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Live-Action Kodomo wa Wakatte Agenai Film Previews Magical Girl Anime Segment in Video
posted on by Rafael Antonio Pineda
Nikkatsu began streaming a "special video" for the live-action film of Rettō Tajima's Kodomo wa Wakatte Agenai manga on Wednesday. The video features a segment from the film's in-story anime "Mahō Sakan Shōjo Buffalo Koteko" (Magical Plastering Girl Buffalo Koteko). The video also features an ending credits sequence and song that will not appear in the film. Miyu Tomita performs the song "Sakan no Kokoro de" (With a Plasterer's Heart).
In the live-action film's story, protagonist Minami Sakuta's interests include the magical girl anime "Mahō Sakan Shōjo Buffalo Koteko" (Magical Plastering Girl Buffalo Koteko), which the film's anime segment recreated. Katsuya Kikuchi (The Royal Tutor, Idol Memories) directed the segment at Typhoon Graphics. Rena Okuyama (The Royal Tutor, Sengoku Night Blood) designed the characters. Chikako Yokota (Love Stage!!, The Seven Deadly Sins: Wrath of the Gods) was the sound director, and Takashi Sakurai (Digimon Adventure tri. films, Persona 3 the Movie #1 Spring of Birth) was the producer.
Miyu Tomita stars as Koteko in the anime segment. The segment's other cast members include Daisuke Namikawa (Count Cement), Takahiro Sakurai (Mortar), Tatsuhisa Suzuki (Concretarō), and Shō Hayami (Prince Shōtoku).
The film will have an advance screening at Theatre Shinjuku on August 13, before opening nationwide in Japan on August 20.
The story of Kodomo wa Wakatte Agenai centers on second-year high school student Minami Sakuta, who is a member of the swimming club. She meets Shōhei Moji, a member of the calligraphy club, on their school's rooftop. The pair set off on a quest to find Minami's biological father, who went missing when she was very young.
Moka Kamishiraishi is starring as Minami, and Kanata Hosoda is playing Moji. Other cast members include Yūdai Chiba as Moji's older brother, Yuki Saitō as Minami's mother, and Etsushi Toyokawa as Minami's biological father.
Shūichi Okita is directing the film, and Mitsuhiko Fujiki (Otona no Ikkyū-san, Nandaka Velonica) is writing the script. Amuse is credited with planning and production coordination. kensuke ushio (A Silent Voice, Liz and the Blue Bird) is composing the music. Office Shirous is handling production, and Nikkatsu Corporation is distributing the film.
Tajima's original manga ran in Kodansha's Morning magazine from March to July 2014. Kodansha released two compiled book volumes in September 2014. The manga ranked second behind Akiko Higashimura's Kakukaku Shikajika in the Manga Taisho awards in 2015.
