Japanese casual wear brand Uniqlo has announced on their Facebook page on Saturday that they will release new graphic “UT” T-shirt designs featuring the well-known anime director Makoto Shinkai in the Philippines.
The UT shirts, which will feature designs from Shinkai’s hit anime film your name. (君の名は。) and his latest work Weathering with You (天気の子), is set to be sold first at the opening of their latest branch in Westgate Filinvest Alabang in Muntinlupa City on Friday, August 16.
The “Makoto Shinkai Film Collection” will eventually be made available in all branches of the apparel brand nationwide starting Monday, August 19, just days before the local screening of Weathering With You.
The apparel brand’s local branch has yet to reveal the T-shirt designs that will be sold in the country, but it is expected to be the same designs that are being sold in other countries.
Local film distributor Pioneer Films previously confirmed that they will screen Makoto Shinkai’s latest work, Weathering With You, in Philippine cinemas.
Theater chain SM Cinema has since listed the anime film’s release date for Wednesday, August 21.
The film distributor has confirmed to Anime Pilipinas that the date is the scheduled release date, and the company also says that they are finalizing details for a possible advanced screening.
High school student Hodaka leaves his home on an isolated island and moves to Tokyo, but he immediately becomes broke. He lives his days in isolation, but finally finds a job as a writer for a shady occult magazine. After he starts his job, the weather has been rainy day after day. In a corner of the crowded and busy city, Hodaka meets a young woman named Hina. Due to certain circumstances, Hina and her younger brother live together, but have a cheerful and sturdy life. Hina also has a certain power: the power to stop the rain and clear the sky. (Synopsis from Anime News Network)
Makoto Shinkai, who created and directed the 2016 romantic fantasy drama anime film your name., has also been credited as the creator, director and screenwriter of the latest film.
Masayoshi Tanaka, who also worked on the highly-popular anime film, was again in charge of character designs.
Atsushi Tamura, who worked in Studio Ghibli’s award-winning anime film Spirited Away, is the animation director, and The Garden of Words art director Hiroshi Takiguchi is in charge of the film’s art direction, which was produced by CoMix Wave Films and distributed by TOHO.
The anime film starred Nana Mori, who played “Runa Horibe” in the highly-popular live-action series Mr. Hiiragi’s Homeroom, will portray the character “Hina Amano” and Kotaro Daigo as “Hokoda Morishima”.
They are also joined by a star-studded voice casts, including Shun Oguri, Tsubasa Honda, Chieko Baisho, Sakura Kiryu, Sei Hiraizumi, and Yuuki Kaiji.
