Pompo the Cinephile

In the movie hub of Nyallywood, a successful producer named Pompo specializes in creating commercial B-movies. Her assistant, Gene, is a cinema enthusiast who is deeply moved by a personal script written by Pompo. Instead of directing it herself, Pompo challenges Gene to direct the film as his first project. As Gene struggles to balance artistic vision with budget and time constraints, he works with a cast that includes Natalie, an aspiring actress discovered by Pompo, and a veteran actor who has been away from the screen for a decade.

The film was directed and written by Takayuki Hirao, who previously directed The Garden of Sinners: Paradox Spiral in 2008. The voice cast features Konomi Kohara as Pompo, Hiroya Shimizu as Gene, and Rinka Otani as Natalie, with additional voices provided by Ai Kakuma, Akio Otsuka, and Ryuichi Kijima. Produced by Shochiku, movic, KADOKAWA, and Movie Walker, the animation blends comedy and drama over a 94-minute runtime.

The movie has received positive feedback from both viewers and professionals. It holds a rating of 7.1/10 on IMDb from 1,800 votes and a 7.2/10 on TMDB from 95 votes. Film critics gave the production a higher score of 7.7/10 based on 24 reviews.