Anime Film Festival in London September 2019

Date: 2019 August 12 20:09

Posted by Joe

Anime fans in London looking for a day of films can't wrong by heading over to the first The Anime Film Festival. It's set to run on Saturday 7th September at Picturehouse Central in London's West End. They've got a sterling line up of films that should all really be enjoyed on the big screen.

All films will be shown in Japanese with English subtitles.

They'll be showing the following:

• Mirai (PG): 2.20pm
• Penguin Highway (12): 4.30pm
• your name. (12): 7.00pm
• Redline (15): 9.15pm

They're all good films so it really depends what you're after.
If you haven't caught Your Name on a cinema screen yet, now is your chance. We've also got a soft spot for the fantastic Mirai. While Penguin Highway offers an eccentric and unexpected adventure (with penguins of course). Redline on the other hand just offers sheer intense action! So take your pick!

You can get tickets for individual films, double bills or whole line up.

Full Story

Press release as follows:



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The best in Japanese animation is being showcased at the very first Anime Film Festival, offering a rare opportunity to see a host of modern anime classics on the big screen.

The Anime Film Festival is taking place on Saturday 7th September in London's West End, with a programme of visually stunning and captivating films from Japan which will keep keen anime fans, as well as families and younger audiences, spellbound.

The festival commences with Oscar-nominated Mirai, the latest film from acclaimed director Mamoru Hosoda followed by Penguin Highway, based on the best-selling novel by Tomohiko Momori. We are also thrilled to show your name., one of the highest-grossing anime films of all time, on the big screen and to close the festival with Redline, an epic visual masterpiece which took seven years to create.

To bring the festival to life we have partnered with Picturehouse cinemas, a champion of independent and world cinema in the UK. We are thrilled to host the first Anime Film Festival at Picturehouse Central, their flagship cinema in Piccadilly Circus. Films will be shown in Japanese with English subtitles and individual tickets can be bought through the Picturehouse website, with "early double" (Mirai & Penguin Highway), "late double" (your name. & Redline) and full festival passes available from www.animefilmfestival.co.uk.

This independent festival has been organised by Reuben Ramanah, an avid anime fan who spent two years teaching English in Japan. Reuben is working with marketing specialist Harry Bunnell; the pair have been friends for nearly 20 years, and recently organised the 2018 edition of the Bicycle Film Festival.

Reuben said: "I wanted to put on this festival to celebrate all that anime has to offer, and give it the platform it deserves. I have been captivated with Japanese culture ever since seeing Akira as a teenager, and I would love to give as many people as possible the chance to enjoy these amazing films on the big screen. Anime is a unique art form that has been hugely influential to western film, and it does what all good films should; tell captivating stories which take you to another place, and keep you mesmerised and glued to the screen."

Reuben added: "The films chosen for this first Anime Film Festival are a mix of recent classics and genre-defining films that I know all audiences will enjoy but some may not have come across. There are countless, incredible anime that have never been shown in UK cinemas so I hope the Festival will make new anime fans and demonstrate the variety within this fascinating artform."

About Anime Film Festival

Anime Film Festival was created by Reuben Ramanah, an avid anime fan who has long felt that, despite its strong following in the UK, anime is rarely given the spotlight it deserves in cinemas here. Working with a team of close friends adept in digital marketing and partnering with Picturehouse cinemas, an exciting festival has been created that has already received the backing of Manga UK and Anime Limited as well as creative support from YouTuber Beyond Ghibli and Picnic Animation Studio.

Film Programme


Mirai (PG): 2.20pm

From acclaimed director Mamoru Hosoda (Wolf Children, Summer Wars) comes Mirai, a daringly original story of the importance of family across generations, and the first non-Studio Ghibli anime film to be nominated for an Academy Award.

When four-year-old Kun meets his new baby sister, his world is turned upside down. Named Mirai (meaning "future"), the baby quickly wins the hearts of Kun's entire family as he becomes increasingly jealous... until one day he storms off into the garden, where he encounters his sister as a teenager who has travelled through time! Together, Kun and teenaged Mirai go on a journey through time and space, uncovering their family's incredible story. But why did Mirai come from the future in the first place?


Penguin Highway (12): 4.30pm

A recently-made hidden gem, this off-kilter coming-of-age story is based on the best-selling novel by Tomohiko Morimi, author of Night is Short, Walk on Girl and The Tatami Galaxy, and is the feature film debut by a rising star of the anime world, Hiroyasu Ishida.

Budding genius Aoyama is only in the 4th grade, but already lives his life like a scientist. When penguins start appearing in his sleepy suburb hundreds of miles from the sea, Aoyama vows to solve the mystery. When he discovers a link between the source of the penguins and a woman from his dentist's office, they team up for an unforgettable summer adventure!


your name. (12): 7.00pm

Mitsuha and Taki are complete strangers living separate lives until they suddenly switch places. Mitsuha wakes up in Taki's body, and he in hers. This occurrence happens randomly, and they must adjust their lives around each other. When a connection forms, will distance be the only thing to keep them apart?

From director Makoto Shinkai comes a beautiful masterpiece about time, the thread of fate, and the hearts of two young souls. When it was released in 2016, this film became the highest grossing anime film of all time and received numerous awards and accolades.


Redline (15): 9.15pm

Every five years an exhilarating race called Redline is held, the universe's most anticipated competition. Racers are pushed to their absolute limit, while organized crime and militaristic governments want to leverage the race for their own ends. Amongst the elite rival drivers in the tournament, JP falls for the alluring Sonoshee - but will she prove his undoing, or can a high speed romance survive a mass destruction race?

Produced by the acclaimed studio Madhouse (Death Note, Paprika, Overlord) and directed by Takeshi Koike, Redline took seven years and over 100,000 hand-drawn frames to make. Having never received a wide cinema release in the UK, join us for an incredibly rare chance to see this masterpiece of animation on the big screen!



Recap

- The first London Anime Film Festival is on Saturday, 7 September 2019, at Picturehouse Central, (Shaftesbury Avenue, London W1D 7DH - closest tube: Piccadilly Circus)

- To buy tickets and for more information, visit www.animefilmfestival.co.uk or facebook.com/animefilmfestival, or follow on Instagram @animefilmfestival.

Source: Anime Film Festival