Hayao Miyazaki's 'The Boy and the Heron' to open Toronto International Film Festival

July 27 (UPI) -- The Toronto International Film Festival announced Thursday that it has selected The Boy and the Heron as its opening night film.

The new animated feature, written and directed by famed Japanese animator and Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki, will have its world premiere at the 48th annual festival in September.

The Boy and the Heron will screen Sept. 7 at the opening night gala at Roy Thomson Hall.

Several Studio Ghibli films have previously played at TIFF, including Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and The Wind Rises.

The Boy and the Heron will be the first Japanese film or animated film to open the festival.

"We are honoured to open the 48th Toronto International Film Festival with the work of one of cinema's greatest artists," TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey said in a statement. "Already acclaimed as a masterpiece in Japan, Hayao Miyazaki's new film begins as a simple story of loss and love and rises to a staggering work of imagination. I look forward to our audience discovering its mysteries for themselves, but I can promise a singular, transformative experience."

The Boy and the Heron is a hand-drawn animated film that marks Miyazaki's first feature film in 10 years. The movie was released July 14 in Japan without any prior promotion and will open in North America later this year.

The Toronto International Film Festival will run Sept. 7 to 17 this year.