’Lil Cinephile Launches New Trilogy of Children’s Books About Yakuza Movies, Spaghetti Westerns and Musicals

The “My First Movie” book series is set to expand this December

The Wrap

By Drew Taylor

September 19, 2023

Lil Cinephile is expanding its “My First Movie” book series with an all-new trilogy of children’s board books, TheWrap can reveal exclusively.

“My First Spaghetti Western,” “My First Hollywood Musical” and “My First Yakuza Movie” will be available to order at the official website of the creators behind Cinephile: A Card Game, along with select independent retailers, to ship in December. All orders beyond the first 100 will ship after the new year in early 2024.

If you are unaware of the ever-expanding world of ‘Lil Cinephile, it takes the graphic style and movie-nerd approach of the Cinephile card game and makes it accessible for the beginner movie freak in your home.

This new trilogy follows “A is for Auteur,” an alphabet book written by Cory Everett and Steve Isaacs, and an earlier trilogy that was devoted to film noir, French New Wave and Italian Giallo movies. The first three of the ’Lil Cinephile books, along with the new installments, were written by Everett and illustrated by Julie Olivi.

Customers can buy the three new books individually for $15 or in a $45 box set in a limited-edition cardboard slip case.

“I feel like these are even better than the first three with even wilder color palettes,” Everett told TheWrap. “We really hit our stride creatively.”

And there are more ’Lil Cinephile books coming in 2024. “My First Sci-Fi Movie,” “My First Midnight Movie” and “My First Kung Fu Movie” are all in the works along with “The Wes Anderson Alphabet” and more to be announced.

“I was so blown away by the artwork that Julie was doing for Vol. 2 that it inspired me that we could go even further with the next books, and so we’re getting started on the next series immediately,” Everett said of the new books. “We both feel like our collaboration is just getting started.”