‘The Imaginary’ Trailer: Friends Real and Imagined are Explored in New Yoshiyuki Momose Animated Film from Netflix

Studio Ponoc’s The Imaginary portrays the depths of humanity and creativity through the eyes of young Amanda and her imaginary companion, Rudger, a boy no one can see, imagined by Amanda to share her thrilling make-believe adventures. But when Rudger, suddenly alone, arrives at The Town of Imaginaries, where forgotten Imaginaries live and find work, he faces a mysterious threat.

Directed by Yoshiyuki Momose (Modest Heroes, Tomorrow’s Leaves) and produced by two-time Academy Award nominee Yoshiaki Nishimura (The Tale of The Princess Kaguya, When Marnie Was There), the groundbreaking hand-drawn animation of The Imaginary is heightened by first-of-their-kind techniques of light and shadow. The Imaginary is based on the beloved and award-winning novel of the same name by A.F. Harrold and illustrated by Emily Gravett (Bloomsbury Publishing).

The English-language voice cast features Louie Rudge-Buchanan (Rudger), Evie Kiszel (Amanda), Hayley Atwell (Lizzie), Sky Katz (Emily), Emmy Award nominee Jeremy Swift (Mr Bunting), Kal Penn (Zinzan), Emmy Award nominee LeVar Burton (The Old Dog), Jane Singer (Granny Downbeat), Ruby Barnhill (Aurora), Roger Craig Smith (Snowflake), Courtenay Taylor (Cruncher-of-Bones), and Miles Nibbe (John).

The film’s main theme song “Nothing’s Impossible” is performed by A Great Big World featuring Rachel Platten.

The Imaginary will have its premiere at the Annecy Film Festival on June 14 and be released globally July 5 on Netflix. Here is the trailer.

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Erik Anderson

Erik Anderson is the founder/owner and Editor-in-Chief of AwardsWatch and has always loved all things Oscar, having watched the Academy Awards since he was in single digits; making lists, rankings and predictions throughout the show. This led him down the path to obsessing about awards. Much later, he found himself in film school and the film forums of GoldDerby, and then migrated over to the former Oscarwatch (now AwardsDaily), before breaking off to create AwardsWatch in 2013.

He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Hollywood Critics Association (HCA) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.

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