The ‘Inu-Oh’ director will guest-curate ‘Drawn Universes: Visions in Animation,’ a TIFF Lightbox program spotlighting anime artistry and innovation scheduled for later this year; ‘Christopher Nolan: Grand Designs’ program runs July 8 – August 20.
TIFF Lightbox has just announced two marquee film series it will present later this year: Christopher Nolan: Grand Designs, running July 8-August 20 and presented by Air France, and Drawn Universes: Visions in Animation, a fall anime series guest-curated by Japanese director Masaaki Yuasa.
Drawn Universes: Visions in Animation will run in November and December, with specific dates to be announced later. Building on the success of TIFF’s 2023 Pop Japan! marquee and expanding on TIFF Cinematheque’s ongoing Animate program, the series will present a sweeping survey of animation spanning years of groundbreaking storytelling, artistry and innovation.
“It is an honor to curate this series for TIFF,” Yuasa said. “I am looking forward to finally meeting the Toronto audience that I have heard so much about. As I begin shaping the lineup, I am excited to look back at the works that sparked my own imagination from a young age, and to curate a series with a focus on the artists who have defined the genre and the incredible creators who continue to push the visual possibilities of anime today. I hope to bring a program that truly surprises and delights everyone.”
Yuasa is known for visually inventive and genre-defying work across film and television. After beginning his career on series including Crayon Shin-chan, he made his feature directorial debut with Mind Game in 2004, which earned international acclaim and multiple awards. He later directed The Tatami Galaxy, Ping Pong the Animation, Night Is Short, Walk On Girl, Lu Over the Wall, Devilman Crybaby and Inu-Oh.
Yuasa co-founded the animation studio Science SARU in 2013 and received Japan’s Medal with Purple Ribbon in 2021 for his contributions to the arts. In 2025, he launched his own animation studio, ame pippin.
Presented ahead of this summer’s premiere of The Odyssey, the Nolan retrospective will celebrate the Oscar-winning, self-taught filmmaker with screenings of his work exclusively on 35mm and 70mm film. Nolan made his directorial debut with Following in the Discovery section at TIFF ‘98 and last returned for TIFF ‘17 with a special screening of Dunkirk marking IMAX’s 50th anniversary.
The Ringer and Spotify’s The Big Picture will launch the TIFF series with a live recording at TIFF Lightbox featuring Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins, marking the first time an episode of the podcast will be recorded in Canada.
“The marquee series at TIFF Lightbox was envisioned to present big artists and ideas that capture and shape popular imagination,” Anita Lee, Chief Programming Officer, TIFF, said. “Christopher Nolan is one of the most influential voices in contemporary cinema today where each new film is a cultural event, while anime continues to explode as an art force shaping global entertainment across mediums. These programmes offer audiences of all ages a compelling look at the scale, creativity, and innovation that define film today.”
“We’ve enjoyed many hours of lively conversation around Christopher Nolan’s films, so we’re thrilled to join TIFF for this summer’s series,” Fennessey and Dobbins said. “We can’t wait to bring our show to Canada for the first time to record a very special episode and screen one of our Nolan faves, Tenet, for Toronto movie lovers.”
Source: TIFF
Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.
