The team behind the anime adaptation of the manga "Whisper Me a Love Song" (Sasayaku yō ni Koi wo Utau) by Eku Takeshima released their first full trailer on Friday. This video offers a glimpse of the song "Humming Love" performed by the band SSGIRLS, along with the announcement of a new director, an expanded team, and a rescheduled release date, moving from January to April 2024.
Akira Mano (known for work in Ghost Hunt) will take on the role of director, succeeding Xin Ya Cai (who directed episodes of Arte and served as assistant director on The Genius Prince’s Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt). Additionally, animation production will be shared between Yokohama Animation Lab and Cloud Hearts, with Cloud Hearts taking on a more extensive role in the production.
Among the recently announced team members are:
- Sub-character and costume design: Ryūnosuke Ōji
- Prop design: Ayumi Nagaki, Misae Kawakubo
- Key color artist: Yuichi Furuichi
- Art design: Risa Iraha
- Art director: Sōshi Kuwashima
- Computer animation director: Keiichi Eda
- Composition and photography director: Takahiro Kita
- Offline editing: Yumi Jingūji
- Sound director: Fumiyuki Go, Nozomi Nakatani
- Music: Hiroshi Sasaki, Wataru Maeguchi
- Artists: Kana Sasakura, Sui Mizukami (Yori Asanagi) (Shiho Izumi)
The main cast of the anime includes Hana Shimano as Himari Kino and Asami Seto as Yori Asanagi. Additional voice actors joining the team are:
- Mikako Komatsu as Aki Mizuguchi
- Konomi Kohara as Mari Tsutsui
- Ai Kakuma as Kaori Tachibana
- Yuna Nemoto as Shiho Izumi
Hiroki Uchida (known for Requiem of the Rose King, The Strongest Sage With the Weakest Crest) will oversee the scripts, while Minami Yoshida (from Mysteria Friends) will be in charge of character design.
Kodansha USA Publishing distributes the manga in both digital and print formats in English. The first volume describes the story of Himari, a cheerful and energetic first-year student who falls head over heels for her senpai Yori after hearing his band play on the first day of class. However, upon realizing that her feelings differ from her senpai's, she begins to question the true meaning of "love."
