SciFi Japan
      Photo by Richard Termine, courtesy of Keith Sherman and Associates. ©I・K/AMPC Source: Keith Sherman and Associates press releaseOfficial Site: https://attackontitan-themusical.com/ Official Twitter: https://twitter.com/shingekimusical Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/attackontitan_themusical YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@shingekimusical Special Thanks to Scott Klein Photo courtesy of Keith Sherman and Associates. ©I・K/AMPC ATTACK ON TITAN: THE MUSICAL, the live 2.5D Musical entertainment based on the wildly popular manga (comic book) by Hajime Isayama and published by Kodansha, has sold out its entire New York engagement at New York City Center, selling about 9000 tickets over its four- performance engagement this past weekend. Directed by breakdance world champion Go Ueki (HYPNOSISMIC -Division Rap Battle- Rule the Stage), ATTACK ON TITAN: THE MUSICAL had its world premiere in Osaka and Tokyo in January, 2023 to great success. The New York City Center engagement marked the musical’s first international performance and the show will be returning to Japan in December

    Taku Aoyagi's first-person documentary TOKYO UBER BLUES premieres today as part of PBS' POV doc series. Photo courtesy of PBS. ©Nodelaico Source: PBSSpecial Thanks to Caitlin Hughes Photo courtesy of PBS. ©Nodelaico Taku Aoyagi's irreverent first-person gig worker documentary TOKYO UBER BLUES will make its broadcast premiere as part of PBS' POV doc series on October 21st on local PBS affiliate stations + streams free on the PBS App. Unemployed in the wake of the pandemic, 26-year-old filmmaker Taku Aoyagi decides to try his luck in Tokyo. Short on worldly possessions, using his bike and phone, he becomes an Uber Eats rider. Now, he can decide his own hours, and is free to choose when to take orders! But pedaling through deserted streets delivering boba tea to cloistered condos, he starts to wonder... what was it that Ken Loach said about the Uberization of

    Crunchyroll and Sony Pictures Entertainment bring the momentous theatrical fan experience to North American theaters on December 6Source: Crunchyroll press release Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll. ©Solo Leveling Animation Partners Crunchyroll, the ultimate home for anime worldwide, has revealed the key art for the theatrical release of SOLO LEVELING -REAWAKENING- (俺だけレベルアップな件 -ReAwakening-, Ore Dake Level-Up na Ken -ReAwakening- ). Crunchyroll and Sony Pictures Entertainment will bring SOLO LEVELING -REAWAKENING- to theaters in the United States and Canada on December 6, 2024. The anime series SOLO LEVELING is adapted from the best-selling Korean web novel written by Chugong, which was later adapted into a webtoon and manhwa in 2018, with illustrations by DUBU. The first season of SOLO LEVELING debuted globally on Crunchyroll on January 6, 2024 with a second season coming in January 2025. SOLO LEVELING -REAWAKENING- is a cinematic fan experience that brings together a recap of

    Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll. ©Kugane Maruyama,PUBLISHED BY KADOKAWA CORPORATION/OVERLORD4PARTNERS Crunchyroll and Sony Pictures Entertainment will bring the thrilling adventure to theaters in the United States and Canada starting November 8Source: Crunchyroll press releaseOfficial Site: https://www.overlord-movie.com/ Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll. ©Kugane Maruyama,PUBLISHED BY KADOKAWA CORPORATION/OVERLORD4PARTNERS Crunchyroll, the ultimate home for anime worldwide, announced today that tickets for OVERLORD: THE SACRED KINGDOM (劇場版「オーバーロード」聖王国編, Gekijō-ban Ōbarōdō Sei Ōkoku-hen, 2024) are now on sale for audiences in the United States and Canada. The film, distributed by Crunchyroll and Sony Pictures Entertainment, will be released starting November 8 and will be available in Japanese with English subtitles as well as dubbed in English. OVERLORD: THE SACRED KINGDOM, is the first theatrical film from the fan-favorite OVERLORD franchise based on the light novels by Kugane Maruyama, and continues the series picking up after the conclusion of Season 4. The story follows

