The Tokyo International Film Festival, as per its name, hosts luminaries of the movie world from around the globe. Kicking off the event is a gala ceremony in which guests walk down the red carpet to greet their fans and the press.

Local artists aren’t excluded from the festivities, though, and this being Japan, a number of high-profile anime works are also screened at the festival. But what do you do when your most recognizable star is a cute 2-D girl?

Simple, you walk down the red carpet holding an anime huggy pillow of her.

Among the films being shown at the Tokyo International Film Festival is Virtuous Flower & Destroy the World, also known by its condensed nickname Garokawa (a condensed version of its Japanese title, Garasu no Hana to Kowasu Sekai). The science fiction adventure follows three young female leads, Remo, Dual, and Dorothy.

▼ Garokawa’s English-subtitled trailer

But while the trio hop from one dimension to another in the movie, they can’t leap off the screen and appear at the festival’s opening ceremony. So on October 22 at Tokyo’s Roppongi Hills entertainment complex, Remo voice actress Yumiri Hanamori, director Masashi Ishihama, and producer Yoichi Ishihara instead carried huggy pillows of Garokawa’s heroines past the flash bulbs of the press corps.

Garokawa isn’t the only anime hoping to make a splash at the Tokyo International Film Festival. Also premiering during the event is Go! Princess Pretty Cure the Movie, the latest theatrical installment of the popular PreCure franchise. As shown in the above video, representing the film at the ceremony were voice actresses Miyuki Sawashiro, Yu Shimamura, Masumi Asano, and Hibiku Yamamura, who were accompanied by costumed versions of magical girls Cure Flora, Cure Mermaid, Cure Twinkle, Cure Scarlet. Rounding out the entourage were vocalist Kaori Mochida and guitarist Ichiro Ito, the members of J-pop duo Every Little Thing, who performed the movie’s theme song.

Also debuting at the festival is the Ajin: Demi Human-Compel anime movie. Lead voice actor Mamoru Miyano posed for pictures at the ceremony, backed by a team of phantasmagoric life forms.

At this rate, it’s only a matter of time before the services of cosplay creators become as desired as those of eveningwear designers for show business events.

Related: Tokyo International Film Festival official website
Source: Anime News Network (1, 2)