Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki’s latest film, The Boy and the Heronwill premiere at the Lumière festival in Lyon on October 17, two weeks before its French release, has learned 20 minutes Wednesday with the organizers.
It is the first film in ten years, and probably the last, from the director of the Spirited Away – released in 2001 and awarded the Oscar for best animated film.
The European premiere is due to take place on September 22, at the opening of the San Sebastian festival in Spain. Its release in France is scheduled for November 1st.
Released in July in Japan
Miyazaki, 82, founded Studio Ghibli in 1985 with director Isao Takahata, who died in 2018. He has directed a dozen feature films, including the famous Princess Mononoke, My Neighbor Totoro, Ponyo on the cliff or The wind picks up. In 2014, he received an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement.
The Boy and the Heron, released in July in its country of origin which will also be presented at the Toronto Film Festival in early September, takes place in Japan during the Second World War. A boy named Mahito leaves Tokyo with his father and moves to the countryside after the tragic death of his mother. There he meets a gray heron who takes him to a fantastic universe where he gradually discovers the mystery of his mother’s death and her family history.
The Lumière Institute of Lyon had organized in June and July, in anticipation of the release of the new film, a Miyazaki retrospective, presenting 11 of his feature films.