Last year the Gold Coast Film Festival had an almost unprecedented opportunity by having Japanese director Makoto Shinkai attend and première his latest feature film The Garden of Words a month before Japan.
While there may be no world premières during this years event, the festival is set to have a number of new anime films screen during the event ranging from three Australian firsts to a Ghibli classic as part of a dual-audio duo of screenings. With the event set to hold its opening night this coming Thursday, let’s take a quick look at what is on offer for anime fans during the event.
All screenings will be held at the Birch Carroll and Coyle cinemas at Pacific Fair – about a five minute walk from where Supanova is being held next weekend.
Laputa: Castle in the Sky
Japanese Screening – 3:00PM on April 5th, 2014
English Screening – 3:00PM on April 5th, 2014
Pazu, an engineer’s apprentice finds a young girl, Sheeta floating down from the sky wearing a glowing pendant. Together they discover both are searching for the legendary floating castle Laputa and vow to unravel the mystery of the luminous crystal around her neck. Their quest won’t be easy however. There are air pirates, secret agents and astounding obstacles to keep them from the truth – and from each other.
Bayonetta: Bloody Fate
Japanese Screening: 1:30PM on 12th April 2014
Ascending from video games to the silver screen, Bayonetta is here to kick some ass! After 500 years, the witch Bayonetta wakes to find herself stuck in a battle between angels, demons, and rival witch sects as she fights to regain her memory.
Anime Mirai
Japanese Screening: 3:30PM on April 12th, 2014
Anime Mirai is a collection of four short films commissioned by the Japanese Animation Creators Association to train the best upcoming animators under some of Japan’s best anime directors. The films include ‘Ryo’, ‘Little Witch Academia’, ‘Aruvu Rezuru’ and ‘Death Billiards’.
Naruto the Movie: Road to Ninja
Japanese Screening: 6:00PM on April 12th, 2014
Naruto is back on the big screen, but something is amiss in the Village of Leaf. Naruto and Sakura find themselves in a world shaped by their heart’s desires, and where there is no war…but all is not as it seems.
