Hotarubi no Mori e (2011)
Hotarubi no Mori e (2011)
Plot.
Where to Watch.
This Movie Is About.
Cast & Crew.
Izumi Sawada
Hotaru's Mother (voice)
Hayato Taya
Ryouta (voice)
Ayane Sakura
Hotaru Takegawa (voice)
Koki Uchiyama
Gin (voice)
Shinpachi Tsuji
Hotaru's Grandfather (voice)
Kanehira Yamamoto
Shadow (voice)
Masanori Machida
Tree Hand (voice)
Mami Uchida
Masked Child (voice)
Hiroki Goto
Lion (voice)
Kumiko Tashiro
Festival Child (voice)
Asami Imai
Masked Child (voice)
Takahiro Omori
Director / Screenplay
Yuki Midorikawa
Comic Book
Kazuhiko Seki
Editor
Yukihiro Shibutani
Art Direction
Yukio Kawasaki
Producer
Masanori Miyake
Producer
Makoto Nakamura
Producer
Hirofumi Sugawara
Producer
Kouichirou Natsume
Producer
Ayako Yokoyama
Producer
Toshio Hasegawa
Special Effects
Hiromi Miyawaki
Color Designer
Eiko Morikawa
Sound Effects
Yasutaka Ikeda
Assistant Editor
Tomomi Kyotani
Producer
Teruko Utsumi
Production Manager
Kazuyoshi Yaginuma
Key Animation
Akira Takata
Animation Director / Character Designer
Hitoshi Tamura
Director of Photography
Orie Tanaka
Key Animation
Risako Yoshida
Animation
Media.
Details.
Release DateSeptember 17, 2011
Original Name蛍火の杜へ
StatusReleased
Running Time45m
Content RatingG
Genres
Wiki.
Hotarubi no Mori e (Japanese: 蛍火の杜へ, lit. 'Into the Forest of Fireflies' Light') is a one-shot shōjo manga written by Yuki Midorikawa. It was published in the July 2002 issue of LaLa DX in Japan, and in July 2003 it was reprinted in a tankōbon short story collection of the same name, which included four romantic one-shot stories written by Midorikawa. Hotarubi no Mori e tells the story of a young girl named Hotaru and her friendship with Gin, a strange young man wearing a mask, who she meets at the age of six in a mountain forest near her grandfather's country home. Hotaru learns that her friend is supernatural and that touching Gin will cause him to disappear forever. Hotaru returns every summer to spend time with Gin, and their relationship matures as both struggle with its limitations. The inspiration to write the story came suddenly to Midorikawa, who immediately drew the manga—a process that went smoothly despite some initial conflicting elements. Hotarubi no Mori e is considered a starting point for Midorikawa's best-known work, Natsume's Book of Friends.
A 44-minute anime film with the same title was produced in 2011 at the anime studio Brain's Base and directed by Takahiro Omori. The film starred Japanese voice actors Ayane Sakura and Kōki Uchiyama, and its soundtrack included music by Makoto Yoshimori. The film maintained a strong following for months in Japan after its opening on September 17, 2011. The European premiere of Hotarubi no Mori e was on October 8, 2011, at the Scotland Loves Animation festival, where it won the Jury Prize. It was screened at the Leeds International Film Festival, Anime Contents Expo and Anime Expo convention, and also won the Animation Film Award at the 66th Annual Mainichi Film Awards.
The anime was released on Blu-ray Disc (BD) and DVD in Japan on February 22, 2012. An additional story related to the original manga and anime film, titled Hotarubi no Mori e Tokubetsuhen (蛍火の杜へ 特別編), was released in a keepsake edition of the manga 12 days prior to the release of the anime. Both the keepsake edition manga and the limited edition BD ranked No. 13 on Japan's Oricon sales chart shortly after their release. Sakura reported experiencing a strong emotional reaction to the story while recording the voice of Hotaru, and Midorikawa acknowledged that the story had a positive impact on her career. Reviewers universally praised the anime film for its beauty, simplicity, and tenderness, likening it to the works of Hayao Miyazaki of Studio Ghibli and Makoto Shinkai. There were few criticisms, most commonly focusing on its short length.