Releasing in 2025, Yoshitoshi Shinomiya is directing his original debut animated film, A New Dawn. Through beautiful visuals and a compelling narrative, tells the story of three young people and their connection to the Taitou Fireworks, a fireworks factory that’s about to close after conducting business for 330 years.
- Plot of A New Dawn
- Teaser Trailer
- Teaser Visual
- Two Main Voice Cast Members
A New Dawn is directed by Yoshitoshi Shinomiya, a painter who created background illustrations for animations films such as Garden of Words and Your Name, will be making his debut as a director of his first, original animated film. He was inspired to make this film after the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 impacted the Japanese landscape.
The Japanese title of A New Dawn is Hanarokusho ga Akeru Hi ni.
This film will be produced by Asmik Ace, a Tokyo-based production company, and France’s Miya Productions. Asmik Ace will distribute the film globally.
Staff members of the film, A New Dawn, include:
Composer – Shuta Hasunuma
Character designer – Utsushita
Art Director – Akiko Majima
Plot of A New Dawn
According to Crunchyroll.com the plot of A New Dawn is as follows:
The Obinata Fireworks Shop factory is getting prepared for an administrative action for confiscation tomorrow. It has been six years since Keitaro has been holed up in a closed-down factory creating fireworks by himself, chasing after an illusion of his father who vanished. It is a story about three young people who overcome the extreme weather conditions, disasters and environmental problems imposed on them and establish their own identities.
Teaser Trailer
Watch the teaser trailer for A New Dawn.
(Via: Asmik Ace)
In an article by Variety, “‘Your Name,’ ‘The Garden of Words’ Artist Yoshitoshi Shinomiya Makes Feature Directorial Debut With ‘A New Dawn’ (EXCLUSIVE)”, the film A New Dawn is discussed.
Variety describes A New Dawn as follows:
“A New Dawn” unwinds inside an inactive fireworks factory that is about to go administrative action. For the past four years, young Keitaro has lived inside the derelict structure, chasing the illusion of a father who vanished years before. The location used to be nestled in a lush forest, but the surrounding area has recently been redeveloped by the city, which covered the land with solar panels. Only a scant bit of greenery around the factory remains amongst the sea of panels. With the end of his makeshift home just around the corner, Keitaro commits to launching a firework his father left behind before the building is repossessed. He recruits his brother and a childhood friend to help close this chapter of his life and bring about a new dawn.
-Jamie Land, Variety
Teaser Visual
Here is the teaser visual for A New Dawn.
A New Dawn director, Shinomiya spoke to Variety about his inspiration behind the film:
One day [back in 2016], on the way to my workshop, my child looked out the car window and cried out, ‘I can see the sea!’ I realized that the solar panels my child saw through the trees actually looked like the surface of the water. At that moment, I thought, ‘This is a new scenery of Japan, and the next generation will capture it with this kind of sensitivity, though I saw such landscape as something negative.’ I felt that moment was very meaningful to me, and I believe it was the beginning of this project.
-Shinomiya to Variety
Two Main Voice Cast Members
Here are the voice actors for the two main characters in A New Dawn.
Hagiwara Riku voices Keitaro Tatewaki.
Hagiwara Riku is a Japanese actor who is best known for his roles in “My Beautiful Man” (Utsukushii Kare) and its sequel “My Beautiful Man: Eternal”, and the film, “12 Suicidal Teens”.
His other work includes:
- NHK morning drama, “Omusubi”, since 2024
- “Time Traveler’s Disease”, since 2021
- “Every Precious Moment”, since 2023
Furukawa Kotone voices Kaoru Shikimori.
Furukawa Kotone is a Japanese actress who is best known her roles in the films: Cloud (2024), Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy (2021), and Pending Train (2023).
Her other work includes:
- Winner of the 20th TAMA NEW WAVE Best Actress Award for her lead role in the short film, “Spring”
- Nominated for the 49th Hochi Film Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2024 in “Secrets I Can’t Tell”, directed by Hayato Kawai and “Cloud”, directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Closing Thoughts…
The animation in this film is absolutely stunning and beautiful! It’s no wonder when Yoshitoshi Shinomiya, who did beautiful background illustrations for Garden of Words and Your Name, is the director of this original, animated film! I’m highly anticipating the premiere and can’t wait to watch the story unfold!
A New Dawn is currently in production and plans to release in 2025.
Thanks as always for reading my blog,
Jessica Mohan
Works Cited:
https://www.crunchyroll.com/news/latest/2024/4/23/a-new-dawn-anime-film-hits-theaters-in-2025
https://variety.com/2024/film/global/yoshitoshi-shinomiya-a-new-dawn-animation-1235978405/
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