation: Production I.G (A Letter to Momo, Ghost in the Shell)
Presented by: Sarusuberi Film Partners
ABOUT THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR: HINAKO SUGIURA
Hinako Sugiura (1958-2005) was a manga artist and researcher in the lifestyles and customs of Japan's Edo period. Her distinctive style unique storytelling made her win the Japan Cartoonists Association Award for "Gasso" (Joint Burial, 1984) and the Bungei Shunju Manga Award for "Furyu Edo Suzume" (A Refined Edo Sparrow, 1988). She also wrote numerous essays, and frequently appeared in the media as an expert on the period. Her manga, "Sarusuberi" on which MISS HOKUSAI is based, was published between 1983 and 1987, and gained cult status ever since for the vivid and and compelling portrayal of O-Ei, Hokusai's daughter.
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR: KEIICHI HARA
Keiichi Hara (1959) has worked extensively on popular family and children animated shows, such as "Doraemon" and "Crayon Shin-chan." His 2002 Shin-chan movie, "Crayon Shin-chan: Brilliant! The Great Battle of the Warring States" (2002) was recommended by Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs. International recognition came with Japan Academy Prizes-winner "Summer Days" with Coo (2007) and especially with "Colorful" (2010), greeted with the Jury's Special Distinction and the Audience Award at Annecy 2011. Both movies received theatrical distribution in France and other countries. Hara admires classic Japanese filmmakers such as Keisuke Kinoshita, to whom he dedicated his first live-action movie in 2013, "Dawn of a Filmmaker: The Keisuke Kinoshita Story."
ABOUT PRODUCTION I.G
Established by Mitsuhisa Ishikawa in 1987, Production I.G is one of the world's leading animation studios. With its cutting-Edge Works, such as "Ghost in the Shell" (1995), "Jin-Roh" (2000), "Blood: The Last Vampire" (2000), "Kill Bill: Vol. 1" (animation segment, 2003), "Innocence" (2004), "The Sky Crawlers" (2008), and heart warming family feature films such as "Oblivion Island" (2009), "A Letter to Momo" (2012) and "Giovanni's Island," (2014) I.G has gained high reputation around the globe, inspiring Hollywood creators such as James Cameron, Quentin Tarantino and the Wachowskis.
Official Website: www.production-ig.com
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