Eric Khoo’s animated documentary about manga artist Yoshihiro Tatsumi has been selected as Singapore’s official entry in the foreign-language category at the 84th Academy Awards. Tatsumi, which is based on the 800-page manga A Drifting Life, received solid reviews at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, where it premiered in the Un Certain Regard section.
The feature animates five of the Tatsumi’s darkly themed, short stories and interweaves them with chapters from his life. Born in Osaka in 1935, Tatsumi coined the term gekiga (pictorial drama) to define the adult-oriented genre comics he pioneered in the late ’50s. Khoo’s most famous titles include Mee pok man, 12 Storeys and Be With Me.
The film’s beautiful animation is produced by Singapore-based studio Infinite Frameworks.
