Watch 'Mary and The Witch's Flower' English Dub's Opening Scene Here

Studio Ponoc is gearing up to release the English dub of their first feature length anime film, Mary and The Witch's Flower in the West, and distributor GKIDS released a tease of the film by uploading its opening scene online.

The opening scene paints the film as an imaginative film full of strange creatures and oddities, along with a time bending magic and gorgeous art style that will surely attract some new fans.

GKIDS and Fathom Events will screen the film on January 18, with a worldwide release on January 19. This premiere event will host two different versions of the film. The Japanese language original with English subtitles will start at 8:00 P.M. and the English language dub will begin an hour before at 7:00 P.M. These premiere event screenings will also feature an interview with the director and commemorative gift.

Mary and The Witch's Flower is directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi, who directed Studio Ghibli's When Marnie Was There and The Secret World of Arietty (Arietty in its native Japan). He also wrote the script with Riko Sakaguchi, who wrote for The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. When Marnie Was There's Takatsugu Muramatsu composed the music for the film, and many former Studio Ghibli members also contributed to the film overall.

The English dub cast inclueds the likes of Ruby Barnhill as the titular Mary, Kate Winslet as Madam Mumblechook, Jim Broadbent as Doctor Dee, as well as Ewen Bremmer, Lydna Baron, Rasmus Hardiker, Teresa Gallagher, Morwenna Banks, and Louis Ashbourne Serkis.

Mary and The Witch's Flower is based off of Mary Stuart's The Little Broomstick. The story follows a little girl named Mary, who finds a mysterious flower which grants her the powers of a witch for a single night. It is Studio Ponoc's first feature film, which is a studio comprised of many former Studio Ghibli employees.

Mary and the Witch's Flower was released in Japan on July 8, 2017 and was distributed by Toho. It screened on over 400 theaters in Japan, and opened at second place overall. Earning 428 million yen during its opening weekend, it fared commercially better than director Yonebayashi's previous feature film, When Marnie Was There.

The film was licensed for an English language release in North America by GKIDS, and had its world premiere in Los Angeles, CA in October 2017. GKIDS has licensed many memorable anime films such as Mamoru Hosoda's Summer Wars, Goro Miyazaki's From Up on Poppy Hill, and Isao Takahata's The Tale of the Princess Kaguya.