Children Who Chase Lost Voices (Japanese: 星を追う子ども, Hepburn: Hoshi o Ou Kodomo; lit. 'Children Who Chase Stars'), also known as Journey to Agartha, is a 2011 Japanese anime fantasy film written and directed by Makoto Shinkai, and produced by CoMix Wave Films. It follows an elementary school girl and her substitute teacher travelling to the depths of the world. The film was released in Japan on May 7, 2011. It was released on DVD and Blu-ray in Japan on November 25, 2011. The film was previously licensed by Sentai Filmworks in North America and released on DVD and Blu-ray in November 2012. On May 9, 2019 it was announced that Sentai had lost the North American license, causing the releases to go out of print. On March 10, 2022, GKIDS announced that they have licensed Children Who Chase Lost Voices, along with three other works by Shinkai, and the film was re-released on home video in 2023.
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Plot
Asuna Watase has been forced to grow up following the death of her father. Her mother is a nurse who works long shifts at the local hospital, leaving Asuna to fend for herself much of the time. Asuna has difficulty relating to those her own age, and spends her days alone. She spends much of her time listening to the mysterious music emanating from the cat's-whisker receiver her father gave to her as a memento, accompanied by her pet cat Mimi, who bears strange red markings on her fur.
