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No Longer Human Anime Wins at Italy's Future Film Fest
posted on by Egan Loo
The Future Film Festival in Italy announced on Monday that Morio Asaka's No Longer Human film won the festival's Platinum Grand Prize this year. As this year's festival jury, the comic and fantasy film expert Alberto Corradi, journalist and writer Stefano Masi, and historic illustration and essayist Paola Pallottino honored Asaka's adaptation of Osamu Dazai's original novel. The story follows a young man's deepening alienation from the rest of the world, despite his attempts to maintain a cheery facade.
Asaka originally directed his animated version of No Longer Human as four episodes for Madhouse's Aoi Bungaku television anime series. The four episodes were later combined into a theatrical film. The character designs of the anime were inspired by the novel illustrations by manga artist Takeshi Obata (Death Note, Hikaru no Go, Bakuman.)
Previous winners of the Platinum Grand Prize include Satoshi Kon's Tokyo Godfathers (2004) and Makoto Shinkai's 5 Centimeters Per Second (2008). The films Colorful and Symphony in August also competed this year, and the festival screened Arrietty the Borrower and TO out of competition.
Vertical will launch its North American release of Usamaru Furuya's manga adaptation of No Longer Human this September.
Source: Anime Anime Japan
Image © Aoi Bungaku Production Committee
Update: Typo fixed. Thanks, molibdaenum.
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