    Photo courtesy of DNA of TOKUSATSU. © TOHO CO.,LTD. Author and Photographer: Daisuke Ishizuka The "70 Years of Special Effects Movies - It All Started with Godzilla" (特撮映画の70年—それは『ゴジラ』から始まった, Tokusatsu Eiga no 70-nen — Soreha “Gojira” Kara Hajimatta) exhibition was held July 12, 2024 - September 8, 2024 at the Ueda City Museum of Art in the Ueda Santo Myuze. It was part of the DNA of TOKUSATSU series that feature displays of original suits, props and production materials used to make Godzilla and other special effects films. SciFi Japan correspondent Daisuke Ishizuka attended the event and shared some details and photos from his visit... The exhibition DNA of TOKUSATSU started in 2016 and it has held at the various museum or halls in Japan. It came to Ueda City, Nagano prefecture in this summer. The year of 2024 is 70th anniversary for Godzilla and the

    Front and back packaging artwork for the ULTRAMAN BLAZAR: The Complete Series & ULTRAMAN BLAZAR THE MOVIE: TOKYO KAIJU SHOWDOWN Blu-ray set. Photo courtesy of Mill Creek. ©TSUBURAYA PRODUCTIONS. Series: ©ULTRAMAN BLAZAR PRODUCTION CONSORTIUM・TV TOKYO Movie: ©ULTRAMAN BLAZAR FILM PARTNERS. All Rights Reserved. Source: Mill Creek Entertainment Special Thanks to CJ Johnsen and Spencer Kopp Mill Creek Entertainment, a division of Alliance Entertainment, will release ULTRAMAN BLAZAR: The Complete Series and ULTRAMAN BLAZAR THE MOVIE: TOKYO KAIJU SHOWDOWN on Blu-ray and Digital November 26, 2024. This set will include both the original Japanese audio and the English dub. This release comes from Mill Creek Entertainment’s recently announced extension and expansion of its current partnership with Tsuburaya Fields Media & Pictures Entertainment, Inc. The deal includes digital and physical rights for a full slate of episodic series and feature films from the international powerhouse brand, ULTRAMAN, including

    Image courtesy of Crunchyroll. Titles Highlighted Include ZENSHU, OKITSURA, Dr. STONE SCIENCE FUTURE, and More!Source: Crunchyroll press release This Friday, Crunchyroll held its Industry Panel at New York Comic Con at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City. Crunchyroll announced several titles coming soon to its streaming service around the world. Those titles included the following:   Image courtesy of Crunchyroll. Based on the manga The Dialect of the Girl I Fell in Love With in Okinawa is Too Difficult to Deal With created by Egumi Sora, the coming-of-age slice of romance anime, OKITSURA: FELL IN LOVE WITH AN OKINAWAN GIRL, BUT I JUST WISH I KNOW WHAT SHE'S SAYING, is set to stream on Crunchyroll this January 2025. The latest trailer for the upcoming anime series was shown at NYCC. The series is written and directed by Shin Itagaki (SO I'M A SPIDER, SO WHAT?) and Shingo Tanabe (I GOT A

    Source: Toho International, Inc. press releaseOfficial Site: https://godzilla-movie2023.toho.co.jp/ (Japan), https://godzilla.com/ (US)Official Twitter: https://twitter.com/godzilla231103 (Japan), https://twitter.com/Godzilla_Toho (US) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/godzilla231103/ (Japan), https://www.instagram.com/godzilla_toho/ (US) TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@godzilla.toho Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tohogodzillaofficial/ (US) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/Godzilla_Toho (US) Special Thanks to Liberty Galindo and Jonah Keel   Poster for the GODZILLA MINUS ONE re-release. Photo courtesy of Toho International. © TM & © TOHO CO., LTD. GODZILLA MINUS ONE (ゴジラ-1.0/ゴジラマイナスワン, Gojira Mainasu Wan), the critically acclaimed Academy Award Winning film will be re-released in theaters nationwide starting November 1, 2024. Directed by Academy Award® Winner Takashi Yamazaki, the film’s re-release honors the King of the Monsters’ 70th Anniversary, timed to Godzilla Day, celebrated annually on November 3. Tickets are on sale now for both GODZILLA MINUS ONE and the film’s remastered black and white rendition, GODZILLA MINUS ONE/MINUS COLOR (ゴジラ-1.0/C,ゴジラマイナスワン/マイナスカラー, Gojira Mainasu Wan/Mainasu Karā). In celebration of the groundbreaking film’s return to theaters, each screening will

