December 19, 2008

Mamoru Oshii's The Sky Crawlers was awarded with the Excellence Prize in the animation category at the 32nd annual Japan Academy Prizes.

Started in 1978 and operated by the Nippon Academy-Sho Association with the mission of supporting the advancement and development of cinematic art, technique and science, the Japan Academy Prizes added the Animation Category three years ago, and The Sky Crawlers is one of the five animated movies awarded for this 32nd edition. The jury will confer the Best Animated Feature Film Prize during the official ceremony on February 20, 2009 choosing among the five works awarded this time.

Nominated for the Golden Lion at the 65th Venice Film Festival, The Sky Crawlers won three awards at the 41st Sitges International Film Festival (Jose Luis Guarner Critic Award, Best Soundtrack Award to Kenji Kawai, and the Young Jury Award for the Best Motion Picture in the Fantastic Selection), and in Japan it received the Excellence Prize at the 23rd Digital Content Grand Prix and the Jury Recommended Work in the Animation Division of the 12th Japan Media Arts Festival.

Japan Academy Prize official website:
http://www.japan-academy-prize.jp/

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