“I thought it was an astonishing piece of work, truly art,” says Gaiman. “It’s unlike any animated film, or any film at all for that matter, that people have seen before. The jaw-dropping beauty, the rich water colors, the astonishment of a world of demons and gods all make it a wonderful, cool, magical fantasy. I saw it as a sort of “Star Wars”-style legend set in a 14th century Japanese forest – only instead of good battling evil, the battle is much more complex and realistic.”