Image courtesy of Shochiku Co. © Laughing Under the Clouds Gaiden Film Partners

Source: Shochiku Co., Ltd. Official Site: donten-anime.jp (Japan)

A SCIFI JAPAN EXCLUSIVE

Poster for the first film. Image courtesy of Shochiku Co. © Laughing Under the Clouds Gaiden Film Partners

Distributor Shochiku Co. has provided SciFi Japan with a preview of their new film trilogy, LAUGHING UNDER THE CLOUDS GAIDEN (????????? ?????????, Donten ni Warau Gaiden Ketsubetsu Yamainu no Chikai). Based on Kemuri Karakara`s popular manga, the anime will be released as three 60 minute long movies, with the first chapter opening in cinemas on December 2nd. LAUGHING UNDER THE CLOUDS GAIDEN features animation by WIT Studio, the studio behind the TV anime series ATTACK ON TITAN and KABANERI OF THE IRON FORTRESS. SYNOPSIS At the end of the Samurai era (Edo) the new Meiji government is founded in Japan. Three young brothers -- Tenka, Soramaru and Chutaro -- are the guardians of Kumou shrine who fight to save the country from demons. Tenka convenes the Yamainu squad 11 years before the resurrection of Orochi, which happens once every three centuries, in order to eradicate the giant snake demon. In addition to Tenka, the squad includes Sosei and Kiiko... however, an incident results in Tenka heading in a different direction from his comrades. One year after the great battle against Orochi, the truth behind the curse and the cause of the death of the Kumo brothers` parents are revealed for the first time... CREDITS Japanese Theatrical Release Date: December 2, 2017 Running Time: 60 Minutes Cast Tenka Kumo: Yuichi Nakamura Soramaru Kumo: Yuki Kaji Chutaro Kumo: Tsubasa Yonaga Sosei: Kosuke Toriumi Seiichiro Takamine: Hiroki Yasumoto Kiiko Sasaki: Sayaka Ohara Ashiya Mutsuki: Yuki Fujiwara Zenzo Inukai: Takahiro Fujiwara Chenran Shi: Hiroshi Iwasaki Rakucho Takeda: Hiro Shimono Hirari: Kenichi Suzumura Botan: Rina Sato Nishiki: Mamiko Noto Shirasu Kenjo: Takahiro Sakurai Staff Director: Tetsuya Wakano Producer: Yoshimasa Okunaga Original Story: Laughing Under the Clouds Gaiden by Kemuri Karakara (Published by Mag Garden) Series Composition: Eiji Umehara Storyboards: Eiji Umehara Character Designs: Kii Tanaka Chief Animation Director: Kii Tanaka Action Animation Director: Koichi Usami Animation Directors: Kenji Fujisaki, Shinichi Nozaki, Takuma Ebisu, Natsuko Suzuki Sound Director: Shoji Hata Sound Production: Sound Team Don Juan Music: Yutaka Yamada Music Production: Shochiku Music Publishing Production Companies: Shochiku, Production I.G, Kinoshita Management Animation Production: WIT Studio Distributor: Shochiku Home Entertainment & Licensing Division © 2017 “Laughing Under the Clouds Gaiden” Film Partners

Image courtesy of Shochiku Co. © Laughing Under the Clouds Gaiden Film Partners

Image courtesy of Shochiku Co. © Laughing Under the Clouds Gaiden Film Partners

Image courtesy of Shochiku Co. © Laughing Under the Clouds Gaiden Film Partners

Title treatment courtesy of Shochiku Co. © Laughing Under the Clouds Gaiden Film Partners

About Shochiku Co., Ltd.

Shochiku traces its origins to 1895 when Takejiro Otani presented his first stage play. They also produced the first color motion picture in Japan, and have expanded into TV dramas, video contents, Kabuki presentation, theater operations, and real estate. The company has become a symbol of enduring tradition as the exclusive promoter of the Kabuki theater in Japan as well as widely known as the creator of the world’s longest-running feature film series TORA-SAN. The company is making all possible efforts to develop business in various fields, including multimedia and co-productions, across generation, national, and cultural borders.