Short Film Project 'Pursuing the Future' Launches First Two Films Completed (Japanese title: 未来への航路)

Bandai Namco Filmworks Inc. is pleased to announce the launch of the new short film project, “Pursuing the Future.”

Produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks, the project brings together six original 3DCG animated short films that showcase the latest technologies and creative ideas, with the aim of carrying the history of animation forward into the future.

Led by SUNRISE Studios, six of Japan's leading animation studios have come together for the project, including YAMATOWORKS and four other prominent studios. Each studio will create its own original animated short film. Under the shared theme of “the future,” the project seeks to make a major leap onto the global stage.

We are also pleased to announce that two of the six films have now been completed.

The first film is Dice with Demon, produced by SUNRISE Studios. The film is directed by Hidekazu O'Hara, who worked as a key animator on Katsuhiro Ōtomo's AKIRA and Hayao Miyazaki's Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. Inspired by Japan's famous classical illustrated scrolls, the film has been created as an original animated short.

The second film, from YAMATOWORKS, is Metafear, directed by Shuhei Morita, whose Possessions (Japanese title: Tsukumo) was nominated for the 86th Academy Awards in the Animated Short Film category. Character Design and Visual Design were created by Tatsuyuki Tanaka. The film is a fast-paced fantasy centered on a girl haunted by nightmares and the fears that take shape from them.

Created by some of Japan's most distinguished veteran animators and exceptionally talented creators, these two films represent a rare project that could only have been realized at this very  moment in time.

As for the remaining four films currently in production, participation by internationally acclaimed creators has already been confirmed. We hope audiences around the world will look forward to what is still to come.

Dice with Demon
(Japanese title: Haseo Sugoroku)

Heian-era Japan. Twilight. A rain-slicked pavilion where three noblemen drink to a chilling secret.
There, Ki no HASEO makes a confession: he played a high-stakes game with a demon to resurrect his late wife.
Is it a blessing, or a path to ruin?

Director: Hidekazu O'Hara

Teaser PV: https://youtu.be/SYKNSd1J1yc

Website: https://www.sunrise-inc.co.jp/shortfilmproject/works/dice-with-demon/

Metafear

A girl tormented by nightmares writes down her dreams and names them, hoping to never forget her fears. But one day, a nightmare she couldn't name transforms into a monster and spreads across the world, plunging it into chaos.

Director: Shuhei Morita
Character Design & Visual Design: Tatsuyuki Tanaka

Teaser PV: https://youtu.be/d37fxvu2S7s

Website: https://www.sunrise-inc.co.jp/shortfilmproject/works/Metafear/

“Pursuing the Future” Project official website: https://www.sunrise-inc.co.jp/shortfilmproject/