SHAFT animation studio will unveil a short concept movie for a new story related to Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica for its 40th anniversary “Madogatari” exhibit even in Tokyo on Friday. The movie hints at a new project for the franchise, but nothing has been officially announced.
It hasn’t been revealed what the short will be leading to, but Magica Quartet – the team behind the Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica anime series, consisting of director Akiyuki Simbo, character designer Ume Aoki, scriptwriter Gen Urobuchi (Nitroplus), and animation studio Shaft – have continued plans for a new work since the Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica The Movie Part 3: Rebellion film opened in October 2013. The concept movie was born from their meetings.
Simbo created the storyboards and served as chief director for the short, while series director Yukihiro Miyamoto returned to direct. Composer Yuki Kajiura contributed a new musical piece. Other returning staff members include:
- Alternate Space Design: Gekidan Inu Curry (Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica)
- Animation director: Junichiro Taniguchi (Genshiken Nidaime)
- Sound Director: Yota Tsuruoka (Clannad)
- Sound Production: Rakuonsha
- Animation Production: SHAFT (Bakemonogatari, Nisekoi, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei)
The following cast members from previous anime recorded new lines for the concept movie:
- Aoi Yuuki (Yuuki Konno from Sword Art Online II) as Madoka Kaname
- Chiwa Saito (Yona from Akatsuki no Yona) as Homura Akemi
- Kaori Mizuhashi (Minami Shimada from Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu) as Mami Tomoe
- Eri Kitamura (Gray Fullbuster from Fairy Tail) as Sayaka Miki
- Ai Nonaka (Konoka Konoe from Mahou Sensei Negima!) as Kyouko Sakura
- Emiri Katou (Hideyoshi Kinoshita from Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu) as Kyubey
- Kana Asumi (Mio Kitahara from Ano Natsu de Matteru) as Nagisa Momoe
Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica synopsis from Haruhichan:
She has a loving family and best friends, laughs and cries from time to time… Madoka Kaname, an eighth grader of Mitakihara middle school, is one of those who lives such a life. One day, she had a very magical encounter. She doesn’t know if it happened by chance or by fate yet. This is a fateful encounter that can change her destiny—this is a beginning of the new story of the magical girls.
Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica is a Japanese anime television series produced by Shaft and Aniplex. It was directed by Akiyuki Shinbo and written by Gen Urobuchi, with original character designs by Ume Aoki, character design adaptation by Takahiro Kishida, and music by Yuki Kajiura. The story follows a group of female middle school students who choose to become magical girls and must battle surreal enemies called witches. However, they consequently learn of the anguish and perils associated with their newfound roles.
The first ten episodes of the series aired in Japan on TBS and MBS between January and March 2011, while the final two episodes were delayed until April 2011 due to the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. A manga adaptation of the series and various spin-off manga series have been published by Houbunsha and licensed in North America by Yen Press. A novelisation by Nitroplus was released in August 2011, and a dedicated magazine, Manga Time Kirara Magica, was launched by Houbunsha in June 2012. A video game for the PlayStation Portable was released in March 2012, with another for PlayStation Vita released in December 2013. A film series has also been produced, consisting of two films recapping the anime series, released in October 2012, and a third film featuring an original story which was released on October 26, 2013.
Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica has received widespread critical acclaim, with critics praising the writing, visuals and soundtrack of the series, as well as its approach to the magical girl subgenre. It has also been a commercial success, with each BD volume selling more than 50,000 copies. The series won several awards in Japan, such as the Television Award at the 16th Animation Kobe Awards, as well as 12 Newtype Anime Awards and the Grand Prize for animation in the 2011 Japan Media Arts awards.
