What is Rebuild of Evangelion and when will it come out?

Hideaki Anno is planning four new Evangelion films. The first one is scheduled to premier in Japanese cinemas on September 1, 2007. In September 2006, the roadmap was set at: film 1 in early Summer 2007 (90 minutes), film 2 in January 2008 (90 minutes), and film 3 and 4 in summer 2008 (45 minutes each). Now that the first film has been pushed back to September, it's unknown when the others may arrive.

Who's involved?

Basically all the key original staff. Hideaki Anno will write the first movie and will be the general director and manager for the entire project. Masayuki and Kazuya Tsurumaki are listed as co-directors of the first movie (although note that Tsurumaki was listed as director of EoE, but said in the Red Cross Book that he was "director in title only"), Yoshiyuki Sadamoto on character designs and Ikuto Yamashita on mecha designs. Former animator and movie director Shinji Higuchi (known for his special effects-heavy big budget films like The Sinking of Japan) will storyboard the Operation Yashima scenes in the first movie.

It's not by Gainax?

Anno has set up a new, independent production company to create Rebuild, called Chara or Khara or something, which is not meant to be the English word "color" but the Greek word "chara", meaning "joy, glee, joyfulness" etc. So although many Gainax members are involved, it's not a Gainax production.

How successful was the original Evangelion?

The Evangelion franchise has generated 6,000 types of merchandise since its 1995 debut, earning roughly 150 billion Yen ($1.2bn!?) in sales. (source). The original three Eva films made 4.5 billion Yen ($37m) in total at the Japanese box office, the manga published by Kadokawa Shoten has exceeded 15 million copies sold over the existing 10 volumes, and the videos and DVDs sold exceed 4.5 million copies and about 30 billion Yen ($250m).

The facts as we know them so far:

-- The first movie has two posters that capture its main themes: a happy classroom scene by Sadamoto featuring all the children, and another by special effects director Makoto Kamiya of a very realistic-looking Unit 01. "We're taking full advantage of 3D CG technology that wasn't available 12 years ago. The amount of visual information in each frame will be enormous". (Newtype USA 2/07)

-- Operation Yashima will be the climax of the first movie. Anno "wasn't satisfied with how the original episode 6--"Showdown in Tokyo-3"--turned out... There were technical limitations that bothered him back then, and for the new movies he wants to reanimate all of the Operation Yashima scenes from scratch." (Newtype USA 2/07)

-- There will be at least one new character, but he/she won't appear until the second movie. (Newtype USA 2/07)

-- The NERV and SEELE logos have been redesigned by Ikuto Yamashita. The new NERV emblem will be a partially eaten Apple, while the SEELE shows an apple and a serpent. (Newtype USA 2/07)

Hideaki Anno's Statement:

Many different desires are motivating us to create the new "Evangelion" film.

The desire to portray my sincere feelings on film.
The desire to share, with an audience, the embodiment of image, the diversity of expressions, and the detailed portrayal of emotions that animation offers.
The desire to connect today's exhausted Japanese animation [industry] to the future.
The desire to fight the continuing trend of stagnation in anime.
The desire to support the strength of heart that exists in the world.

Finally, the desire to have these wishes be realized.

For these purposes, we used the best methods available to us to make another Evangelion film.
Many times we wondered, "It's a title that's more than 10 years old. Why now?"
"Eva is too old", we felt.
However, over the past 12 years, there has been no anime newer than Eva.

Specifically, among the stagnant mood of the present day, it is the portrayal of will - not technology - that is most important.
To support the fans that support animation, we felt that a work that would appeal to middle and high school-aged men, who quickly grow away from Anime, was necessary.
When we decided that we wanted to something to support the anime [industry] of today, the determination to return to this title was strong.

As the creator of this project, [I assure you that] a very new-feeling Evangelion world has been constructed.
For this purpose, we are not returning to our roots at Gainax. I have set up a production company and studio, and it is in this new setting that we will start again.
Without looking back, without admiration for the circumstances, we aim to walk towards the future.
Thankfully, we have gathered staff from the old series, new staff, and many other fantastic staff to work on this series.
We realize that we are creating something that will be better than the last series.

”Eva" is a story that repeats.
It is a story where the main character witnesses many horrors with his own eyes, but still tries to stand up again.
It is a story of will; a story of moving forward, if only just a little.
It is a story of fear, where someone who must face indefinite solitude fears reaching out to others, but still wants to try.
We hope that you look forward to the 4 new retellings of this story.

In closing, it is also our job to provide a service to our customers.
Although it seems obvious, we aim to create a form of entertainment that anyone can look forward to; one that people who have never seen Evangelion can easily adjust to, one that can engage audiences as a movie for theatres, and one that produces a new understanding of the world.

This fall, we hope you can join us.

Creator/General Director, Anno Hideaki

My predictions

I am 100% sure that Shinji will find happiness and closure in Rebuild of Eva. Probably with a love interest. Why? Two reasons. First, the original was so closely tied to Hideaki Anno's personal life and mindset that Rebuild will probably reflect Anno's new life as a happily married, wealthy man. Second, it's really the only loose thread left from the show. My opinion is that it's one explanation of the show's staying power and the almost endless new endings, both official and un: we desperately want Shinji to find complete happiness. As great as the original ending is, we just can't live with it, it seems.