    The Godzilla Pop-Up Shop in Los Angeles' Little Tokyo will be selling retailer exclusive Godzilla collectibles. Photo courtesy of JUNGLE. TM & ©TOHO CO., LTD. Source: Entertainment Hobby Shop JUNGLE Special Thanks to Yoichi Kakuma and Tetsu Shiota   The Godzilla Store Exclusive Bandai Kaiju-O Series Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color figure. Photo courtesy of JUNGLE. TM & ©TOHO CO., LTD. Jungle Entertainment Hobby Shop in Los Angeles (aka Anime Jungle) will be carrying three exclusive Godzilla products at their Godzilla pop-up shop to celebrate the 70th Anniversary of Godzilla, the King of Monsters. In addition to the limited edition Bandai Movie Monster Series: Godzilla (2023) figure already on sale, these limited figures will only be available for the duration of the Godzilla pop-up shop, while supplies last, from November 2nd to November 17th. The first figure is the Godzilla Store Exclusive Bandai Kaiju-O (King of

    Source: HIDIVE press release Official Site: https://neet-kunoichi.com/ (Japan)Special Thanks to Scott Barretto (AMCN Entertainment Group) Photo courtesy of HIDIVE. ©Kotatsu・Yakitomato/NEET Kunoichi Partners HIDIVE is giving the gift of laughs this holiday season with today’s announcement that the new rom-com series I’M LIVING WITH AN OTAKU NEET KUNOICHI!? (ニートくノ一となぜか同棲はじめました, Nīto Kunoichi to Nazeka Dōsei Hajimemashita, 2024) will help kick-off the New Year as part of its Winter 2025 simulcast season. I’M LIVING WITH AN OTAKU NEET KUNOICHI!? is based on the popular manga series created by Yakitomato and Kotatsu and will stream exclusively on HIDIVE, AMC Networks’ anime streaming service. “We’re excited to add I’M LIVING WITH AN OTAKU NEET KUNOICHI!? to our slate of exclusive new series for HIDIVE’s Winter 2025 simulcast season,” said John Ledford, President of HIDIVE. “ Demons + Salaryman + Shinobi + Otaku + NEET is truly the perfect formula for a humous rom-com and

    Source: Ultraman Connection press release Special Thanks to EJ Couloucoundis   Photo courtesy of Ultraman Connection. ©TSUBURAYA PRODUCTIONS Ultraman Zero, one of the most popular superhero characters in all Japanese pop culture, will receive the Key to Industry City at an event celebrating the Tsuburaya Productions Ultraman franchise. Honoring the 15th anniversary of the debut of Ultraman Zero in the 2009 feature MEGA MONSTER BATTLE ULTRA GALAXY: THE MOVIE. On behalf of the Upper New York Bay waterfront complex in Brooklyn, New York, Anthony Marino will present the Key to Ultraman Zero who will appear live at the event. There are also rumors that Zero’s nemesis, Ultraman Belial, may crash the event as well! All are invited to join the crew of Ultraman Connection and a number of incredible guests on Saturday, October 19th, from 2:30 to 9 PM in Industry City, Building 5, as they celebrate

