Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio has been set as the closing night film for this year’s Animation Is Film (AIF) festival in Los Angeles.
Del Toro will be present at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater to introduce the October 29 screening and for a Q&A on the stop-motion animated version Carlo Collodi’s classic tale, which he directed with Mark Gustafson.
The AIF screening is being billed as a ’special presentation,’ though it will come a few days before the film’s screening in Los Angeles as part of this year’s AFI Fest. That event, running November 2-6, recently announced Pinocchio - which is getting its world premiere on October 15 at the BFI London Film Festival - as a US premiere (an AFI Representative declined to comment).
AIF, produced by US distributor GKids in partnership with the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and this year running October 21-23 and October 29, has also set One Piece Film: Red as its Centerpiece screening on October 22. The dubbed English-language version of Japanese director Goro Taniguchiand’s manga adaptation will be getting its world premiere at the festival ahead of a November 4 North American theatrical release.
The festival recently announced other selections including Henry Selick’s Wendell & Wild, the North American Premiere of Nora Twomey and Cartoon Saloon’s My Father’s Dragon and Annecy Cristal Award winner Little Nicolas.
AIF founder Eric Beckman said: “In both spirit and action, Guillermo del Toro exemplifies the Animation Is Film mission - a filmmaker of the highest order embracing animation as a cinematic art form of the highest order. Bringing Pinocchio to life has been the filmmaker’s passion and labour for over 20 years. We are honoured and humbled beyond words that he has chosen to unveil it to US audiences at Animation Is Film. Thank you Guillermo!!!!”
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