Earwig and the Witch

Earwig and the Witch
Theatrical release poster
Japanese name
Kanjiアーヤと魔女
Literal meaningAya and the Witch
Transcriptions
Revised HepburnĀya to Majo
Directed byGorō Miyazaki
Screenplay by
  • Keiko Niwa
  • Emi Gunji
Based onEarwig and the Witch
by Diana Wynne Jones
Produced byToshio Suzuki
Starring
Music bySatoshi Takebe
Production
company
Distributed byToho (theatrical)
Release dates
  • October 18, 2020 (2020-10-18) (Lumière Festival)[2]
  • December 30, 2020 (2020-12-30) (NHK G)[3]
  • August 27, 2021 (2021-08-27) (theatrical)
Running time
82 minutes[4]
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese
Box officeUS$842,744[5][6]

Earwig and the Witch (Japanese: アーヤと魔女, Hepburn: Āya to Majo, lit. ''Aya and the Witch'') is a 2020 Japanese animated fantasy film directed by Gorō Miyazaki and with a screenplay by Keiko Niwa and Emi Gunji. It is based on the novel of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones. The original voice cast includes Shinobu Terajima, Etsushi Toyokawa, Gaku Hamada, and Kokoro Hirasawa.

A co-production between Studio Ghibli, NHK, and NHK Enterprises, Earwig and the Witch had its world premiere on October 18, 2020, at the Lumière Film Festival, before premiering in Japan on television on December 30, 2020, on NHK General TV; it was then released in theatres in Japan by Toho on August 27, 2021. The film received negative reviews from critics and grossed US$842,744 at the worldwide box office.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference NHKbroadcast was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Lumière was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Steen, Emma (November 18, 2020). "NHK has announced the premiere date for Studio Ghibli's new anime 'Aya and the Witch'". Time Out Tokyo. Archived from the original on January 10, 2021. Retrieved January 8, 2021.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Kim was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "Earwig and the Witch Box Office". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on October 4, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
  6. ^ "Earwig and the Witch (2021)". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved August 22, 2021.