    Photo courtesy of GKIDS. TM & © TOHO CO., LTD. GKIDS TO OPERATE AS A WHOLLY-OWNED SUBSIDIARY UNDER COMPANY, FOUNDER/CEO ERIC BECKMAN AND PRESIDENT DAVE JESTEADTSource: GKIDS press release   Japanese entertainment leader Toho Co., Ltd. announced today that it has reached an agreement to acquire a 100% equity share of GKIDS, Inc., the Academy Award-winning North American animation producer and distributor. Financial terms were not disclosed.   GKIDS, which maintains offices in New York and Los Angeles, will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Los Angeles-based Toho International. GKIDS Founder Eric Beckman will remain as CEO, and Dave Jesteadt will remain as President of the company. The two have run GKIDS together since the company first released the Academy Award-nominated film THE SECRET OF KELLS as a two-person company in 2009. Together, they have grown GKIDS into a powerful force in the U.S. animation scene,

    Image courtesy of Crunchyroll. Additional Blu-ray Titles Arriving from Crunchyroll this January Include THE WRONG WAY TO USE HEALING MAGIC and DEAD MOUNT DEATH PLAY Part 2, Among OthersSource: Crunchyroll press release Crunchyroll has the best remedy to ring in the New Year with THE APOTHECARY DIARIES Season 1 Part 1, arriving on Blu-ray on January 28, 2025. Fans excited for the release can expect an elixir of special features including 12 mini-episodes featuring Maomao and Jinshi that have never officially been subtitled until now. Those looking to warm up their hearts from cold this winter can also look forward to the Crunchyroll Anime Awards winner for Best Romance Anime, HORIMIYA: THE MISSING PIECES, with a Blu-ray and DVD combo set on January 21, 2025. This collection of episodic stories completes the romantic tale between Kyouko Hori and Izumi Miyamura and will be packaged together with

      YOJIMBO. Photo courtesy of the Criterion Collection. TM & ©TOHO CO., LTD. Source: The Criterion Collection press release Special Thanks to Courtney Ott Photo courtesy of the Criterion Collection. TM & ©TOHO CO., LTD. The Criterion Collection has announced that YOJIMBO / SANJURO: TWO SAMURAI FILMS BY AKIRA KUROSAWA will be released January 7, 2025 in a 4-disc 4K UHD + Blu-ray set. 2-disc Blu-ray edition is also available for purchase. Thanks to perhaps the most indelible character in Akira Kurosawa’s oeuvre, YOJIMBO (用心棒, Yōjinbō) surpassed even SEVEN SAMURAI in popularity when it was released. The masterless samurai Sanjuro, who slyly manipulates two warring clans to his own advantage in a small, dusty village, was so entertainingly embodied by the brilliant Toshiro Mifune that it was only a matter of time before he returned in a sequel. Made just one year later, SANJURO (椿三十郎, Tsubaki

    In Theaters November 10, 11 & 12 and Now Available in Both the United States and CanadaSource: Toei Animation Inc. press release Special Thanks to Scott Barretto Photo courtesy of Fathom Events. ©BIRD STUDIO/SHUEISHA, TOEI ANIMATION This November, Toei Animation and Fathom Events will present the world English dub premiere of the highly anticipated new series DRAGON BALL DAIMA as a three-day, limited release, which has now been expanded to include both the United States and Canada and will screen exclusively in more than 1,000 theaters locations during its November 10 - 12 run. Moviegoers will be treated to a special introduction by Japanese actor Masako Nozawa, the voice of Goku, that can only be experienced in theaters. Fans can now purchase tickets to the DRAGON BALL DAIMA World English Dub Premiere theatrical release, which will screen November 10, 11 & 12 and features the first three episodes

    Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll.©Muneyuki Kaneshiro, Yusuke Nomura, KODANSHA/BLUE LOCK Production Committee. Shortly After the Season Two Premiere, the Crowd-Favorite Soccer Anime Film Scores a Premiere Date of October 17Source: Crunchyroll press release Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll.©Muneyuki Kaneshiro, Yusuke Nomura, KODANSHA/BLUE LOCK Production Committee. BLUE LOCK is keeping up the momentum as BLUE LOCK THE MOVIE -EPISODE NAGI- makes its way to Crunchyroll this Thursday, October 17 at 5 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. ET. The film will be available to stream in select territories around the world in Japanese with subtitles in English, Latin American Spanish, Castilian Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, European Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Russian and Arabic. The film will also be available with dub languages in English, Latin American Spanish, Castilian Spanish, French, German and Italian.   After receiving acclaim for its international premiere at the 2024 Annecy International

