‘What Will You Do, Ieyasu?’: NHK’s Annual Taiga Drama Is The Biggest Japanese Primetime TV Series You’ve Never Heard Of

EXCLUSIVE: Improv icon Colin Mochrie (Whose Line is it Anyway?) will narrate a Canadian version of the eye-opening but heartwarming Japanese format Old Enough!, in which kids run errands on their own.

Taylor Swift‘s boyfriend is going to the Super Bowl!

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Netflix has picked up worldwide rights to “The Imaginary,” a currently-on-release Japanese animation film from producer Studio Ponoc. “Studio Ponoc is thrilled to bring our storytelling and innovative hand-drawn, hand-painted animated films to all audiences, and in particular to children and their families to enjoy together, around the world on Netflix,” said Nishimura Yoshiaki, Ponoc founder and former Studio Ghibli producer. The film is directed by Momose Yoshiyuki, who has credits on Ponoc’s 2017 title “Mary and the Witch’s Flower” and others on Ghibli’s “Spirited Away,” “Princess Mononoke” and “Porco Rosso.” Adapted from a novel by A.F. Harold, with a screenplay by Nishimura, the film “portrays the depths of humanity and creativity through the eyes of young Amanda and her imaginary companion, Rudger.

Legend Of Zelda theme park could be in the works after producer Eiji Aonuma was spotted in a behind-the-scenes video at Orlando’s Universal Studios.As it stands, the Mario-themed Super Nintendo World is open at both Universal Studios Japan and Universal Studios Hollywood, with further areas planned for Universal Studios Singapore and Universal Orlando Resort. A Donkey Kong expansion is also being built at Japan, but this new clip has fans thinking a Zelda world is on the cards.The video in question was released by Universal in an attempt to show the public what everyday life was like at its parks for employees, as well as teasing what the future had to offer.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Indie distributor Bitters End has finally set a theatrical release date in Japan for Christopher Nolan’s lauded “Oppenheimer” – after the Oscars. The film will arrive in Japanese cinemas on March 29, the company said on Thursday. That date is some two and a half weeks after the Oscars ceremony (March 10 in Los Angeles, March 11 in Japan), at which “Oppenheimer” has a strong chance of winning multiple awards. At the Oscars nomination event, earlier this week, “Oppenheimer” became the front-runner, collecting 13 nods, including best picture, best director and a trio of acting nominations.A post shared by 映画会社ビターズ・エンド (@bitters_end) Despite its critical and commercial success in cinemas around the world last year – it earned $952 million – the film is controversial in Japan.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief A Japanese court on Thursday announced the death sentence for Aoba Shinji, the man who burned down the Kyoto Anime studio in 2019 and killed 36 people. There was little doubt that Aoba, who himself was badly burned in the blaze, was the perpetrator and set the fire using gasoline. Shortly after the attack, at a press conference, the Kyoto police said that Aoba had unspecified mental health issues.

While in England, German director Wim Wenders was sandwiched between a press tour and a brief lunch when a member of his team walked into the restaurant to secretly signal across the room that he was nominated for his first feature film Oscar with Japan’s Best International Feature Film, Perfect Days. “Someone came in raising their thumb, which was the sign that we had agreed on, and no word was spoken because there were too many guests in the restaurant,” Wenders laughed while retelling the Tuesday nomination. “So, I knew then I could let that meal go a little cold. It was lovely because I had prepared myself to not expect anything. I had completely prepared myself to not be on the list so that I wouldn’t be disappointed. So [this nomination] was quite a surprise today.”

We don’t know about you, but this cold weather has got us feeling like our outfits need a little extra something to help us get through the day, and although we don’t want to sacrifice a great look in favour of keeping warm, there’s only so much a cosy coat can do. We know the power of layering not only helps trap in the heat but also means we have something to take off if the temperatures rise (or we head inside), but often wearing a tonne of different layers can end up feeling too bulky or make your clothes feel uncomfortably snug.That’s why this winter we’re all about adding some thin, lightweight thermal and base layers to our wardrobe to help maximise our warmth whilst still being almost invisible to those not in the know.

