CreatorVC announced it is producing a documentary about the impact of anime in the West. The film, titled "Icons of Anime: The Western Awakening," will invite fan feedback through an online survey running until August 7, according to the press release. CreatorVC, known for long‑form documentaries on the live‑action films Aliens and The Thing, made the announcement on Thursday. The documentary will examine titles such as Speed Racer, Star Blazers, Robotech, Akira, and Ghost in the Shell to assess how anime entered and transformed the Western market. Executive producer David Weiner and producer Daniel Richardson are attached to the project. Tim Eldred, an Emmy‑nominated animation director and veteran anime fan, will write and direct the film. The production team intends to interview anime creators, experts from Japan and the United States, fans, and contemporary filmmakers about their experiences with anime. CreatorVC’s previous work includes the five‑part series In Search of Darkness on the horror genre, the 2024 documentary Aliens Expanded (282 minutes) and the 2026 documentary The Thing Expanded (312 minutes). The fan survey is hosted at iconsofanimedoc.com. The documentary’s release schedule has not been announced, and it remains to be seen how fan input will shape its final content.
Art, books, film, gaming, and the conversations defining the week.
Sega presented a trailer for Virtua Fighter Crossroads at the Evo fighting game tournament on Sunday, announcing the addition of a masked character called Bakunawa Killer. The trailer does not reveal the character's identity but shows moves taken from past series characters Lau Chan and Lei Fei.
Sega describes Virtua Fighter Crossroads as a narrative‑driven action‑adventure game that intertwines story and combat, letting players follow four protagonists through a city where choices affect alliances and outcomes. Development staff include world‑building supervisor David Hayter, lead writer Brad Kayne, and scenario writers Tsuyoshi Furuta and Shinji Yamamoto.
The game is slated for release in 2027. The Virtua Fighter series launched in arcades in 1993, has included five main installments, and released Virtua Fighter 5 in 2006, followed by updates such as Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown (2010), Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. (January 2025), and versions including Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown (June 2021) and Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. World Stage (October 30, 2024 for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Steam; March 26, 2025 for Nintendo Switch 2). The 1995 anime adaptation of the franchise streams on Tubi TV in English.
Kadokawa announced on June 28 that the SHIBOYUGI: Playing Death Games to Put Food on the Table 44: Cloudy Beach anime film will start streaming worldwide on July 13. Netflix will carry the film in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania and the Middle East. Crunchyroll will stream it in the Indian subcontinent and the CIS, while Amediateka will provide the film in the CIS. The film will also be available on Aniplus and Laftel in Korea, Bahamut Animation Madness in Hong Kong, Transvision and catchplay in Indonesia, catchplay in Singapore, True Visions and bilibili in Thailand, and on Twitch, MOD&Hami Video, My-Video, FriDay, Bahamut Animation Madness, LiTV&Ofiri, LineTV, catchplay, Renta!, and CNS bbTV in Taiwan. A limited two‑week theatrical run in Japan will begin on July 10.
The story follows Yuuki after he overcomes the "thirty-game-jinx", a condition that reduces survival rates among long‑term participants. He joins a new game called Cloudy Beach on a remote island with seven other players, one of whom he knows personally.
The film features the voice cast: Aino Shimada as Maguma, Anna Nagase as Essei, Hikaru Tōno as Mozuku, Konomi Inagaki as Hizumi, Riko Akechi as Mitsuba, Yukari Tamura as Koyomi, Yume Miyamoto as Airi.
Directed by Sōta Ueno of Studio DEEN, the film’s series composition is handled by Rintarou Ikeda, character design by Eri Osada, and sound direction by Noriyoshi Konuma. Additional staff include concept artist hewa, sub‑character designers Keika Ōtsuka and Sōta Komatsu, prop designer Sonoka Kuroiwa, color key artist Imari Katsuragi, art director Yoshihiro Nakamura, compositing director of photography Shinyo Kondō, editors Haruko Kikuchi and Keiko Onodera, sound production by Bit Grooove Promotion, sound effects by Kaori Yamada, music by Junichi Matsumoto, and music production by Nippon Columbia.
The original light novel series, written by Yūshi Ukai and illustrated by Nekometal, premiered on January 7 with a 60‑minute first episode. Crunchyroll streamed the series as it aired and offers a same‑day English dub, while Netflix also streams the series. The novels, published by Kadokawa’s MF Bunko J imprint, began with the first volume in November 2022 after winning the Excellence Award at the 18th MF Bunko J Light Novel Newcomer Award. The ninth volume was released on January 23, and the tenth volume is scheduled for June 25. The series ranked first in Takarajimasha’s 2024 Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi! New Title category. A manga adaptation launched in Kadokawa’s Comp Ace magazine in April 2023, and the fifth volume was published on January 23.
Kadokawa World Entertainment, a subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, disclosed its majority ownership of Anime News Network, LLC.
Annecy International Animation Film Festival 2026 announced its official awards on June 27, naming A New Dawn the Contrechamp Jury Award winner and Takopi's Original Sin the Jur...
Annecy International Animation Film Festival 2026 announced its official awards on June 27, naming A New Dawn the Contrechamp Jury Award winner and Takopi's Original Sin the Jury Award for a TV Series.
The festival ran from June 21 to June 27 in Annecy, France, and presented a range of Japanese animated features and series in competitive and non‑competitive sections.
A New Dawn, directed by Yoshitoshi Shinomiya and produced by ASMIK Ace and Miyu Productions, opened in Japan on March 6 after a one‑year delay. The film’s theme song “Aoba” is performed by imase. It was introduced by Shinomiya at a May 2024 Animation Day showcase.
