French sales banner Charades has boarded “The Keeper of the Camphor Tree,” an upcoming animated feature from Japanese entertainment company Aniplex and director Tomohiko Ito.
The film is an adaptation of Keigo Higashino’s novel “Kususoki no Bannin” that sold more than 1 million copies. Higashino’s other works have been adapted for film and TV several times, but this marks the first time one is getting an animated retelling.
Set in Tokyo, “The Keeper of the Camphor Tree” follows a young man named Reito who, having been left on his own after the loss of his mother and following a series of bad decisions and misfortune, lands in prison. Left with nothing, he has lost all hope for the future. But everything changes when a lawyer representing a powerful family empire offers him a way out — on one condition: he must take on a mysterious role as the Keeper of the Camphor Tree.
The animation will be produced by A-1 Pictures, Aniplex’s subsidiary company.
“The camphor tree in this work is an entity that conveys the human heart in its entirety. Through this film, I will express my gratitude to the people who have made me who I am today,” said Ito.
The deal with Charades marks the first time the Tokyo-based Aniplex has partnered with an independent international sales agent outside of Asia to work on a project from the rising animation director, who has worked on several high-end animated films and series, including Mamoru Hosoda’s “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time” and “Summer Wars.” He also directed hit TV series “Sword Art Online” and movie “Sword Art Online: Ordinal Scale”. His last work, 2019’s “Hello World,” was distributed by Toho in Japan.
“Seeing his storytelling firsthand, I’ve always wanted to make a film that reflects his narrative,” said producer Go Wakabayashi. “He excels in character direction and emotional nuance, so I’ve strongly felt he should direct a full-length film.”
Aniplex was founded in 1997 as joint venture between Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony Music Entertainment in Japan. The company became a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and renamed as Aniplex Inc. in 2003. It has produced numerous animation films and TV based on popular manga and webtoon, such as “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaba” and “Solo Leveling” as well as original hits such as the TV series “Puella Magi Madoka Magica.”
“The Keeper of the Camphor Tree carefully depicts the grand flow of human time,” said producer of “Mamoru Hosoda” and CEO of Studio Chizu, Yuichiro Saito. “Life and death, family, personal growth, and how we pass the baton of life and across generations. I think it’s fair to call Mr. Ito the ‘next Hosoda.’”
Charades co-founder Yohann Comte added: “We feel honored and privileged that Aniplex trusted us to collaborate on such a director-driven ambitious film. Director Ito surrounded himself with incredible artists and a very talented and dedicated production team. I also want to thank Studio Chizu’s CEO and producer Saito-san for guiding us to Ito-san’s talent.”
Charades has made a name for itself in animation, recently backing Latvian feature “Flow” which became one of the surprises of the 2025 Academy Awards by winning best animated feature.
