Hit anime ‘Mirai’ is coming to Korea

“Mirai” is a coming-of-age Japanese anime film that shows time travel through the eyes of a young boy named Kun, who has a newborn sister named Mirai.

The film has gained international acclaim and is set to hit theaters in Korea on Jan. 16.

Directed by Mamoru Hosoda, best known in Korea for “The Boy and the Beast” (2015) and “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time” (2006), his latest title was inspired by his own family.

“I made this movie based on my own children and family,” said Hosoda at a press event held in central Seoul yesterday. “I wondered how the first child would accept his younger sister as part of the family. Though it seems like a story about a small [nuclear] family, it also includes the elements of bigger family, and shows how their lives connect through time.”

The movie premiered at Directors’ Fortnight, an independent section held parallel to the Cannes Film Festival, in May. It has been nominated for the Golden Globes next month under the category Best Animated Feature Film.

“I was surprised that [‘Mirai’] became the first Asian animation to be nominated at the Golden Globes,” the director said. “Unlike Hollywood movies, there is neither a hero nor a disaster or romance [in ‘Mirai’], so I naturally thought my film would be excluded [from awards in the United States.]”

The director explained that the key message he hoped to deliver was the value of everyday life.

“I think I believe that young people are being suppressed in certain aspects, so they tend to believe fantasy in movies is a lot more entertaining than real life.” The director added, “‘Mirai’ is the opposite. By going through a fantasy experience, [the main character] realizes the value of an everyday life. If everyone admires things separate from daily routines, society would be devastated.”

“Mirai” was first screened in Korea during the Busan International Film Festival in October.

By Jin Min-ji