The Camphorwood Custodian Film Unveils Theme Song, More Cast in 2nd Main Trailer

The staff for the anime film of Keigo Higashino's The Camphorwood Custodian (Kusunoki no Bannin) novel revealed more cast and the film's second main trailer video on Friday. The video reveals and previews the theme song "Katawara nite Tsukiyo" (Moonlit Night By My Side) by artist Uru. The song was written and produced by the rock band back number specifically for the film. 

Image courtesy of Flag Pictures

©東野圭吾／アニメ「クスノキの番人」製作委員会

The newly announced cast includes (image above from left to right): 

• Takehito Koyasu as Masakazu Yanagisawa, Chifune's cousin and the CEO of Yanattsu Corporation under the Yanagisawa group
• Miō Tanaka as Katsushige Yanagisawa, Masakazu's younger brother and the executive director of Yanattsu Corporation
• Akira Kamiya as Tōichirō Ōba, chairman of the Takumiya company who visits the camphorwood tree, and Sōki Ōba's father

Image courtesy of Flag Pictures

© 東野圭吾／アニメ「クスノキの番人」製作委員会

The film will open in Japanese theaters on January 30.

Fumiya Takahashi stars as Reito Naoi and Yūki Amami stars as Chifune Yanagisawa.

Sword Art Online and ERASED director Tomohiko Ito is directing the film at A-1 Pictures and Psyde Kick Studio. Aniplex will distribute the film.

Taku Kishimoto (Haikyu!!, 91 Days, Sakamoto Days) is penning the film's script. Blue Period manga creator Tsubasa Yamaguchi is designing the characters alongside Akiko Itagaki (Lonely Castle in the Mirror assistant character design). Hiroshi Takiguchi is the art director. Yūgo Kanno (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders, Ajin, Psycho-Pass) is composing the film's music.

Additional staff includes: 

• Art Setting: Yasumitsu Suetake
• Color Key Artist: Satoshi Hashimoto
• Costume Design: Tsuyoshi Takahashi
• CG Director: Noriki Tsukamoto
• Compositing Director of Photography: Teppei Satō
• Editing: Shigeru Nishiyama
• Supervising Sound Editor: Masatoshi Katsumata
• Re-Recording Mixer: Takahiro Fujishima

The novel's story centers on Reito, a young man who was unreasonably fired from his job, and in revenge has committed a crime and gets arrested. He tries to appeal to the investigator to no avail, and he is sent to the prosecutor's office, where he waits for his indictment. Suddenly, a lawyer appears and tells Reito that he can be released if he follows his client's order.

Reito takes the gamble and accepts the condition, and the client turns out to be his late mother's half-sister, Chifune Yanagisawa. Chifune has only one order for Reito: to become the camphorwood tree custodian at Tsukigō shrine. Reito becomes the camphorwood tree custodian and meets different people who visit the temple grounds for different reasons.

Jitsugyo no Nihon Sha published Higashino's novel in 2020 in hardcover, and released the novel in paperback in 2023. The novel has over 1 million copies in circulation.

Higashino's The Miracles of the Namiya General Store (Namiya Zakkaten no Kiseki) novel was serialized in Kadokawa's Shosetsu Yasei Jidai literary and novel magazine in 2011. Kadokawa published the novel in one volume in 2012. Yen Press published the novel in English in 2019. The novel inspired stage play adaptations in 2013 and 2016, musical stage plays in 2017 and recently in March, and a live-action film also in 2017.

Higashino's 1998 Himitsu (Secret) novel inspired a live-action film in 1999 and a live-action series in 2010. Vertical published the novel under the English title Naoko: A Novel in 2004.

Source: Press release