Your Name (君の名は / Kimi no Na wa)

Last year I was growing tired of the same old animated films, so I delved into a deep search for new films. Then I came across Makoto Shinkai and his beautiful treasure trove of animated films. I started the journey with The Garden of Words and then 5 Centimeters Per Seconds and now this year, he has a new film Your Name. Shinkai has been called "The New Miyazaki", but I think he has a very different stylistic and storytelling approach with his animation. His stories are more slice of life than fantasy like the majority of Studio Ghibli films, notably Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke.

I'm very moved by how much detail there is to the animation. Each frame is thoughtfully designed, the lighting, colors, camera movement are so well executed. I'm so drawn to these stories and characters. Very grateful to have discovered Makoto Shinkai's work. Can't wait to watch Your Name when it gets distributed in the U.S. in 2017.