Hayao Miyazaki’s latest film made history by becoming a huge box office hit in Japan with practically no promotion. Now, Studio Ghibli’s The Boy and the Heron is gearing up for three global premiere events in prestigious film festivals.
Before the film’s wide release in the US and Europe, it was revealed that the latest (and possibly last) Miyazaki-directed movie will premiere in three film festivals – two in North America and one in Europe.
While anime movies getting film festival premieres is nothing new, The Boy and the Heron’s case of having three premieres makes it stand out.
Hayao Miyazaki Makes History With Three Major Film Festival Premieres
Over the past years, there have been several notable anime movie premieres in major film festivals. For instance, there’s Makoto Shinkai's Suzume which was part of the Berlin Film Festival 2023’s main competition.
Looking back to previous years, Masaaki Yuasa’s Inu-Oh and Mamoru Hosoda’s Belle premiered in Cannes and Venice, respectively. Though most of these films only premiered in one or two Western festivals.
That is not the case with The Boy and the Heron (or How Do You Live? in Japan) as the film will premiere in three major festivals within just weeks of each other.
Most recently, the film was confirmed to get its US premiere at the New York Film Festival 2023 (NYFF) in late September.
Previously, the film was confirmed to open at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). On top of this, it was also confirmed to open at the San Sebastián Film Festival in the Basque Country in Spain.
Opening in three big festivals is unprecedented, but if there’s anyone to get an exception, it’s Hayao Miyazaki. After all, he is arguably the most renowned anime filmmaker in the world.
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The Boy and the Heron North America and Europe Premiere Dates
The Boy and the Heron’s first international premiere will happen at TIFF on September 7. Miyazaki’s film will serve as the opening movie of the event.
After this, the movie will then be screened at the San Sebastián Film Festival on September 22. This effectively serves as the film’s European premiere.
Finally, the movie will be shown in the US for the first time at NYFF 2023 which will take place from September 29 to October 15.
Soon, The Boy and the Heron will be officially released in US cinemas by GKIDS. There’s no word yet on a specific release date, though it’s confirmed to release within 2023.
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