Into the Forest of Fireflies' Light

Synopsis

While spending summer vacation at her grandfather's house, six-year-old Hotaru Takegawa gets lost in a forest said to be haunted by spirits. In her moment of despair, a mysterious masked boy named Gin appears and offers to lead her out. Though grateful for his company, Hotaru's attempts to get closer are quickly rebuffed by Gin, who reveals a harsh truth: a terrible curse means he will vanish forever if a human touches him. Despite Gin's warnings to stay away, Hotaru disregards his wishes. Over time, a strong friendship blossoms between them, even as the fragility of Gin's condition looms large. As the years pass and their bond deepens, Hotaru and Gin must confront the challenges that fate has set before them.

Background

Hotarubi no Mori e premiered in Japanese cinemas on September 17, 2011. Though initially planned to be first presented in March 2011 at the Anime Contents Expo in Chiba, Japan, the event was canceled due to the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. In Europe, the movie was shown at the 2011 Scotland Loves Animation festival, twice: in Glasgow and then in Edinburgh. The film was also screened at the 2011 Leeds International Film Festival in November and at the Anime Expo convention in Los Angeles on June 30, 2012. Following its premiere in Scotland, Hotarubi no Mori e won the festival's Jury Award. It was also given the Animation Film Award at the 66th Annual Mainichi Film Awards in Japan. DVDs and limited edition Blu-ray disc sets were made available in Japan on February 22, 2012. The sets included bonus content such as illustrations, stickers, brochures, and one of Gin's masks. According to Japan's Oricon sales chart, Blu-ray disc sets sold well shortly after their release.