Mamoru Hosoda‘s Studio Chizu animation studio announced on Tuesday that Hosoda (The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Summer Wars,The Boy and The Beast, Mirai) is working on a new anime film titled Belle (Ryū to Sobakasu no Hime, literally “The Princess of Dragons and Freckles”). The film will open in Japan in summer 2021. Hosoda is directing and scripting the film, and is also credited for the original work. The film will mark Studio Chizu‘s 10th anniversary.
Studio Chizu‘s announcement noted that the film will portray an “ever-evolving online world” that takes place in an online world called “U,” which has 5 billion registered users. Studio Chizu mentions Hosoda’s past films where virtual words play a key role, such as Digimon Adventure: Children’s War Game and Summer Wars, as similar titles of exploring modern society, but based on the director’s “recent insights,” and specifically mentions themes of “coming of age, family ties, love between parents and children, friendship that transcends species, the links between our lives.”
Source: Press release
