Japanese Director’s Anime Film ‘Mirai’ Gets Historic Oscar Award Nomination

January 24, 2019

Anime is making its return at the Academy Awards this year with the nomination of director Mamoru Hosoda’s film “Mirai” for the “Best Animated Feature Oscar.”

Hosoda, the visionary filmmaker behind “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time,” “Wolf Children,” and “The Boy and the Beast,” among others, has achieved something remarkable; Mirai is the first ever non-Studio Ghibli anime to be nominated.

After steadily appearing in the 2013 (“The Wind Rises”), 2014 (“The Tale of the Princess Kaguya”), and 2015 (“When Marnie Was There”) Oscar ceremonies, Japanese animated films have been noticeably missing from the nominations for the Best Animated Feature Film award in the last couple of years, with Disney and Pixar dominating the category.

“Mirai,” titled “Mirai no Mirai” (Mirai from the Future) in Japan, is facing tough competition with co-nominees “Incredibles 2” directed by Brad Bird, “Isle of Dogs” by Wes Anderson, “Ralph Breaks the Internet,” by Rich Moore and Phil Johnston, and “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” by Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman.

Mirai was released in Japan in July of last year before heading to U.S. theaters in November, Soranews24 reports.

The film, which features a teenage girl who travels back to the past and meets her older brother when he’s still a toddler, continues the director’s affinity for stories that focus on family dynamics.

The Academy Awards ceremony will be held on February 24 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California.

Featured image via YouTube / Madman

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