Animation Is Film Festival To Open With Ghibli’s ‘The Boy And The Heron’

Animation Is Film recently revealed that its upcoming annual festival will open with the latest film from Studio Ghibli, Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy and the Heron and will close with Netflix’s Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget. The festival, which will be held October 18-22 in Hollywood, will also host a screening of Dreamworks Animation’s new film, Trolls Band Together, ahead of its November release.

“Animation Is Film is not just the name of our festival, it is its mission,” said Matt Kaszanek, the executive director of AIF. “New films from Studio Ghibli and Aardman are seismic cinematic events, and a reason for movie lovers of any medium to rejoice. Joining these titles is a collection of some of the most audacious, genre-defying, and critically acclaimed films of the year. We are so proud to present them in Los Angeles.”

The docket in the competition section is fierce; Art College 1994 from China, Chicken For Linda! From France/Italy, The Concierge and Phoenix: Reminiscence of Flower from Japan, Mars Express from France, Robot Dreams (Spain/France, Sirocco And The Kingdom Of The Winds from Belgium/France, and The Summer from South Korea will all compete.

Also on the schedule is a new short film from Sony, The Spider Within: A Spider-Verse Story, and several other short films. There will also be a student section, showcasing the films of students from California Institute of the Arts; University of Southern California; California State University, Long Beach; and California State University, Fullerton.