Hayao Miyazaki’s ‘The Boy and the Heron’ Rumored as TIFF Opening Night Film

In Eric Kohn’s informative TIFF write up (via IndieWire), he tackles just how different the Canadian-set festival might look like this year with the actors strike likely to continue into the fall.

There’s a lot of subtle, but fascinating details, all sourced, about some of the movies to expect. Most intriguingly, Kohn suggests that Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron” might screen on opening night at TIFF.

Does this mean Toronto pulled the rug under Venice and nabbed the Miyazaki away from them? Not necessarily. Usually Venice demands that talent be present for all premieres, especially the filmmaker. Maybe they didn’t make an exception for Miyazaki, although they absolutely should.

TIFF is a little more relaxed when it comes to these sort of things, which means that the elusive and press-shy, 82-year-old, Miyazaki doesn’t necessarily need to make the trek up north for the premiere. His cast of voice actors can, they’re not SAG, so can Studio Ghibli president Toshio Suzuki.

The West has been in the dark when it comes to Miyazaki’s latest film, but Japanese audiences were finally able to watch it last week.

The film is said to be a slice of life with spiritual themes added in for good measure. In Japan, it's been well-received, but I did read about a few people being disappointed by it. Supposedly, it’s a surreal and dreamy film, which led to a slew of intriguing comparisons, such as “Inception” and it even feeling like a David Lynch film.

There is currently no North American or European release date for “The Boy and the Heron.” Stateside it is being distributed by GKids.