The upcoming fantasy anime movie The Imaginary has received its first full-length trailer and a December 15 Japanese release date.
Befitting of its title, The Imaginary‘s trailer is packed with fantastical visuals and fantasy-adventure elements. There are multiple instances of epically changing/emerging environments, a sinister man whose mouth morphs into a terrifying, air-hoovering form, a shot of an astronaut running towards a very stylized, art project-like depiction of Earth, and a talking cat with heterochromia.
The trailer also provides a look at the movie’s main characters, including the imaginary boy Rudger and the girl who created him. Midway through the video, a voice tells Rudger, “Humans forget us. There’s no getting around that. There is but little time for you. Either you simply disappear, or come with me.”
In addition to the trailer and Japanese release date, the cast of the movie was also revealed. 15-year-old Kokoro Terada is voicing Rudger, while 18-year-old actress Rio Suzuki is voicing Amanda, the girl whose imagination gave life to the boy.
Other cast members include:
• Sakura Ando as Lizzie, Amanda’s mother
• Riisa Naka as Emily, a girl who Rudger encounters in The Town of Imaginaries
• Takayuki Yamada as Zinzan, the aforementioned cat
• Atsuko Takahata as Granny Downbeat, Amanda’s grandmother
• Issey Ogata as Mr. Bunting, the previously mentioned sinister figure. He is following Rudger for some reason.
The Imaginary is based on the 2014 novel by A. F. Harrold, which features illustrations from Emily Gravett. Animation production company Studio Ponoc describes the film as:
The main character of The Imaginary is Rudger. Born from a young girl’s imagination, Rudger is a boy no one can see who lives in a world where imaginations can live and be eaten by others. The Imaginary is an extraordinarily touching and beautiful hand-drawn fantasy film in which Rudger and his new friends in “The Imaginaries Town” embark on an adventure no one can see at the risk of the futures and fates of those they love.
The Imaginary was originally meant to be released in the summer of 2022, with a delay announced in March of that year. Yoshiyuki Momose (Ni no Kuni anime and Ghiblies director, Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom character designer) is directing the movie.
Source: Studio Ponoc YouTube channel
