Osaka, Japan – July 27th will Be Italian Animation Day at Italy Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka.
A special event featuring the world premiere of the new animated series co-produced by Studio Bozzetto and Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation.

The countdown has officially begun for the world premiere of Pino & Shinoby, set to debut on July 27 at the Italy Pavilion during the thematic week “Learning and Playing” at Italy Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka.

The new animated series, a co-production between Italy’s Studio Bozzetto and Japan’s Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation (YTV) in collaboration with Rai Kids, tells the story of a cross-cultural friendship between Shinoby, a young Japanese ninja who is a YTV’s official mascot born to commemorate its 60th anniversary and Pino, an Italian boy inspired by Pinocchio. Settings, symbols, languages, and everyday life intertwine in a narrative that bridges two distant worlds, revealing their surprising affinities and beautiful differences.

The series is directed by Andrea Bozzetto, Creative Director at Studio Bozzetto.

The episode presented at Expo features a special appearance by Italia-chan, the mascot of the Italy Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka designed by Simone Legno, who joins the main characters Pino and Shinoby in discovering the cultural heritage of Italy through beauty, creativity, and tradition.

The screening marks the highlight of an entire day dedicated to Italian animation at Italy Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka. Curated by Pietro Pinetti (Studio Bozzetto), in collaboration with Rossella Menegazzo (Cultural Coordinator, Italy Pavilion), the July 27 program includes creative workshops and public talks.

PROGRAM: ITALY PAVILION AT EXPO 2025 OSAKA – SUNDAY, JULY 27

Workshops for families, children, and teens

• 10:00 AM – 11.30 AM “LET’S TALK COMICS!” with Gianfranco Florio, Disney and Pixar illustrator. A creative workshop for children and teens up to 16 years old to learn how to draw cartoon characters.
• 11:30 AM – 01.00 PM – “MANGA FUSION LAB: ITALY X JAPAN” with Elena Vitagliano, Italian manga artist. A fun, family-friendly workshop where kids, teens, and adults can explore the basics of manga drawing with an Italian-Japanese twist. Participants will create their own unique illustration to take home—no experience needed!

Talks and Presentations

• 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM – PINO AND SHINOBY: AN ITALIAN AND JAPANESE ANIMATION PROJECT. Hosted by Atsuko Toraya, the YTV announcer and Japanese voiceover artist for the animation with Andrea Bozzetto, creator of Pino & Shinoby, Pietro Pinetti, CEO of Studio Bozzetto, Ayako Noguchi, international sales manager of YTVand Masatoshi Fujiwara, producer of Shinoby for YTV. World premiere screening of Pino & Shinoby, followed by a discussion on international co-production processes and shared cultural strategy.
• 4:00 PM – 5:30 PM – FROM ITALY TO JAPAN: THE ANIMATED HISTORY THAT SHAPED GENERATIONS. A roundtable through generation of Italian and Japanese animation, moderated by Rossella Menegazzo and Pietro Pinetti, featuring Bruno Bozzetto, father of Italian animation; Marco Pagot, Italian screenwriter and director who collaborated with Hayao Miyazaki; and Fabrizio Margaria, former Head of Kids Programming at Mediaset and a key figure in introducing Japanese animation to Italy and Europe.