Popular online music producer was born one week after original manga shipped
The staff for the anime film of Akira Toriyama‘s SAND LAND manga debuted a full 90-second trailer on Friday. The trailer announces and previews the theme song “Utopia” by up-and-coming artist imase:
The artist imase’s popularity rose inside and outside Japan after he posted “Night Dancer” and other songs he created online. “Utopia” is his first theme song for a film, and he created the song specifically for SAND LAND. He was actually born one week after the Sand Land manga volume first shipped on November 2, 2000. He joked that the lead character Beelzebub may be 2,500 years old while he is only 22, but they are classmates. He added that he has been watching Dragon Ball since he was little, so the offer to work on another Toriyama work was like a dream come true.
© バード・スタジオ／集英社 (c)SAND LAND製作委員会
Viz publishes the manga in English, and it describes the story:
In the far future, war has destroyed the entire Earth, leaving only a barren wasteland where the supply of water is controlled by the greedy king. In search of a long-lost lake, Sheriff Rao asked the king of the demons for help…and got the king’s son, Beelzebub, and his assistant, Thief. Together the unlikely trio sets off across the desert, facing dragons, bandits and the deadliest foe of all… the King’s army itself! It’s travel adventure and tank action in this new story from Akira Toriyama, the creator of Dragon Ball Z!
TOHO will open the film in theaters in Japan on August 18. The film will star:
- Mutsumi Tamura as Beelzebub
- Kazuhiro Yamaji as Rao
- Chō as Thief
- Satoshi Tsuruoka as General Are
- Nobuo Tobita as General Zau
- Akio Ōtsuka as Satan
- Chafurin as the King
- Tomokazu Sugita as Swimmer’s Papa
- Koji Yusa as Pike
- Hiroyuki Yoshino as Shark
- Masafumi Kobatake as Guppy
Toshihisa Yokoshima (“Tales of Crestoria: The Wake of Sin,” “Amanatsu,” “Cocolors,” Dragon Quest games’ sequences) is directing the film at Sunrise, Kamikaze Douga, and Anima with Hiroshi Koujina (Ryoma! The Prince of Tennis, The Vampire Dies in No Time, Grenadier) serving as the direction advisor. Hayashi Mori (Cells at Work! Code Black, Drifting Home) wrote the screenplay. Yoshikazu Iwanami is directing the sound, and Yūgo Kanno (JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders, Psycho-Pass, Ajin) is composing the music.
The Sand Land manga is a short series that Toriyama serialized in Shueisha‘s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine from May to August 2000. Shueisha published one compiled book volume of the manga in November 2000.
The manga is also inspiring an action role-playing game for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam.
Source: Comic Natalie
Disclosure: Bandai Namco Filmworks Inc. (Sunrise) is a non-controlling, minority shareholder in Anime News Network Inc.
