Photo/Illutration “Suzume no Tojimari” ((c) “Suzume no Tojimari” Film Partners)

Anime director Makoto Shinkai’s latest feature film, “Suzume no Tojimari” (Suzume’s door locking), will be theatrically released in autumn, distributor Toho Co. has announced.

It is Shinkai’s first film in three years following “Your Name.” (2016) and “Weathering With You” (2019).

His latest original story, a road movie, begins when Suzume, a 17-year-old girl who lives in a quiet town in the Kyushu region, meets a young man looking for a door.

They find an old door in ruins in the mountains. Soon after, other doors begin to open around the country, unleashing disasters. Suzume ends up trying to close the doors.

“I often feel that things have become more difficult to close than to start for this country faced with a declining population and an aging society,” Shinkai said at a news conference on Dec. 15, 2021.

The director also said he felt the need to make a story about finishing tasks left undone before moving on to find a new place.

Masayoshi Tanaka, who has worked with Shinkai and was key animation supervisor for Hideaki Anno’s “Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time,” is attached as character designer.

Kenichi Tsuchiya, who has worked on “Children Who Chase Lost Voices,” “The Garden of Words” and many other Shinkai films, is assigned the role of key animation supervisor.

Takumi Tanji, known for his work on “Your Name.,” “5 Centimeters Per Second” and other titles, is in charge of creating background art.

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