Official selection
International Film Festival Rotterdam 2021
Annecy International Animation Film Festival 2021
Director
Yusuke Hirota
Writer
Akihiro Nishino
Cast
Mana Ashida, Shingo Fujimori, Eiko Koike, Masataka Kubota, Jun Kunimura, Shinosuke Tatekawa
contact
Kiyuki Inc.
“A masterpiece of animation full of surprise and discovery... a dazzling spectacle”
– Reiko Watanabe, NIPPON.COM
Walled in and crammed full of smoke-belching chimneys, Chimney Town is nobody’s idea of paradise, but it’s home to young chimney sweep Lubicchi, whose father Bruno has disappeared. Bruno was a kamishibai (“paper theatre”) storyteller who would speak rapturously of what lay beyond the perpetual pall of smoke over Chimney Town, of the beautiful stars out there. The other citizens dismissed these celestial notions as nonsense. Lubicchi still clings to the hope they hold, and for that, he’s an outcast. Unseen by any, however, something shiny has fallen from the sky on Halloween Night, and it has given life to a strange fellow made entirely of garbage. Shunned by most, the garbage man befriends Lubicchi , and an incredible adventure awaits the two of them…
Adapted from the storybook by popular Japanese comedian Akihiro Nishino, POUPELLE OF CHIMNEY TOWN is a heartfelt rollercoaster ride through a nonstop cavalcade of eye-popping visual delights. Nishino’s tale is brought to life by the cutting-edge animation talent at STUDIO4ºC, with veteran CG animator Yusuke Hirota in the director’s chair. Fantasia regulars have seen Hirota’s work in the STUDIO4ºC films HARMONY and TEKKON KINKREET. POUPELLE recalls the latter in its dizzying, dynamic dash through a crooked, cluttered urban landscape. Hats off in particular to character designer Atsuko Fukushima, whose résumé includes such anime essentials as NEO-TOKYO, ROBOT CARNIVAL and GENIUS PARTY. A classic of fantastic family animation has arrived, that’s clear enough to see! – Rupert Bottenberg
Showings
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