Studio Ghibli‘s animated adventure movie The Boy and the Heron is continuing to blaze a trail for anime, in Europe, Asia and North America.

EXCLUSIVE: Interactive animation studio Toonstar is launching an AI studio for digital creators following a strong response for its series with TikTok and YouTube star Parker James.

CHAI have announced that they’ll be breaking up following their current live tour.Formed in 2012, the Nagoya group – comprising vocalists Mana, Kana, Yuuki and Yuna – released four studio albums throughout their career: ‘Pink’ (2017), ‘Punk’ (2019), ‘ Wink’ (2021) and ‘CHAI’ (2023).CHAI are set to head out on the road next Sunday (January 28) for the Japanese leg of their ongoing ‘We The CHAI Tour!’, which is scheduled to conclude on March 12. See the full list of shows here .Taking to social media today (January 18), the band revealed that they will go their separate ways after completing the planned gigs.“First of all, we want to thank everyone for all of the support you give us! We are sad to let you know that, following our upcoming Japan tour, CHAI will eternalize NEO KAWAII (=parting ways as a band),” they I wrote in a statement.“To continue our journey of self-love, as CHAI have always said, and to continue to fulfill our own personal visions, we have decided to go our separate ways.

NCT, will make their debut next month.Today (January 18), NCT’s agency SM Entertainment announced that NCT WISH will make their long-awaited debut in February 2024. The new group will feature six members – Sion, Riku, Yushi, Jaehee, Ryo and Sakuya – who were previously confirmed through the reality show NCT Universe: Lastart.According to reports by Korea JoongAng Daily and Yonhap News Agency, NCT WISH will be based in both South Korea and Japan, through which they’ll conduct their global activates.

Chainsaw Man leads the field with a dominant 25 nominations for Crunchyroll‘s eighth annual Anime Awards, which be handed out in March. It will compete for the marquee Anime of the Year prize against Bocchi the Rock!, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba Swordsmith Village Arc, Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2, Oshi No Ko and Vinland Saga Season 2. 

Western television and anime localizers have recently come under fire for injecting “woke” language into English dubs not present in the original work, prompting some companies to implement artificial intelligence (AI) as a way of limiting human intervention or to remove them entirely.The use of AI in the industry is already well underway. On December 21, the official X account for “The Ancient Magus’ Bride” manga announced it would soon return with a simultaneous internal release in English using AI translation created by the Japanese company Mantra.In addition, Funimation, an American subscription video-on-demand service for anime, recently merged with the Sony Group Corporation-owned streaming service Crunchyroll.

Toho International’s sleeper hit Godzilla Minus One grossed an estimated $853k this weekend for a cume of $50.9 million at 605 locations in week seven as arctic blasts buffet much of the nation.

Godzilla Minus One is continuing to deliver a powerful punch!

Karen Idelson Though there are still those who view animation primarily as a kids or family form of entertainment, over the last year many of the most challenging, risky stories have been told by the modern masters of animation. Films like “Suzume,” “The Peasants” and “The Boy and the Heron” have all been lauded for taking on compelling stories that often attract more adult audiences or even becoming crossover hits that draw diverse viewers. Makoto Shinkai’s “Suzume” earned well over $300 million in international box office.

The Japanese House has been announced as the support act for The 1975‘s upcoming UK headline tour.Matty Healy and co. are due to embark on their ‘Still… At Their Very Best’ tour next month.

Japanese filmmaker Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s latest feature, Evil Does Not Exist, and the period action pic 12.12: The Day, from Korea, lead the nominations at this year’s Asian Film Awards. 

Andrew Scott and Paul Mescal are no strangers to the “internet boyfriend” phenomenon — a term used to describe a collective crush by social media users. And they are perfectly fine with being in a league that includes Timothée Chalamet, Pedro Pascal, and Oscar Isaac.