The official Oscars website just posted a blog which featured movies/shorts for Animated Feature Film category. There were a total of 25 features out of 7 are Anime movies or short films. Here is the list of all of the anime features submitted for Oscar 2018 race
Anime features for Oscars 2018 Race
The 91st Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 24, 2019, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood. ABC channel is selected to televise the show live in more than 225 countries worldwide. There is a total of 25 features selected for Oscars 2018 run in which 7 are Japanese anime movies. Here is the list of all of the feature films in alphabetical order:
Fireworks (Uchiage Hanabi, Shita kara Miru ka? Yoko kara Miru ka?)
Here is the basic story overview of the movie according to MAL:
It’s summer, and Norimichi Shimada and his friends want to know if fireworks look round or flat from the side. They forge a plan to find the answer at Moshimo Festival’s fireworks display. However, Norimichi finds himself conflicted when his classmate, Nazuna Oikawa, plans to run away from home and wants Norimichi to join her. When things go awry in their attempt to escape, a strange orb in Nazuna’s possession gives them another chance at staying together.
The film was released in Japan on August 18, 2017, and received mixed to positive reviews from critics, who praised the film for its music and animation.
The Laws of the Universe: Part 1 (Uchuu no Hou: Reimei-hen)
Here’s the basic synopsis of the anime movie according to MAL:
University students, Ray, Anna, Tyler, Halle, and Eisuke are enjoying college life and pursuing their dreams, but in reality, They have a secret mission, to fight against invading Reptilians from outer space. One day, Ray travels back in time to 330 million years ago on Earth, to find his missing friend Tyler who has fallen into a trap set by the evil alien, Dahar. During that time, Alpha, the God of the Earth, was planning to create a new civilization on Earth and invited Queen Zamza and her fellow Reptilian from the planet Zeta, to Earth.
What is the intention of Dahar? What will happen to Ray and Tyler?
And what is “the plan of the God of the Earth”?
Liz and Blue Bird (Hibike! Euphonium: The Story of Mizore and Nozomi)
The story follows two main characters of Hibike! Euphonium anime series, Mizore Yoroizuka and Nozomi Kasaki. Nozomi is a second-year student who used to play flute for the Kitauji High School’s Bass Band Club in her first year. She and most of the first year members quit the club due to a conflict between the first year members and then the third year members at that time.
Mizore is a second year at Kitauji High School. She is the only oboe player in the concert band. Mizore is a very silent and introverted girl, and despite seeming to be hard to interact with, she has friends like Natsuki Nakagawa, Yuuko Yoshikawa, Nozomi Kasaki. She likes practicing the oboe alone outside the classroom, and frequently arrives early to school hours before the start of her classes to practice. [Source: MAL]
Lu Over The Wall (Yoake Tsugeru Lu no Uta)
Here is the story overview of the anime according to MAL:
Kai, a young middle schooler, lives in Hinashi Town, a lonely fishing village, with his father and his grandfather, a sun-umbrella maker. He used to live in Tokyo, but after his parents divorced he moved back to his parent’s home town. Kai has trouble telling his parents the complicated feelings he has for them, and he’s lonely and pessimistic about his school life. One of his joys is uploading songs he writes to the internet.
One day, his classmates Kunio and Yuuho invite him to join their band, “SEIRÈN.” As he reluctantly follows them to Merfolk Island, their practice spot, they meet Lu, the mermaid girl. Lu sings merrily and dances innocently. As Kai begins to spend time with her, he starts to be able to say what it is that he’s really thinking.
But since ancient times, the people of Hinashi Town have thought that mermaids brought disaster. Something happens that puts a huge rift between Lu and the townspeople. And then, the town is in danger. Will Kai’s cry for the heart be able to save the town?
Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms (Sayonara no Asa ni Yakusoku no Hana wo Kazarou)
Here’s the story synopsis of the movie according to MAL:
The story begins with Maquia, who is from a family where all the members stop aging in their mid teens. She has no parents and, although her days are peaceful, she feels lonely. Their peace is shattered when an army invades, seeking the secret to her people’s immortality. Leilia, the most beautiful girl in her clan, is taken away, and the boy Maquia has secret feelings for disappears. Maquia is able to escape, but she loses her friends and her home. Wandering alone in the forest, she finds Erial, a baby boy who has lost his parents. The story follows the changing relationship between the two as Erial grows up and Maquia does not.
Mirai (Mirai of the Future or Mirai no Mirai)
Wikipedia defines the synopsis of the anime as:
Kun, a 4-year-old boy, comes across a magical garden where he meets his future sister Mirai who is now a teenage girl and has traveled back in time to see him. Their adventures together help Kun cope with learning how to live with a baby sibling.
The Night Is Short, Walk on Girl (Yoru wa Mijikashi Arukeyo Otome)
The story overviews, thanks to MAL, is:
On a mysterious night that seems to last for a year, an ordinary college student continues to chase one of his underclassmen, a girl with black hair—the girl of his dreams. Up until now, he has been relying on a simple plan, which is to calculatively bump into her every day while making it seem like a meaningful coincidence. However, his efforts remain futile as their relationship is not progressing at all.
Meanwhile, the black-haired girl believes that everything is connected by fate and endeavors to experience as many new things as possible, leaving it all for destiny to decide. While strolling along the lively streets of Kyoto, she discovers that the very beginning of her fateful journey—a book she had as a child—is currently being sold in a second-hand bookstore. Upon knowing this, the college student eyes another opportunity to run into her “by chance”: this time, he hopes to get the book before she does and finally grasp the thread of fate that could connect their hearts.
Nominations for the 91st Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, January 22, 2019. The Oscars 2018 race will be will be held on Sunday, February 24, 2019, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood.
Have you guys watched any of the features mentioned above? Because I haven’t. Mention down your thoughts about these movies in the comments section.