Katsuhiro Ôtomo's Akira and Lee Unkrich's Toy Story 3 are among the animated titles that will screen at the TIFF Lightbox as part of Drawn Universes: Visions in Animation, the animation season guest-curated by veteran Japanese filmmaker Masaaki Yuasa .
Drawn Universes: Visions in Animation will run from November 19 to December 29 at TIFF Lightbox . The series features 17 features and four shorts selected by Yuasa. On November 28, Yuasa will take part in an In Conversation With... event at the Lightbox. He will also introduce screenings of Richard Williams' The Thief and the Cobbler: A Moment in Time (November 27) and Isao Takahata's Anne of Green Gables: Road to Green Gables (November 28). Related Stories News CANEX Creations CEO Osahon Akpata Talks Mission To Shake Up Film Finance in Africa: "There Is A Huge Opportunity To Create IP That's An Investable Class" Podcast Doc Talk Podcast Hits Road With Makers Of 'Union Town', 'Black Sunflowers', 'Edward Said: Between Worlds' & Camden Film Festival Leaders
Drawn Universes: Visions in Animation launches with Paul Grimault's The King and the Mockingbird on Friday, November 19, and will kick off with an opening reception. Other titles featured as part of the season include Fantastic Planet (1973) by René Laloux, which will be screened from a 35mm print; Henry Selick's The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993); and Gisaburō Sugii’s Night on the Galactic Railroad Gisaburō Sugii, also screening from a 35mm print. Scroll down for the full list of titles. Watch on Deadline
"In curating this series, I wanted to look back at films that sparked my own imagination and influenced both my predecessors and the generations that followed," Yuasa said in a statement.
Director Yuasa began his career working on the TV series Chibi Maruko-chan and Crayon Shin-chan . His feature directorial debut was Mind Game (2004), which won several honours, including the Japan Media Arts Festival Grand Prize and awards at the Fantasia International Film Festival. He later directed The Tatami Galaxy and Ping Pong the Animation , and in 2013 co-founded the Japanese animation studio Science SARU with Eunyoung Choi.
He directed an episode of Adventure Time , earning an Annie Award nomination, and won Animation of the Year at the Japan Academy Awards for The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl . He left Science SARU in 2020 after Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! , later receiving the Medal with Purple Ribbon in 2021. He directed Inu-Oh , which earned nominations at both the Golden Globes and the Annie Awards. In 2025, Yuasa established a new studio, Ame Pippin, Inc.
November 19, 6:30pm The King and the Mockingbird (1980) dir. Paul Grimault Recorded introduction by Masaaki Yuasa (Opening night film, preceded by a reception)
November 20, 6pm AKIRA (1988) dir. Katsuhiro Ôtomo
November 21, 2pm Pinocchio (1940) dirs. Bill Roberts, Wilfred Jackson, Ben Sharpsteen, Jack Kinney, T. Hee, Norman Ferguson, Hamilton Luske
November 21, 4:30pm Lupin the 3rd: The Castle of Cagliostro (1979) dir. Hayao Miyazaki
November 22, 2pm Night on the Galactic Railroad (1985) 35mm dir. Gisaburō Sugii Recorded introduction by Masaaki Yuasa Programming Partner: with Japan Foundation Toronto
November 22, 5pm The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006) dir. Mamoru Hosoda
November 24, 6:30pm AKIRA (1988) dir. Katsuhiro Ôtomo
November 25, 6:30pm The Triplets of Belleville (2003) 35mm dir. Sylvain Chomet Recorded introduction by Masaaki Yuasa
November 26, 6:30pm Fantastic Planet (1973) dir. René Laloux In-person introduction by Mark Jones Community Partner: Sheridan College Faculty of Animation, Arts and Design
November 27, 6:30pm The Thief and the Cobbler: A Moment in Time (1992) dir. Richard Williams In-person introduction by Masaaki Yuasa
November 28, 4:30pm Anne of Green Gables: Road to Green Gables (2010) dir. Isao Takahata In-person introduction by Masaaki Yuasa Programming Partner: Japan Foundation Toronto
November 28, 6:30pm In Conversation With... Masaaki Yuasa Programming Partner: OCAD University
November 29, 4pm Fantastic Planet (1973) 35mm dir. René Laloux
December 2, 6:30pm Lupin the 3rd: The Castle of Cagliostro (1979) dir. Hayao Miyazaki
December 4, 6:30pm The Triplets of Belleville (2003) 35mm dir. Sylvain Chomet Recorded introduction by Masaaki Yuasa
December 5, 4pm The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006) dir. Mamoru Hosoda
December 6, 4pm Ghost Cat Anzu (2024) dir. Yôko Kuno, Nobuhiro Yamashita Programming Partner: The Toronto International Reel Asian Film Festival
December 10, 6:30pm The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) dir. Henry Selick
December 12, 4:45pm The King and the Mockingbird (1980) dir. Paul Grimault Recorded introduction by Masaaki Yuasa
December 13, 2pm The Thief and the Cobbler: A Moment in Time (1992) dir. Richard Williams
December 13, 4:30pm Long Way North (2015) dir. Rémi Chayé
December 18, 6:30pm Ghost in the Shell (1995) dir. Mamoru Oshii Recorded introduction by Masaaki Yuasa
December 19, 3:30pm Toy Story 3 (2010) dir. Lee Unkrich
December 20, 2pm Relaxed Screening: The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) dir. Henry Selick
December 20, 4pm Anne of Green Gables: Road to Green Gables (2010) dir. Isao Takahata
December 22, 6:30pm Shorts Films Curated by Masaaki Yuasa: Rock-a-Bye Bear (1952) dir. Tex Avery / Hedgehog in the Fog (1975) dir. Yuri Norstein / The Man Who Planted Trees (1987) dir. Frédéric Back / Wallace & Gromit: The Wrong Trousers (1993) dir. Nick Park
December 24, 2pm Ghost in the Shell (1995) dir. Mamoru Oshii Recorded introduction by Masaaki Yuasa
December 27, 3pm Galaxy Express 999 (1979) dir. Rintarô
December 29, 6:30pm Liz and the Blue Bird (2018) dir. Naoko Yamada
Get our Breaking News Alerts and Keep your inbox happy.
Deadline is a part of PMX Global, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Media Corporation. © 2026 Deadline Hollywood, LLC. All rights reserved.
Source: ShowBiz
0 Comments