Studio Ghibli had its new release out last year with Aya to Majo, which is based on the novel Earwig and the Witch by Diana Wynne Jones, whose previous work of Howl’s Moving Castle was handled by Studio Ghibli. The film ended up getting shown on NHK at the end of the year but never had a theatrical release because of the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s now being corrected as a theatrical release has been rescheduled for August 29th, 2021. It was planned for a spring debut to get it out there but the large wave of infections at that time pushed a lot of films off and this one remained off-schedule until now.
The project has Goro Miyazaki directing it while Hayao Miyazaki is listed as working on the planning and development. Toshio Suzuki is, once again, producing. Keiko Niwa and Emi Gunji wrote the screenplay for it with Katsuya Kondo adapting the designs from Miho Satake’s original novel.
The Japanese cast includes Shinobu Terajima, Etsushi Toyokawa, Gaku Hamada, and Kokoro Hirasawa.
GKIDS announced in July 2020 that they’ve picked up the North American rights to the film with updates to come in the future. The intention is to release it in theaters in North America in 2021.
Check out the US official site.
Plot Concept: Not every orphan would love living at St. Morwald’s Home for Children, but Earwig does. She gets whatever she wants, whenever she wants it, and it’s been that way since she was dropped on the orphanage doorstep as a baby. But all that changes the day Bella Yaga and the Mandrake come to St. Morwald’s, disguised as foster parents. Earwig is whisked off to their mysterious house full of invisible rooms, potions, and spell books, with magic around every corner. Most children would run in terror from a house like that . . . but not Earwig. Using her own cleverness—with a lot of help from a talking cat—she decides to show the witch who’s boss.
