The summer 2021 feature film season still feels tenuous when it comes to Japan but we do have a new anime film from Mamoru Hosoda with Belle. Working with Studio Chizu, it’s also known as Ryu to Sobakasu no Hime which translates as The Princess of Dragons and Freckles. Hosoda is directing it and working on the screenplay for it while being credited for the original work as well. It looks like this is another online world type of film where it looks to explore coming-of-age themes.
The film saw a July 16th, 2021 debut in Japan and it looks like it did pretty decently be bringing just over $8 million and some 600,000 tickets in its first three days, which amid the pandemic and all the tension of the Olympics there taken into consideration. With that in mind, the production has released a beautiful new key visual you can see below to celebrate.
GKIDS and Anime Limited have picked up overseas rights so far.
The previously announced cast members include:
- Kaho Nakamura as Suzu
- Ryo Narita as Shinobu
- Shota Sometani as Shinjiro
- Tina Tamashiro as Ruka
- Rira Ikuta as Hiroka
- Toshiyuki Morikawa as Justian
- Kenjiro Tsuda as Jelinek
- Mami Koyama as Swan
- Mamoru Miyano as Muitaro Hitokawa and Tokoraemaru
- Sachio Nakao as Hatanaka, a university lecturer
- Fuyumi Sakamoto as Okumoto, as a self-made farmer.
- Ryoko Moriyama as Yoshitani, a fisher and leader of the choir
- Yoshimi Iwasaki as Nakai, a doctor
- Michiko Shimizu, who runs a liquor store
- Koji Yakusho as Suzu’s Father
What’s extra fascinating with this film is that it looks like the character designs came from Jin Kim, who worked on numerous Disney productions with Frozen to Moana, and that there’s some great mutual respect between Hosoda and Kim and have wanted to work together for some time. This became possible after Mirai.
In addition to that, the project also collaborated with Cartoon Saloon out of Ireland and a London-based architect named Eric Wong to design the internet space for the film settings.
Plot Concept: Suzu is a 17-year-old high school student living in a rural village with her father. For years, she has only been a shadow of herself. One day, she enters “U,” a virtual world of 5 billion members on the Internet. There, she is not Suzu anymore but Belle, a world-famous singer. She soon meets with a mysterious creature. Together, they embark on a journey of adventures, challenges and love, in their quest to become who they truly are.
Previous promos and visuals:
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㊗️公開日決定✨
＼🎬『#竜とそばかすの姫』の
公開日が7月16日(金)に決定しました❗この夏、細田守監督渾身の最新作が
ついに、ベールを脱ぎます！！公開までお楽しみに❗#細田守#スタジオ地図 pic.twitter.com/p65EizB3QB
— 『竜とそばかすの姫』細田守最新作＠スタジオ地図 (@studio_chizu) May 14, 2021
