Shizuno Kobun’s (Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle) “The Journey” is the first feature produced by the pioneering collaboration between Saudi Arabia’s Manga Productions and Japanese major TOEI Animation. Based on an epic tale drawn from the Arabian Peninsula and featuring the distinctive anime animation look, The Journey is emblematic of Manga Productions’ aims to create content for global audiences with international standards, support local talent, and showcase the region’s people, and its culture. On April 12th, the major streaming platform and release date will be announced.

Continuing Manga Productions’ progressive ethos young Saudi men and women were sent to be trained at TOEI Animation studios and were recruited by Manga Productions to work on this film. The Saudi team consisted of young men and women between the ages of 23 - 36 while the Japanese team had big names in the industry with long and established careers. This film is unique as it is the first anime involving a team of Saudi writers, artists,

“The collaboration between the Saudi team (Manga Productions) and the Japanese team (TOEI Animation) was rich and harmonious, as it was not only between two different cultures but also different languages, different drawing methods and different generations. This is the first movie we have produced and we are excited to share the product of this collaboration with the rest of the world and more movies to come”. Dr. Essam Bukhary, CEO of Manga Productions.

“I was honored to collaborate with Manga Productions on the first feature animated film and to be part of this unique cultural exchange. It was an interesting challenge to make a film about a culture that is different from ours. This mixture of ages, languages, and techniques has created a film that is inspiring, the viewers will feel the merging and fusion of the Saudi and Japanese spirits on one screen!”. Shinji Shimizu, Advisor of TOEI Animations.

“The Journey” is a feature-length animated film, an epic story based on Saudi folklore, and revolves around a group of men who must protect their historically peaceful city against a massive invading army.

The film was originally directed by Shizuno Kubon (“Godzilla”, “Case Closed”), with the script by Atsuhiro Tomioka (“Pokemon”, “Fairy Tail”), character designs by TatsuroIwamoto (“Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney”), and the score composed by Kaoru Wada (“Inuyasha”, “D. Gray-man”).

Tetsuro Iwamoto, whose credits include the “Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney” video game, is the project’s lead character designer, and Japanese composer Kaoru Wada created the music.