News

Dallas Film Festival to Screen Dragon Age, Oblivion Island, 663114

The organizers of the 2012 Dallas International Film Festival have announced that the festival will be screening three anime titles: Dragon Age: Dawn of the Seeker, Oblivion Island and 663114. Dragon Age: Dawn of the Seeker will run at the Texas Theatre on April 20 and again at the Angelika 7 on April 22. Oblivion Island will be showing on Friday, April 14 at AMC NorthPark 15, and again on Sunday, April 22 at Angelika 8. 663114 will also have two screenings — one on Monday, April 16, and Tuesday, April 17 at Angelika Film Center. 2012 Dallas International Film Festival will run from April 12-22 in Dallas, Texas.

Dragon Age: Dawn of the Seekeris a prologue to the Dragon Age II game sequel. Director Fumihiko Sori (Ichi, Ashita no Joe, Ping Pong) and the studio Oxybot are working together after previously collaborating on Vexille - 2077 Isolation of Japan and To. In the Japanese-dubbed version, Actress Chiaki Kuriyama (Battle Royale, Kill Bill, The Sky Crawlers) will play the knight heroine Cassandra Pentaghast, actor Shosuke Tanihara (Vexille, The Sky Crawlers, Pokémon the Movie: Black - Victini and Reshiram) plays a mage named Regalyan D'Marcall, and Gackt (Shiki, Supernatural: The Anime Series, Sket Dance) plays a Knight-Commander. Dragon Age: Dawn of the Seeker opened in Japan last month, and Funimation will release the film in North America on May 29.

The computer-animated Oblivion Island follows a girl named Haruka as she discovers where all of our childhood keepsakes and memorabilia go. Creatures from a different dimension gather these trinkets and forgotten treasures as their owners grow up. With their booty, the creatures have built their own city called Oblivion Island. The film opened in Japan in August of 2009, and it had its international premiere at Spain's Sitges Film Festival in October 2009.

Isamu Hirabayashi's 663114 is a short but hard-hitting monologue of a 66-year-old cicada. The insect draws parallels between the catastrophes of Hiroshima and Fukushima and poses a fundamental question about the future of our planet. 663114 won the Noburou Oofuji Award at the Mainichi Film Awards last month. It ran at the 68th Venice Film Festival in September and at the 2011 Vancouver International Film Festival in October. The short then appeared at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival in January.

Thanks to Marc Hairston for the news tip