Author: Daisuke Ishizuka The annual “TV Asahi Summer Festival” has started on Jul. 13th and Doraemon monuments have returned to Roppongi, Tokyo. Full-scale size Doraemon statues are displayed there during the event season. In 2019, 20 types of Doraemon gathered at the 66 Plaza area, each wearing one of his magical items and with a dinosaur egg on their heads. The dinosaur eggs are for the promotion of the upcoming movie “Doraemon, Nobita no Shin-Kyoryu" (DORAEMON: NOBITA`S NEW DINOSAUR) which will be screened in March 2020. The Doraemon theatrical movies started from 1980 and the coming one will be the 40th anniversary film. You should look carefully after leaving 66 Plaza and in several places you will be able to see the traditional types of Doraemon instead of special movie versions. The event

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Special Thanks to Jenny Perillo SciFi Japan has been asked to share details on the GoFundMe campaign set up for the victims and the families of those effected by the tragedy at Kyoto Animation. This GoFundMe has been launched by Sentai Filmworks based in Houston, TX. The campaign can be found at gofundme.com/f/help-kyoani-heal. Please show your support. Campaign description On July 18, 2019, an arsonist set the Kyoto Animation studio on fire injuring several people and leading to the loss of lives. Details on this unbelievable act are still developing. Sentai Filmworks hopes to help the KyoAni team during this time of need and asks that you join us in this endeavor. Update: 7/18/19 8:15am CST Although the situation

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Author: Daisuke Ishizuka Leiji Matsumoto (he uses “L” instead of “R” in his English spelling) is the manga artist who is well known as the author of Captain Harlock, Galaxy Express 999, Space Battle Ship Yamato, etc. His works have been adapted as popular TV animation series and theatrical animation movies. Matsumoto was born in Kurume-city, Fukuoka prefecture and lived in Kokura-city in Fukuoka in his youth. Locals and visitors can see many of his characters at the Kokura area. Full-scale size bronze statues of Captain Harlock, Maetel with Tetsuo from Galaxy Express 999 greet guests at the Kokura station. The Kitakyushu Manga Museum opened near Kokura station in 2014 and he was inaugurated the honorary curator of the museum. The bronze statues were set there at the timing of opening the museum. There is another full-scale monument to Captain Harlock inside the museum.

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Source: Shochiku Co., Ltd. Official Site: iwatobi-sc.com (Japan) A SCIFI JAPAN EXCLUSIVE Japanese distributor Shochiku has provided information and large, high-res images for the anime feature film FREE! -ROAD TO THE WORLD- THE DREAM (??? Free!-Road to the World-?, Gekij?-ban Fur?! -Road to the World- Yume). This theatrically released movie is a rebuild of the popular television anime series FREE! -DIVE TO THE FUTURE-, which detailed the story of youths who dedicated their adolescence to swimming. The production by Kyoto Animation portrays young people who are thoroughly committed to swimming and striving towards their dreams. STORY Haruka (Nobunaga Shimazaki) and Makoto (Tatsuhisa Suzuki) have entered university where they are reunited with teammates from their middle school days; Asahi (Toshiyuki Toyonaga) and Ikuya (Koki Uchiyama). Looking at Ikuya, Haruka senses a problem and decides to help him somehow. CREDITS Japanese Theatrical Release: Friday,

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Source: Sentai Filmworks press release Official Site: danmachi.com/movie (Japan), danmachimovie.com (US) Sentai Filmworks has announced that IS IT WRONG TO TRY TO PICK UP GIRLS IN A DUNGEON? ARROW OF THE ORION (??? ????????????????????????? ? ?????? ?, Danjon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Dar? ka ? Orion no Ya ?, 2019) launches theatrically in select movie theaters July 23, 2019. Sentai Filmworks is partnering with Fathom Events to bring the all-new feature film plus exclusive content to big screens nationwide. Picking up shortly after the events of the global hit TV series of the same name, IS IT WRONG TO TRY TO PICK UP GIRLS IN A DUNGEON? ARROW OF THE ORION is a gripping standalone adventure penned by Fujino ?mori, the author of the original light novel series with animation production by

