Makoto Shinkai, the scriptwriter, and director of his new animated feature film Suzume no Tojimari announced in a press conference on Dec 15, 2021 that the movie will premiere in Japan in Fall 2022. The press release ahead of Toho Youtube channel broadcast has released the synopsis, staff details, and main key visual of the movie.

The officially announced story of Suzume no Tojimari as:

Suzume is a 17-year-old, who lives in a quiet town in Kyushu. One day, she meets a traveling young man who is looking for a “door.” Suzume decides to follow him and discovers an old door in the ruins in the mountains. As if drawn by something, Suzume reaches out for the door… What follows is Suzume’s liberation and growth as she closes the “doors” that cause misfortune in abandoned places around Japan.

The currently announced staff members for the Makoto Shinkai movie include:

• Character design: Masayoshi Tanaka
• Animation director: Kenichi Tsuchiya
• Art director: Takumi Tanji
• Studio: CoMix Wave Film
• Production producer: STORY inc.
• Distribution: Toho Animation

The voice actor for the role of Suzume is currently undecided, and no auditions have been held yet.

A detailed report of the press conference where Shinkai talked about the process leading up to the production will be reported later.

Shinkai tweeted about the announcement, commenting that  Suzume no Tojimari is a “modern adventure story” with action elements of Suzume traveling across Japan. He said that “It should be a fun movie.”

Weathering With You, Shinkai’s most recent film premiered in Japan in July 2019. The film went on to become Japan’s #7 highest-earning domestic film of all time, as well as the highest-grossing film in 2019.

Shinkai’s Your Name. debuted in Japan in August 2016 and has become the country’s fifth highest-grossing film, the third highest-grossing Japanese film, and the third-highest-grossing anime film.

Shinkai’s other works include 5 Centimeters Per Second, Voices of a Distant Star, She and Her Cat, The Place Promised in Our Early Days, The Garden of Words, and Children Who Chase Lost Voices.

Source: Comic Natalie