What is the reason for the success of "Girls und Panzer the Movie," which continues its exceptionally long run?

Girls und Panzer: The Movie" has been running for an unusually long time. Moreover, in its 27th week, six months after its initial release in November 2015, the film was screened in 153 theaters, including 38 new theaters. As a result, the film has recorded cumulative box-office revenues of over 2 billion yen. In addition, in June, some theaters will be showing a double feature of the theater version and the OVA "This is the real battle of Anzio! and special screenings of the entire TV series are also planned at some theaters this June.

What factors have contributed to the popularity of "Girls und Panzer"? One of the most important factors is the fact that the sound is suitable for movie theaters. The main characters, who practice a fictional martial art called "chariot sports," engage in various "fights," in which they manipulate vintage tanks in any direction and shoot tank guns at each other with a boom-boom-boom boom. The sound is so full of explosions that even a good home theater, let alone a home television set, cannot provide enough volume, making the movie theater the perfect place for this kind of sound. However, that alone is not a reason to return to the same movie more than once. As many of you may be aware, Miwa Iwanami, the sound director for "Girls und Panzer," has actually visited various theaters to conduct special screenings at which the sound has been optimally adjusted for each "Girls und Panzer" movie. This is a very unique initiative. This has been a great success, and many fans have been saying, "The sound in that theater was like that, and the sound in this theater was like this.

Girls und Panzer: The Movie" has become a rare title that allows viewers to enjoy not only the film itself, but also the cinema space. What led to the start of these unique screenings? I accompanied Mr. Iwanami, the sound director who was adjusting the sound for the new ULTIRA 9.1ch screening at AEON CINEMA Makuhari Shin Toshin Toshin, to see the actual work and hear various stories.

I wanted to return the favor to the movie theater.

The location was a family restaurant near Kaihin-Makuhari Station. Mr. Iwanami, who appeared like he was just passing by, opened his talk by sharing his thoughts on movie theaters.

I have always loved movies, and when I was a student, I used to go to the cinema and see about 300 movies a year. This may sound like a noble hobby, but in reality, movies were the only thing I had to look forward to. Really, I was living a dark student life (laughs). My love of movies grew so strong that I ended up making sound as my job. It is true that I wanted to give something back to the films that brought me up like that.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Mr. Iwanami has been involved in a number of films without any particular motivation. However, he came to the conclusion that "Girls und Panzer the Movie" might be a way to "give back" to movie theaters.

It all started with the superb soundtrack screening at Tachikawa Cinema City. We offered to visit the theater for sound adjustment by the sound team, and this screening was far more popular than we had anticipated, leading to the 4DX version and various other styles of screenings that followed. Before that, our stance had been that we only completed the film until it was finished and left the rest to the theater, but the experience at Tachikawa Cinema City made me realize the importance of connecting the producers, theaters, and customers one step further. Many movie theaters have excellent sound systems, and they provide good sound quality, but just a little bit more work is all that is needed to make the sound of a movie more appealing. Wouldn't it be great if this could lead to people experiencing the "joy of watching a movie in a theater"?

So we decided to visit as many movie theaters as possible and create the best "Girls und Panzer the Movie" (sound) for each theater. This led to sound adjustments at various theaters, including the Tsukaguchi Sun Sun Theater, and the 9.1 channel screening at Aeon Cinema Makuhari Shin Toshin.

As a result, Mr. Iwanami's sound adjustment was a catalyst for many fans to return to the movie theaters, and was one of the reasons for the long run of "Girls und Panzer: The Movie". This was one of the reasons for the long run of "Girls und Panzer: The Movie." Fans have even developed a new taste for daring to go to different movie theaters to enjoy the sound quality of each. This increase in enjoyment is not limited to anime fans, but is also greatly welcomed by moviegoers.