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Source: Sentai Filmworks press release Sentai Filmworks today announced upcoming appearances by actors Miyu Tomiya (Riko), Mariya Ise (Reg) and Shiori Izawa (Nanachi) as part of the “Voices of the Abyss: Meet the MADE IN ABYSS Seiyuus” panel hosted by Sentai Filmworks at Anime Expo 2019. The panel is part of a series of events that is expected to include exclusive fan interaction, autograph signing and a behind-the-scenes looks at the seiyuus’ performances in the critically acclaimed hit anime series and feature film franchise MADE IN ABYSS (????????, Meido in Abisu). Miyu Tomiya was named the Grand Prix winner of the 2014 Seiyuu Artist Training Program Selection and then made her professional debut in 2015. Since then she has voiced a number of characters in various anime series, including Riko in MADE IN ABYSS, Gabriel Tenma White in

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Source: Sentai Filmworks press release Official Site: danmachi.com/movie/ (Japan) Sentai Filmworks today announced that original creator Fujino Omori and anime producers Nobuhiro Osawa and Yuji Matsukura will join audiences for the exclusive premiere of IS IT WRONG TO TRY TO PICK UP GIRLS IN A DUNGEON? ARROW OF THE ORION (??? ????????????????????????? ? ?????? ?, Danjon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Dar? ka ? Orion no Ya ?, 2019) at Anime Expo 2019. There they will participate in a special Q&A session following the screening. Omori, Osawa and Matsukura are among the key creative forces behind the immensely popular anime adaptation of Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?, based on the light novel series written by Fujino Omori. Fujino Omori is the author and

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Visit VIZ Media During Anime Expo 2019 at Booth #2206 Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases Special Thanks to Jane Lui and Erik Jansen Join VIZ Media in welcoming famed manga creator Bisco Hatori as an official Guest of Honor at Anime Expo 2019. The creator of the bestselling Ouran High School Host Club will have a dedicated panel and host autograph sessions throughout the show. VIZ Media will continue to host special guests across its other panels and events: voice actors Zach Aguilar (ONE-PUNCH MAN’s Genos) and Billy Kametz (Josuke of JOJO`S BIZARRE ADVENTURE: DIAMOND IS UNBREAKABLE) will join in the discussion on the SHONEN JUMP panel. Meanwhile, SAILOR MOON fans won’t want to miss the SAILOR MOON Official Anime panel, which features one of our biggest rosters of English voice

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Source: Sentai Filmworks press release Official Site: danmachi.com/danmachi2 (Japan) Sentai Filmworks today announced a planned sneak preview of the highly anticipated second season of IS IT WRONG TO TRY TO PICK UP GIRLS IN A DUNGEON? (????????????????????????? II, Danjon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Dar? ka II) as part of an exclusive event at Anime Expo 2019. The first episode of the new series is set to premiere July 5, 11:30 AM in Main Events Hall B. This special event is a prelude to Sentai Filmworks’ wider rollout of the series on select digital outlets later the same month. The exciting follow-up to the first season of IS IT WRONG TO TRY TO PICK UP GIRLS IN A DUNGEON? is produced by J.C. Staff (FOOD WARS!, FAMILIAR OF ZERO, WAITING IN THE SUMMER) and

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Source: GKIDS Inc. press release Official Site: funanmovie.com FUNAN, based on the family history of director Denis Do, is a story of survival and enduring hope set during the Khmer Rouge regime of 1970s Cambodia. Winner of the top prizes at the Annecy Animation Festival and the Animation is Film Festival, FUNAN is a searing and remarkable debut from Do. The film features the voices of Bérénice Bejo (THE ARTIST) and Louis Garrel (THE DREAMERS). StoryZ Cambodia, April 1975. Chou is a young woman whose everyday world is suddenly upended by the arrival of the Khmer Rouge regime. During the chaos of the forced exile from their home, Chou and her husband are separated from their 4-year-old son, who has been sent to an unknown