Takopi's Original Sin, a six‑episode series directed by Shinya Iino and based on the manga by Taizan 5, premiered on June 28, 2025 on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, ABEMA, U‑NEXT and other platforms. Keita Nagahara serves as character designer and ENISHIYA produced the series. A compilation film titled Takopi's Original Sin: Thank You, See You Tomorrow is planned.
The festival also featured titles such as NOTHING NEW, We Are Aliens, Peleliu: Guernica of Paradise and The Obsessed, as well as sections including Annecy Presents, Midnight Specials and Commissioned Films.
The 2026 edition highlighted Japanese contributions across short, graduation and special‑event categories, underscoring the festival’s continued focus on international animation.
The final chapter of Miyuki Nakayama's manga Spirits & Cat Ears was published in the August issue of Kadokawa's Comic Cune on Friday. Kadokawa will release the final volumes, 12 and 13, simultaneously at the end of the year. Spirits & Cat Ears began in January 2014 in Kadokawa's Monthly Comic Alive and moved to Monthly Comic Cune in November 2017. The series has been collected in 11 Japanese volumes, the most recent shipped in June 2022. Yen Press publishes the English edition and released the 11th volume in September 2023. Yen Press also published the fourth volume of Blend-S on March 24, 2024. The manga follows Neneko Iizuna, a character with cat ears who becomes a miko tasked with exorcising spirits in an infirmary. Yen Press describes the story as focusing on her interactions with new coworkers. The series inspired two drama CDs. In March 2025, the announcement of the sixth compiled volume included plans for an anime adaptation titled Ore to Yu Nii! The manga is available on digital platforms such as Manga UP!, ebookjapan, LINE Manga, and Kindle Store. Kadokawa intends to publish the concluding volumes before the year ends, concluding a twelve‑year run in Japanese manga magazines.
Netflix announced that the second season of the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners anime will premiere in the fall. The announcement included a new visual that reveals four main characters: Weak Kingsley, Talia Yang, Roman Carax, and D. Kai Ikarashi, who previously worked as a storyboard artist, animation director, animator, and prop designer on the first series, will direct the new season in his debut. Bartosz Sztybor returns as producer and writer, and Ichigo Kanno serves as lead character designer. Masahiko Otsuka continues as scriptwriter. The series will consist of ten episodes and will be available on Netflix. Aniplex of America plans to release a Blu‑ray set in North America on October 28. Anime Limited and Plaion Pictures will handle home video releases in Europe, while Sugoi Co will distribute the series in Australia and New Zealand. A prequel manga titled Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Madness launched on Comic Alive+ in December and will be published in seven languages.
SNK announced The Path of the Warrior: Art of Fighting 3 R, a revamped version of the 1996 fighting game Art of Fighting 3: The Path of the Warrior, at the Evo fighting game tournament on Sunday. The update will add King and Yuri Sakazaki to the roster and will be available on PC via Steam, with no release date announced. Art of Fighting 3 was the final entry in SNK's Art of Fighting series, released in 1996 and originally featuring only Ryo Sakazaki and Robert Garcia as returning characters. SNK had previously announced development of a new Art of Fighting title, and The Hollywood Reporter reported in 2024 that The Arena production studio is working on a South Town Saga media adaptation series that includes live‑action films, a webtoon, and an animated series, with the Art of Fighting webtoon slated to launch first. The new version will launch on PC through Steam, and SNK did not disclose a launch date. The game adds King and Yuri, characters previously absent from the original 1996 release. The original game had no returning characters from earlier titles except the series protagonists. SNK's YouTube channel, via Hachima Kikō, provided the source material. The announcement was made during the Evo fighting game tournament. The release will provide an updated experience for fans, though a specific launch timeline remains unspecified.
The staff of the television anime adaptation of Yōsuke Kaneda's manga 'The Classroom of a Black Cat and a Witch' released a third promotional video on June 28, announcing a new opening theme and adding Attack Nishimoto to the cast as Ursa Minor, a Virgo Magic student.
The series premiered on April 12 and is broadcast on the 'Agaru Anime' block on CBC, TBS and 26 additional channels, airing Sundays at 11:30 p.m. and streaming on Crunchyroll. It follows witch apprentice Spica Virgo, who lacks magical ability, and a speaking black cat that appears before her, initiating a secret master‑apprentice pact.
The new opening theme, '∞Rettō‑Sei' (Infinitely Inferior Star), is performed by singer Akari Nanawo and will be used for the anime's second cour, which begins after the first half‑year run. The first opening theme 'Cusp' is performed by ASCA and the first ending theme 'Tune Up' by Spica Spica. The cast includes Kaede Hondo as Spica Virgo, Nobunaga Shimazaki as Claude Sirius, Fūka Izumi as Aria Aquarius, Minori Suzuki as Merrow Pisces, Azusa Tachibana as Ewe Aries, Haruka Shiraishi as Io Taurus, Yūto Uemura as Castor Gemini, Rena Hasegawa as Pollux Gemini, Shōya Ishige as Tarf Cancer, Ai Fairouz as Leo Regulus, Tomohiro Ōno as Astraea Libra, Miho Wataya as Hana Sasorijo, Kazuki Ura as Chiron Sagittarius Aradia, Miyuki Sakurai as Capella Capricorn, Kana Hanazawa as Principal Jeanne, and Shōya Hayami as Vice Principal Justice Libra. Director Naoyuki Tatsuwa leads the production at LIDEN FILMS, while Midori Gotō oversees series scripts and Takayuki Onoda designs the characters.
The anime is slated to air for two consecutive cours, concluding in early 2027, and will continue to be available on Crunchyroll as new episodes are released.