Shinkai's theatrical release debut as a director came with Voices of a Distant Star in 2002 on which he did nearly everything himself but sent shock waves through the anime world for its expression of an impressive world view. He then increased his staff to put out masterpieces inThe Place Promised in Our Early Days ('04) and 5 Centimeters per Second ('07) before finally scoring a smash hit with The Garden of Words ('13) which grossed over a million dollars on a limited release. In this work, Shinkai handles the directing, writing in addition to cinematography, color design and editing to produce a work that gives full play to the unique artistic vision for which he is known, and is inlaid throughout with the essence of his past work. Like Mamoru Hosoda's Summer Wars, this film is sure to form a cornerstone of Shinkai's collected works. Topping the list of post-Ghibli, post-Hosoda animation directors as next standard bearer for the genre, Shinkai should see his stock jump with this movie.