Concept art from Weathering with You by Makoto Shinkai. (Image via Asahi)

'Weathering with You' goes for Oscar 2020

Alfonsus Adi Putra
Sports & Culture
TV & Film
Aug 27, 2019
58272
JAPAN - A Japanese animation movie, “Weathering with You”, by Makoto Shinkai, got the honor to represent Japan in the upcoming 2020 Oscar’s “Best International Film” category. The decision was made by Motion Pictures Producers Association of Japan (Eiren) on Monday.

A sequel to Shinkai’s “Your Name”, “Weathering with You” has hailed more than US$94 million from Japanese screening alone, and passed the committee consisting of seven film directors, scriptwriters, and critics for Oscar’s category.

Released on 19 July, “Weathering with You” succeeded in overthrowing “Hobbs & Shaw” which had been reigning over the Japanese box office for three consecutive weeks. In three days of its release, the animation gained US$15.3 million.

However, “Weathering with You” still has a long way to go to snatch the first place from “Your Name” at US$361 million. “Your Name” toppled Hayao Miyazaki’s “Spirited Away” as the highest-grossing Japanese film in history in 2017.

“Weathering with You” had to wait for 3 years since “Your Name” which was released in 2016. The plot revolves mainly about a tear-jerking love story between a runaway boy, Hodaka Morishima (voiced by Kotaro Daigo), with a girl, Hina Amano (voiced by Nana Mori), who turned out being capable of clearing the rainy weather. An acclaimed Japanese actor, Shun Oguri, also lent his voice in the film.

A classic touch from Makoto Shinkai, “Weathering with You” is filled with Japanese ancient superstition and fantasy. The scoring was also done marvelously by Radwimps, who also did the scoring for “Your Name”. For “Weathering with You”, Radwimps invited Toko Miura, an uprising 22-year-old Japanese female singer; hence, the “Grand Escape” was born.

The animation movie was also seen as a strong start for Daigo and Mori, both being newcomers in the voice-acting industry with Daigo being 18-year-old and Mori being 17-year-old. In fact, “Weathering with You” was their first voice-acting animation career.

Over two decades ago, Japan tried its luck by sending the renowned Hayao Miyazaki’s “Princess Mononoke” for the entry in 1997. However, the animation failed to bring the trophy home. In 2009, Japan grabbed the “Best Foreign Language Film” through Yojiro Takita’s “Departures”. In 2018, Hirokazu Kore-eda’s “Shoplifters” won 2018 Cannes’ Palme d’Or and managed to secure a place in the 2019 Oscar nomination.

“Weathering with You” is also going to face a tough opponent from South Korea, “Parasite” directed by Bong Joon-ho, which won 2019 Cannes’ Palme d’Or. Let’s wait for the fight on the 92nd Academy Award which is going to be held on 9 February 2020.

Source: https://www.indiewire.com/2019/08/japan-anime-oscar-contender-makoto-shinkai-1202168666/

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