Tayyaba
Hayao Miyazaki’s long-awaited final film, How Do You Live?, is set to receive an Imax release in Japan on Friday. The film, which is based on a novel of the same name, has been shrouded in secrecy, with Ghibli asking fans to experience it with no previous opinion of it. Here’s what we know:
Where will this film be available?
How Do You Live? will be the first Studio Ghibli film to release in Imax. The film will be shown in all it’s glory at Imax theaters in Japan, as well as in other premium formats such as Dolby Atmos, Dolby Cinema, and DTS:X. This is a major coup for Imax, as Ghibli films are some of the most popular and critically acclaimed animated films ever made. The film is still without a release date outside of Japan, so global viewers will have to wait a little longer. How Do You Live? is set to be animation legend Hayao Miyazaki’s final film, which makes it even more exciting.
What is ‘How Do You Live?’ about?
Despite the worldwide excitement for the upcoming release of How Do You Live?, remarkably little is known about the film itself. The film’s lead producer, Toshio Suzuki (also known as Hayao Miyazaki’s right-hand man), has said that the studio will release no trailers or promotional materials ahead of the release. He has asked fans to see the film with no preconceptions, and to experience it as Miyazaki intended. Aside from that, Suzuki believes that moviegoers secretly want to be surprised by films, and that the traditional marketing methods of Hollywood often spoil the experience.
Studio Ghibli has described this Miyazaki film, How Do You Live?, as a “grand fantasy” loosely inspired by the 1937 novel of the same name by Japanese author Genzaburo Yoshino. The novel is a coming-of-age story about a young boy who is struggling to find his way in the world after the death of his father. The studio has only released one poster for the film (shown above), which is also rather cryptic. Aside from that, nothing else has been revealed including the plot, the voice cast, and even the setting.