    Photo courtesy of Well Go USA.  Source: Well Go USA, LBHpr  Special Thanks to Leif Helland Photo courtesy of Well Go USA. Well Go USA Entertainment is offering SciFi Japan readers a chance to win a Blu-ray of the British horror-thriller THE BEAST WITHIN. The narrative directorial debut by documentary filmmaker Alexander J. Farrell (REFUGEE), and a cast including Kit Harington (GAME OF THRONES, ETERNALS), Ashleigh Cummings (THE GOLDFINCH, CITADEL), Caoilinn Springall (STOPMOTION, THE MIDNIGHT SKY), and James Cosmo (BRAVEHEART, GAME OF THRONES)​, bring a “timelessness” (Variety) to this atmospheric, supernatural tale--shot mostly around the historic Harewood Woods and Castle in West Yorkshire, UK. After a series of strange events leads her to question her family’s isolated life on a fortified compound deep in the English wilds, 10-year-old Willow (Caoilinn Springall) follows her parents on one of their secret late-night treks to the

    Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll. Source: Crunchyroll press release This past weekend, Crunchyroll held an Industry Panel at SOFA (el Salón del Ocio y la FAntasía) 2024, Colombia’s biggest annual fan convention, at the Corferias Convention Center in Bogotá, Colombia. During the panel, Crunchyroll announced multiple anime series coming to its streaming platform in January 2025, including TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN Season 2, THE 100 GIRLFRIENDS WHO REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY, REALLY LOVE YOU Season 2, HEADHUNTED TO ANOTHER WORLD: FROM SALARYMAN TO BIG FOUR!, and MEDAKA KUROIWA IS IMPERVIOUS TO MY CHARMS.Details for each title can be found below:   Photo courtesy of Crunchyroll. TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN Season 2   Synopsis: There’s a rumor going around about the Seven Wonders of Kamome Academy. Nene Yashiro and her classmate, Kou Minamoto, work with Hanako-san to expose a traitor among the ranks of the

    Source: Crunchyroll press release Photo courtesy of Toei Animation. ©Eiichiro Oda/Shueisha, TOEI ANIMATION Toei Animation has announced that the legendary anime series ONE PIECE will be embarking on a hiatus following today’s release of Episode 1122. The series will return in April 2025 with fresh episodes from the Egghead arc. During the hiatus, fans can look forward to new content, including ONE PIECE LOG: FISH-MAN ISLAND SAGA, a special re-envisioned edition of the iconic arc streaming on Crunchyroll. These episodes will be available exclusively in select regions for one month before becoming accessible on other platforms worldwide. This special 21-episode cutdown will showcase the FISH-MAN ISLAND ARC with a fresh look and feel, bringing a contemporary visual style and new animation sequences, including opening and ending themes. The new opening theme, “We Go!” by Kitadani Hiroshi, will include a special guest collaboration to be announced soon,

    The main cast of HOSHI 35. From left to right: Megumi Odaka, Jun Hashizume, Daijiro Harada, Hiroshi Miyasaka and Yumiko Tanaka. Photos courtesy of 3Y Film. © 2023 3Y Source: SRS Cinema LLCSpecial Thanks to Avery Guerra A SCIFI JAPAN EXCLUSIVE Photo courtesy of SRS Cinema. © 2023 3Y Aki lived her young life with a baby monster, but got separated from it for some reason. Thirty-five years later, a big earthquake hits her home. As the shaking grows stronger, a giant monster emerges… no longer a baby kaiju, the creature has grown… SRS Cinema LLC has acquired North American rights to the new kaiju film, HOSHI 35 (星35, 2023). Written and directed by Hiroto Yokokawa (THE GREAT BUDDHA ARRIVAL, NEZURA 1964), and co-directed by Kazuma Yoneyama and Daisuke Sato, with effects by Sato, the movie uses traditional Japanese FX techniques (aka tokusatsu)

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