Originally published at: https://geektherapy.org/gkids-presents-its-most-ambitious-annecy-international-animation-film-festival-lineup-in-company-history/
Author: Newsroom
ANNECY, FRANCE (June 13, 2025) — GKIDS returned to the 2025 Annecy International Animation Film Festival with record-breaking momentum as the North American studio unveiled its most expansive and artistically daring lineup to date. Recognized as a lead curator in global animation and known for championing bold, visionary artists, the company’s latest acquisition slate of Annecy titles is a testament to the company’s unyielding commitment to the animated art form.
GKIDS’ acquired Annecy titles include (in alphabetical order):
● ALL YOU NEED IS KILL
● ANOTHER WORLD
● CHAO
● LITTLE AMÉLIE OR THE CHARACTER OF RAIN
GKIDS-co-produced films presented at Annecy are (in alphabetical order):
● 100 METERS
● ALLAH IS NOT OBLIGED
● SUNNY (in development)
The GKIDS retrospective title which played in Annecy Classics is:
● ANGEL’S EGG (4K Restoration)
“As GKIDS has evolved, our mission has remained the same: to champion the best animation from around the world from the most exciting talent. We’re proud to have that mission illustrated at this year’s Annecy,” said Rodney Uhler, GKIDS’ Director of Acquisitions and Development. “While these films are each unique works of art, they give us hope that the broader animation landscape is as vibrant as ever. A GKIDS film is an intimate, emotional French gem, an action-packed, futuristic epic from Japan, an imaginative world from emerging talent in Hong Kong and everything in between. We’re thrilled these titles can be showcased at this festival and look forward to bringing them to audiences in the future.”
Acknowledged by its passionate fan base as maintaining one of the most expansive and critically acclaimed animation libraries, GKIDS continues to set the standard for curating and producing world-class animated films that push the boundaries of the medium. Its full 2025 Annecy showcase is listed below:
The animated action sci-fi drama ALL YOU NEED IS KILL marks the latest film GKIDS has acquired from Warner Bros. Japan, with animation production by acclaimed Japanese animation house Studio 4°C (the upcoming ChaO, Tekkonkinkreet). Previous collaborations between GKIDS and Studio 4°C include Children of the Sea, Mind Game, and several other celebrated titles. GKIDS secured distribution rights in multiple territories including North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. The feature directorial debut of Kenichiro Akimoto written by Yuichiro Kido is based on the global best-selling light novel of the same name from author Hiroshi Sakurazaka. The film made its world premiere at Annecy in the Midnight Specials section this week.
Set in the year 20XX, ALL YOU NEED IS KILL follows the story of Rita, a resourceful but isolated young woman volunteering to help rebuild Japan after the mysterious appearance of a massive alien flower known as “Darol.” When Darol unexpectedly erupts in a deadly event, unleashing monstrous creatures that decimate the population, Rita is caught in the destruction—and killed. But then she wakes up again. And again. Caught in an endless time loop, Rita must navigate the trauma and repetition of death until she crosses paths with Keiji, a shy young man trapped in the same cycle. Together, they fight to break free from the loop and find meaning in the chaos around them.
GKIDS acquired North American distribution rights to ANOTHER WORLD, the directorial debut of Tommy Ng Kai Chung, written and produced by Polly Yeung Po Man, and produced by veteran film producer Chan Gin Kai. The feature animated film is adapted from the popular Japanese novel SENNENKI (千年鬼) by Saijo Naka and published by Tokuma Shoten Publishing Co., Ltd. The fantasy drama made its world premiere at Annecy as an Official Selection in the Midnight Specials section, marking the first time in over two decades that a Hong Kong animated feature has been invited to Annecy—the last being My Life as McDull in 2003.
A dark fairytale spanning a thousand years, across earth and a spiritual realm, ANOTHER WORLD tells the story of Gudo, a spirit who guides transient souls on their journey to reincarnation. He encounters a young girl named Yuri, and embarks on a dangerous journey to prevent her unresolved rage from unleashing a hidden curse that could destroy the world. The film stands out for its strong message and its diversity of tonalities – between benevolence and horror, serenity and nightmare, grief and acceptance.
Just prior to Annecy, GKIDS announced its acquisition of the wildly romantic “fish out of water” comedy CHAO from veteran animator and director Yasuhiro Aoki, the latest film collaboration in a longstanding relationship between the U.S.-based company and the acclaimed Japanese animation house Studio 4°C (the upcoming All You Need Is Kill, Tekkonkinkreet, Mind Game) whose previous collaborations include Children of the Sea, Mind Game, and several other celebrated titles. CHAO made its world premiere as an Official Selection in Competition at Annecy.
In a futuristic world where humans and mermaids coexist, CHAO follows Stephan, a mild-mannered office worker at a shipbuilding company, whose life is upended when he is suddenly proposed to by Chao — a princess from the mermaid kingdom. With no time to make sense of what’s happening, Stephan soon finds himself living with the unpredictable, wholehearted Chao. As her sincere love begins to break down his emotional barriers, an unexpected and touching romance begins to unfold.