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Source: Warner Bros. Pictures Japan Official Site: birthday-wonderland.jp (Japan) A SCIFI JAPAN EXCLUSIVE A wonderful and mysterious birthday adventure, one that you will never forget. Beyond the basement door in Aunt Chi’s antique shop lies a world beyond your wildest imagination... Distributor Warner Bros. Pictures Japan has provided information and images from THE WONDERLAND (?????????????, B?sud? Wand?rando), a fantasy anime based on the juvenile novel A Strange Journey From the Basement (Chikashitsu Kara no Fushigi na Tabi). The film is directed by Keiichi Hara (SUMMER DAYS WITH COO, MISS HOKUSAI). STORY Akane Uesugi is a shy 6th grader who has trouble telling other people how she feels. The day before her birthday, her mother, Midori, sends her on an errand: to go get her birthday present from her free-spirited Aunt Chi’s antique shop. But a strange man named Hippocrates the Alchemist, who

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Source: VIZ Media press release Special Thanks to Jane Lui ONE-PUNCH MAN and three classic NARUTO movies are now available for Canadian fans on streaming partner Tubi TV. Catch the hit ONE-PUNCH MAN from the very beginning (Season 1, 12 episodes) before diving into the highly anticipated first episode of Season 2 -- new episodes debut each Tuesday! Saitama has achieved his dream of becoming a hero after three years of "special" training... But he`s so devastatingly powerful that even his mightiest opponents are taken out with a single punch! Though he faces new enemies every day, it turns out being devastatingly powerful is actually kind of a bore. Can a hero be too strong? Tubi is now also the streaming home of NARUTO: THE MOVIE - NINJA CLASH IN THE LAND OF SNOW, LEGEND OF THE STONE OF GELEL, and GUARDIANS OF THE CRESCENT MOON

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Source: Sentai Filmworks press release Official Site: miabyss.com/movie02 (Japan), madeinabyssmovies.com (US) Sentai Filmworks today announced that MADE IN ABYSS: WANDERING TWILIGHT (???????? ???????, Meidoin’ Abisu H?r? Suru Tasogare, 2019) will premiere at Anime Central in Rosemont, IL, on Friday, May 17 at 8:30 p.m. Sentai Filmworks and Anime Central have teamed up to host a red-carpet event for this final film in the MADE IN ABYSS two-part compendium series. Picking up where MADE IN ABYSS: JOURNEY’S DAWN left off, WANDERING TWILIGHT continues the adventures of plucky cave raiders, Riko and Reg, as they confront the mysterious Abyss where sheer excitement and discovery are equally matched by looming danger and certain death. The film includes exclusive content and scenes available for the first time only on the big screen. Anime Central, the Midwest’s largest anime convention, boasts an

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Both Companies Partner to Deliver Japanese Anime IP to Worldwide Audiences Through Multilingual Simulcasts Source: Funimation press release Special Thanks to Scott Barretto Today at AnimeJapan 2019, Funimation, a subsidiary of Sony Pictures Television, the leader in sub and dub anime content, and Bilibili Inc., a leading online entertainment platform for young generations in China, jointly announced that the companies are partnering to acquire premium Japanese anime IP for global distribution. Gen Fukunaga, President and Chief Executive Officer of Funimation, and Carly Lee, Vice Chairman of the Board and Chief Operating Officer of Bilibili, made the announcement during a live presentation on the AJ Open Stage. Both parties will jointly acquire anime shows over the next few years. They will seek opportunities to draw upon IP rights in areas such as broadcast TV, VOD, EST, home entertainment, gaming and merchandising in both the U.S. and China, the

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Anime Feature Film Coming Fall 2019 Source: Funimation Films press release Special Thanks to Scott Barretto Today at a special Funimation C2E2 announcement panel, Japanese guests Fuminori Kizaki (director of AFRO SAMURAI), Toshiaki Obata (marketing producer of PSYCHO-PASS) and Shuzo John Shiota (President of Polygon Pictures) revealed plans for their new sci-fi feature film HUMAN LOST Osamu Dazai’s No Longer Human, a masterpiece of Japanese literature, is re-imagined in this new film that will take audiences on a hyper-kinetic deep dive into human consciousness and emotion. HUMAN LOST will be distributed in the U.S. by Funimation Films in select theaters this fall. SYNOPSIS From the chief director of PSYCHO-PASS, director of AFRO SAMURAI, and the studio that brought you GODZILLA: PLANET OF THE MONSTERS. The year is 2036. A revolution in medical treatment has conquered death by means of internal nanomachines and the “Shell System”, yet only

