While Studio Ghibli’s Academy Award-winning film Spirited Away enchanted audiences across Japan and the U.S. in theaters back in the early 2000s, China has yet to feel that same enchantment until now, due to strained relations between the two countries. For 18 years, Chinese citizens who wanted to get their hands on Studio Ghibli films had to obtain bootleg copies or download pirated versions online.
However, following the release of My Neighbor Totoro in China in December 2018, Spirited Away will be making its debut in theaters for Chinese audiences on June 21st. It is surmised that the footage will be digitally remastered, much as it was for My Neighbor Totoro’s release. For those unfamiliar with Spirited Away, the synopsis is as follows:
In this animated feature by noted Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki, 10-year-old Chihiro and her parents stumble upon a seemingly abandoned amusement park. After her mother and father are turned into giant pigs, Chihiro meets the mysterious Haku, who explains that the park is a resort for supernatural beings who need a break from their time spent in the earthly realm, and that Chihiro must work there to free herself and her parents.
In preparation for the film’s release, four new posters have been released by Chinese artists Zao Dao and Huang Hai, who also created the poster for China’s My Neighbor Totoro theatrical release. Zao Dao’s posters depict Chihiro riding on Dragon Haku (with a variant poster in purple), and Huang Hai’s posters depict Sen (Chihiro’s amusement park identity) looking down at a much smaller Chihiro, along with various major and minor cast members painted onto the door screens as well as a reimagining of the submerged train track scene complete with No-Face, a hopping lantern, and Dragon Haku.
6月21日に中国で劇場公開が決定した
「千と千尋の神隠し」のポスターがとても美しい。 pic.twitter.com/vfABSNz8Oj— DIZ (@DIZfilms) June 14, 2019
It’s great to see China put their own artistic and cultural influence on these movie posters, as the posters for the original U.S. release were incredibly bland by comparison. Luckily for China, they may have even more Studio Ghibli films to look forward to and more posters to create if Spirited Away duplicates the grand success of My Neighbor Totoro’s release.
Source: SoraNews24