This year’s acquisition lineup for GKIDS began with the French feature LITTLE AMÉLIE OR THE CHARACTER OF RAIN (original French title: Amélie et la Métaphysique des tubes) which was acquired after its Cannes Film Festival world premiere last month, where it played as an Official Selection in the Special Screenings section. The feature directorial debut of Maïlys Vallade (The Lighthouse Keeper; layout and storyboard artist on I Lost My Body and Calamity) and Liane-Cho Han (animation director on Calamity and Long Way North) is an emotionally nuanced and visually breathtaking film, reflecting the deeply personal and stylistically bold storytelling GKIDS is known for curating.
The world is a perplexing, peaceful mystery to Amélie until a miraculous encounter with chocolate ignites her wild sense of curiosity. As she develops a deep attachment to her family’s housekeeper, Nishio-san, Amélie discovers the wonders of nature as well as the emotional truths hidden beneath the surface of her family’s idyllic life as foreigners in post-war Japan.
GKIDS is a producing partner and the North American distributor of the sports drama 100 METERS (original Japanese title: Hyakuemu), the upcoming new animated feature film from acclaimed director Kenji Iwaisawa (ON-GAKU: Our Sound) and screenwriter Yuichiro Kido, alongside Pony Canyon, Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), and Asmik Ace. Based on the beloved manga by Uoto, author of Orb: On the Movements of the Earth, which also received a recent anime adaptation, the heart-pounding and exhilarating adaptation of 100 METERS was first announced prior to its sold-out Work-in-Progress session last year at Annecy. The film made its world premiere this year in the Annecy Presents section, with GKIDS set to release in North American theaters this October in its original Japanese language and a new English version. The film will be released domestically in Japan on September 19th.
100 METERS follows Togashi, a track star who is born to run. As a kid, he is naturally gifted and wins every 100-meter race without effort. But in sixth grade, he meets Komiya, a transfer student who is full of determination but lacks technique. In teaching him, Togashi gives Komiya a new purpose: to win no matter what. Years pass by, and Togashi and Komiya meet again as rivals on the track and reveal their true selves.
ALLAH IS NOT OBLIGED, produced by Sébastien Onomo (Special Touch Studios), Adrien Chef & Paul Thiltges (Paul Thiltges Distributions), Anne-Laure Guégan & Géraldine Sprimont (Need Productions), Eric Idriss-Kanago & Daniela Mujica (Yzanakio), and Annemie Degryse (Lunanime) along with GKIDS, is a powerful and unflinching animated adaptation that follows Birahima, a ten-year-old orphan thrust into the brutal tribal warfare of West Africa who must navigate a dangerous world as a child soldier and witch doctor—learning to survive amid violence, betrayal, and shattered truths. The feature film made its world premiere as an Official Selection in Competition at Annecy.
Birahima, a ten-year-old orphan from Guinea, tells with irony how he is thrown into tribal warfare while trying to reach his aunt in Liberia. Yacouba, a shady man, convinces him to become a child soldier, while he becomes a grimian and witch doctor among the fighters. Shunted between enemy factions, Birahima grows up quickly and learns to distrust the stories that he’s told.
Continuing the studio’s investment in original, emotionally resonant storytelling, GKIDS and renowned Japanese stop-motion house dwarf studios are currently co-producing SUNNY, a feature in development based on the acclaimed autobiographical manga of the same name by Taiyo Matsumoto (Tekkonkinkreet manga, Ping Pong) and written and directed by Michael Arias (Tekkonkinkreet feature film). Presented at the “Japanese Feature Animations in Progress” panel at the MIFA market,, the project was also selected for a session at the Annecy Animation Showcase at Cannes, which was part of Cannes Animation Day, a joint initiative between the Marché du Film at Cannes and the Annecy Festival.
Described by Director Michael Arias, “Taiyo Matsumoto’s ‘Sunny’ is a soulful adventure about kids who face the odds with imagination and innocence — part Dickens, part Fellini, and all heart.”
Rounding out the lineup of GKIDS titles in France was ANGEL’S EGG, where the studio’s all-new 4K restoration was presented in Annecy Classics, following the world premiere of the restoration as an Official Selection of Cannes Classics. First released directly to home video in 1985, the cult film is a creative collaboration between internationally acclaimed director Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell), who wrote and directed the feature, and revered artist Yoshitaka Amano (Final Fantasy, Vampire Hunter D). Forty years after the film’s original release, GKIDS will present the restored film, supervised by director Oshii himself, in cinemas for the first time nationwide this year.
In an underwater city, a young girl takes care of a large egg she holds carefully in her arms – a treasure that she believes is an angel’s egg. A boy with a gun arrives in search of a bird he saw in his dream. At first it seems as if feelings of sympathy are developing between the two. Then, one night, the boy crushes her precious egg.