News
Okko's Inn Will Have Limited Cinema Release on July 14
posted on by Andrew Osmond
Manga Entertainment has announced that it will screen the Okko's Inn (Waka Okami wa Shōgakusei!) anime film in selected cinemas on Sunday July 14, in the English dub.
Manga Entertainment describes the film:
"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 spirits who live there that only she can see – not scary ones, but welcoming ghosts who keep her company, play games and help her navigate her new environment. The inn's motto is that it 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 others becomes the key to taking care of herself."The latest feature from famed anime Studio Madhouse and director Kitarō Kōsaka, who was a key animator on numerous classic films at the venerable Studio Ghibli, seamlessly blends immersive, idyllic landscapes with the storybook charm of Okko's beloved ghosts. Okko's Inn delivers a rare ghost story that – despite several floating characters – is firmly grounded in the trials and joys of humanity."
The film will be shown at the following cinemas on July 14; ticket-holders will receive a free limited postcard while stocks last. All the Showcase cinemas can be booked through this page; the screenings are at 2 p.m.
Showcase Bristol; Showcase Bluewater; Showcase Coventry; Showcase Derby; Showcase Glasgow East; Showcase Leeds; Showcase Leicester; Showcase Liverpool; Showcase Manchester; Showcase Nottingham; Showcase Reading; Showcase Southampton
The film will also be screened in the Prince Charles Cinema in London at 1 p.m.
The film is based on writer Hiroko Reijō and artist Asami's juvenile literature series. The books also inspired a 24-episode television anime that premiered on April 8 on TV Tokyo and five other affiliates. The film tells a story not told in either the original book series or the television series.
DLE and Madhouse animated the film along with the television anime, but Kitaro Kousaka (A-Girl, Nasu: Summer in Andalusia) directed the film instead of the television anime's directors. Similarly, Reiko Yoshida (K-ON!, The Cat Returns, Girls und Panzer) wrote the script instead of the television staff. Kyōko Yauchi was in charge of art setting, and Shunsuke Hirota was the animation director.
Reijō launched the book series in 2003, and Kodansha's Aoi Tori Bunko imprint published 20 volumes with seven spinoff and short story collections. The book series has 3 million copies in print. Eiko Ōuchi serialized a manga adaptation in Kodansha's Nakayoshi magazine, and Kodansha published seven compiled book volumes.
