2021 Archives | Otaku No Culture

[Fantasia 2021] Lights! Camera! Pompo: The Cinéphile, A Movie Review

Pompo is an established producer of B-rated hits, but there’s just something missing. Can she be taken seriously?

Pompo: The Cinéphile Anime Film Delayed From March 19 To June 4 Due to COVID-19 - News - Anime News Network — **Avex Pictures**
Fantasia Film Festival 2021
North American Premiere
Cinéma Impérialt
Montreal, Quebec
**August 7, 1:00 pm**

Making a movie with Joelle Davidovich Pomponette (Hiroya Shimizu) is tough. She grew up with Peterzen, her grandad, in front of a big screen. He was a big time filmmaker back in the Golden age of Nyallywood, and he taught the young girl everything he knew. Pompo is an established producer of B-rated hits, but there’s just something missing. Can she be taken seriously? To say she’s Pompo: The Cinéphile is bold–which is also this anime film’s title.

For that matter, what about the precocious Gene Fini (Hiroya Shimizu), her production assistant? And how does Natalie Woodward (Rinka Ōtani) fit in? This aspiring actress had a rough go in her first audition, but that hasn’t dissuaded her from pursuing her dreams.

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The Vintage Tempest’s Top Five Animated Picks to see at Fantasia Fest 2021

Fantasia Fest is the event to keep tabs on about which animations will hit a theatre near you. Between this celebration of genre movies and Annecy, a festival of all things animation, the works featured also means which titles GKIDS & Shout! Factory is likely to pick up for release onto home video.

This year is rife with a lot of Japanese pieces I can’t wait to see. There’s even a very wicked selection of eight shorts in Things That Go Bump in the East 2021 Edition, which tops my list. The most promising is Juan-Diablo-Pablo; It’s a showcase of Asian inspired terror! Also, Circo Animato 2021 should never be missed. It showcases the up-and-coming talents.

On the regular front, I offer my top five picks from the twelve pieces being offered. The titles mentioned in the previous article aren’t included to prevent overlap. I’ll most likely see them all (schedule permitting), and this list is presented in alphabetical order.

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The Vintage Tempest’s Picks on What to See at Fantasia Fest 2021

Fantasia Fest 2021 is now half-and-half, offering in-person and online screenings! People living in Canada have the option to either travel to the East Coast for this genre film celebration or stay at home. The pandemic is still lingering around, and we don’t need real life zombies roaming the streets of Montreal.

Please be aware there’s limited seating options for the in-person events, especially James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad (also opening theatrically at the same time). These are bound to sell out fast as sales opened yesterday. Online, most screenings are on demand, with a select group scheduled to broadcast at a select time. These details will be noted as needed.

In this two-part article are my top picks on what to see. There’s a lot to explore, as this festival is very diverse and month-long! I’m including seminars since this year will be honouring Phil Tippitt with a Lifetime Achievement Award (event ticket here). There’ll also be a masterclass with this legend too, where he’ll explain the deeper roots of his art. The bonus is that the online discussion is free to view!

(to note, at time of writing, not every work has a promotional poster to go along with)

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It’s no ‘Brain Freeze’ that Montreal’s Fantasia’s Going Digital for a 2nd Year

Fantasia is proud to be opening its upcoming edition with the World Premiere of a major Québécois genre feature – Julien Knafo’s Brain Freeze.

The Fantasia International Film Festival will be celebrating its 25th edition as a virtual event accessible to audiences across Canada, with a dynamic program of scheduled screenings and premieres, panels, and workshops running from August 5 through August 25, 2021, once again using the leading-edge platform created by Festival Scope and Shift72.

As the summer approaches, the festival will be following advice from local health authorities, with the possibility of also adding a range of flagship physical events to the lineup.

Last summer’s virtual edition was a phenomenal success, screening to 85000 spectators and amassing a record amount of media coverage, with 475 accredited journalists from around the world covering Fantasia and its titles. The lineup showcased 104 features, a quarter of which were World Premieres, with the majority securing distribution out of the festival, with highlights including The Block Island Sound selling to Netflix, Come True to IFC, The Paper Tigers to WellGo USA, Anything for Jackson to Shudder, PVT Chat to Dark Star, and Minor Premise to Utopia.

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The Croods Come Alive with Virtual Paleontology

“Family Day with The Croods” will be a live event where families can meet scientist and Paleobiologist Dr. Danielle Fraser, who will teach participants about the saber-toothed cat and other prehistoric animals. Participants will also meet DreamWorks animator Ludovic Bouancheau, who will demonstrate how to draw a Croodimal from The Croods: A New Age in an exclusive tutorial. Bring your paper, pencils and eraser to draw along with the tutorial and bring the fan favourite Croods characters to life.

The Croods

In partnership with Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, the Canadian Museum of Nature will host “Family Day with The Croods,” based on the DreamWorks Animation family film The Croods: A New Age. The fun virtual event will be broadcast live on Family Day this Monday, February 15^th on the museum’s Facebook page at 2:30pm ET in English and 4:30pm ET in French. To join in the interactive programs, like the Canadian Museum of Nature Facebook page. The Croods: A New Age is available to own on Digital now and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-Ray™ and DVD February 23, 2021 from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

“Family Day with The Croods” will be a live event where families can meet scientist and Paleobiologist Dr. Danielle Fraser, who will teach participants about the saber-toothed cat and other prehistoric animals. Participants will also meet DreamWorks animator Ludovic Bouancheau, who will demonstrate how to draw a Croodimal from The Croods: A New Age in an exclusive tutorial. Bring your paper, pencils and eraser to draw along with the tutorial and bring the fan favourite Croods characters to life.

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How to Cinematically Rock Chinese New Year 2021

Nezha Reborn Movie Poster Chinese New Year is today and while it feels late when compared to previous year, that’s because this celebration follows the tides of the moon. A few new films from this country are attached to this time of the year but this time ’round not so much thematically.

Not to flog a dead horse (or ox, as this year represents), the pandemic has done enough to cause problems for the timeline when certain movies are released. Some are developed with the hashtag #blockbuster in mind, and others to show renewal.

Only three works in the fantasy front pop because there’s no more. I hoped for Deep Sea to debut, and it’s no doubt delayed. In what we can enjoy after their release in the homeland and in other territories by Well GO USA are:

Gods: Nezha Reborn
Feb 12-15

This modern update of Nezha sounds very promising, especially when the trailer takes on tones of Akira, Blade Runner and Mad Max! What can go wrong? If you’ve enjoyed White Snake from a few years ago, then Light Chaser Animation Studios and Warner Bros Eastern Division have a hit!

Synopsis: Three thousand years ago, both humans and gods faced a great catastrophe. Not wanting Nezha’s soul to escape the net of heaven and earth, they placed him into a cycle of constant reincarnation. However, the dragon clan’s grievances towards Nezha did not let up, and Li Yunxiang, who had the primordial spirit of Nezha, lived in fear for his life. With the East China Sea at stake, Yunxiang will have to fight alongside Nezha to defeat the dragons and become a hero. [© Far East Films]

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