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Celebrate BORUTO: NARUTO NEXT GENERATIONS With Panels And Autograph Sessions At C2E2 Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases Special Thanks to Jane Lui and Erik Jansen VIZ Media heads to Chicago’s premier pop culture and comics convention, Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo for panels, signing sessions, and more. C2E2 2019 takes place March 22nd – 24th in the South Building at McCormick Place in downtown Chicago. VIZ Media celebrates all things BORUTO at this year’s C2E2. BORUTO: NARUTO NEXT GENERATIONS voice actors Robbie Daymond (Mitsuki) and Cherami Leigh (Sarada) will participate on the VIZ Media and SHONEN JUMP panels, autograph sessions, and a livestreamed interview on C2E2’s Live Stage. More information on C2E2 is available at C2E2.com. Friday, March 22nd 1:30pm: Official VIZ

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Join VIZ Media And Special Guests At The Pacific Northwest’s Largest Pop Culture Convention Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases Special Thanks to Jane Lui and Erik Jansen VIZ Media hosts a weekend of panel events and autograph sessions at Emerald City Comic Con 2019, which takes place March 14th-17th at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle, WA. This year at ECCC, VIZ Media welcomes special voice actor guests Amanda Miller of BORUTO: NARUTO NEXT GENERATIONS (Boruto) and ONE-PUNCH MAN’s Zac Aguilar (Genos). Both Amanda Miller and Zac Aguilar will participate on VIZ Media panels as well as special signing sessions. Tickets and additional details for ECCC 2019 are available at emeraldcitycomiccon.com. Saturday, March 16th 5:15pm: Official VIZ Media Panel Room TCC L3-R3

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Source: Aniplex of America press release Official Site: kimetsu.com (Japan), demonslayer-anime.com (US) Special Thanks to Aiko Makino Aniplex of America is proud to present the U.S. premiere of the highly anticipated new series DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA (????, Kimetsu no Yaiba, 2019) at the Aratani Theatre in the historic Little Tokyo neighborhood of Los Angeles. Attendees will be the first in the U.S. to experience this thrilling new series produced by ufotable (FATE/STAY NIGHT [HEAVEN`S FEEL] trilogy, FATE/ZERO) set to premiere in April. The premiere event will be held on Sunday March 31, 2019 at 3 PM (PDT) and will feature a theatrical feature-length animation along with a special giveaway for those who attend. Tickets are priced at $10 each and will be available starting Friday, March 8th at DemonSlayerPremiere. DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO

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Source: Funimation Films press release Official Site: tv-tokyo.co.jp/anime/fruits_basket (Japan), funimationfilms.com/movie/fruitsbasket (US) Special Thanks to Scott Barretto Funimation Films presents a special two-night premiere screening event for the highly anticipated, all-new series FRUITS BASKET (?????????, Fur?tsu Basuketto, 2019) in select U.S. cities on March 26 (English dub) & March 27 (English subtitles). Guests will enjoy the first two full episodes of FRUITS BASKET before the series’ scheduled television debut in Japan in April. Each ticketholder will receive an exclusive gift pack that includes a commemorative FRUITS BASKET 16 oz stadium cup, branded lanyard and set of three pinback badgers featuring the characters Yuki, Kyo and Tohru. Run-time, including special interview footage with Japanese and English voice actors, is 85 minutes. Advance tickets are available now at funimationfilms.com/movie/fruitsbasket. Synopsis

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Source: GKIDS Inc., Fathom Events press release Official Site: waka-okami.jp (Japan), OkkosInn.com (US) Special Thanks to Katherine Schwappach and Erik Stein GKIDS, the acclaimed distributor of multiple Academy Award-nominated animated features, and Fathom Events, continue their collaboration to bring treasured animated features to U.S. cinemas with OKKO`S INN (?????????, Waka Okami wa Sh?gakusei!, 2018). The latest feature from famed anime studio Madhouse and director Kitaro Kosaka, who was a key animator on numerous classic films at the venerable Studio Ghibli, OKKO`S INN seamlessly blends immersive, idyllic landscapes with storybook charm in a heartfelt journey about growing up and finding one’s way. The film OKKO`S INN follows Okko, who goes to live in the countryside with her grandmother, who runs a traditional Japanese inn built on top of an ancient spring said to have healing waters, after

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