Gkids Takes North America On Keiichi Hara’s ‘Lonely Castle In The Mirror’

Matt Grobar
Updated ·2 min read
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Gkids has snapped up North American rights to Keiichi Hara’s Lonely Castle in the Mirror, after serving as the distributor in the territory for his past animated features Summer Days with Coo and Miss Hokusai. The film based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Mizuki Tsujimura, featuring animation from A-1 Pictures, is slated for a theatrical release in both its original Japanese language and an all-new English dub this summer.

Reuniting Hara with collaborators including screenwriter Miho Maruo, composer Harumi Fuuki and artist Ilya Kuvshinov, Lonely Castle in the Mirror follows shy outcast Kokoro, who has been avoiding school for weeks when she discovers a portal in her bedroom mirror. She reaches through and finds herself transported to an enchanting castle where she is joined by six other students. And when a girl in a wolf mask explains that they have been invited to play a game, the teens must work together to uncover the mysterious connection that unites them. However, anyone who breaks the rules will be eaten by a wolf.

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Pic held its international premiere as the first Japanese animated selection of the Rotterdam Film Festival and was released in Japan in December, scoring a nomination for the Japan Academy Prize for Animation of the Year. Ami Touma, Takumi Kitamura, Sakura Kiryu, Rihito Itagaki, Naho Yokomizo, Minami Takayama, Yuki Kaji and Mana Ashida feature in the Japanese voice cast of the film produced by Hirotaka Aragaki and Kei Kishiyama.

“We are thrilled to be able to work again with director Keiichi Hara,” said Gkids President David Jesteadt. “His latest film is a deeply emotional story about the private struggles we all go through, and the small yet joyous connections with others that make life worth living. I can’t wait for North American audiences to join us on a trip to the Lonely Castle in the Mirror.”

A producer and distributor of award-winning and artist-driven animation celebrating its 15th anniversary, Gkids has notched a total of 12 Animated Feature Oscar nominations since its founding in 2008, with titles including The Secret of Kells, A Cat in Paris, Chico & Rita, Ernest & Celestine, The Tale of The Princess Kaguya, Song of the Sea, Boy and the World, When Marnie Was There, My Life as a Zucchini, The Breadwinner, Mirai and Wolfwalkers. The company also handles North American distribution for the famed Studio Ghibli film library, as well as the series Neon Genesis Evangelion, and hosts the Animation Is Film festival annually in Los Angeles.

The all-rights North American distribution deal for Lonely Castle in the Mirror was negotiated between Gkids and NTV.

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