GKIDS will release the 'Cocoon - One Summer of Girlhood' anime film in North American theaters on September 4, 2026, with a trailer released in July and screenings at JAPAN CUTS and Fantasia International Film Festival.
The anime adaptation of Machiko Kyo's manga 'Cocoon' has completed its journey from a Japanese television broadcast to a North American theatrical release. The film, directed by Yukimitsu Ina in his feature debut, originally aired on BS-NHK in March 2025 and on NHK General in August 2025. Produced by studio Sasayuri, the 63-minute film features music by Kensuke Ushio and animation production by former Studio Ghibli animator Hitomi Tateno. The cast includes Hikari Mitsushima and Marika Ito.
GKIDS acquired all North American rights in June 2026 and began rolling out the film with a North American premiere at the JAPAN CUTS event in July. The Canadian premiere followed at the Fantasia International Film Festival. On July 16, GKIDS released the English-subtitled trailer and confirmed the film will open in theaters on September 4 in both Japanese with subtitles and an English dub. Home video plans and English-language cast details were promised for later in 2026.
The manga itself, a one-volume historical fiction, focuses on the Himeyuri schoolgirls during the Battle of Okinawa. The anime adaptation follows two students, San and Mayu, on a tropical island as war escalates and they are ordered to nurse wounded soldiers in a cave hospital. The story has drawn attention for its somber wartime perspective and the involvement of a veteran animation team.
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Jul 16
GKIDS has released the English-subtitled trailer for 'Cocoon - One Summer of Girlhood', the debut feature from director Yukimitsu Ina. Based on Machiko Kyo's manga, the film follows two students whose island life is disrupted by WWII. It opens in North American theaters on September 4 in Japanese with subtitles and an English dub. The film features a notable staff including former Ghibli animators and composer Kensuke Ushio.
Jul 16
GKIDS began streaming an English-subtitled trailer for the anime adaptation of Machiko Kyō's Cocoon manga. The film will open in North American theaters on September 4 in Japanese with subtitles and with an English dub, with a home video release to follow. The anime, which aired in Japan in 2025, is set on a tropical island during war and follows two schoolgirls. The cast includes Hikari Mitsushima and Marika Itō, with direction by Yukimitsu Ina and music by kensuke ushio.
Jul 10
The 30th Fantasia International Film Festival will screen multiple anime premieres including the world premiere of CloverWorks' three-part collection Grotesqqque, two episodes of the live-action Junji Ito series, and several short films, along with the North American premiere of A New Dawn and the Canadian premiere of cocoon. The festival runs July 16 to August 2 in Montreal.
Jun 16
Gkids has acquired all North American rights to the wartime anime film Cocoon - One Summer of Girlhood, based on Machiko Kyo's manga, and will begin screening it in theaters on September 4. The film will be available in Japanese with English subtitles and with an English dub. It will have its North American premiere at the JAPAN CUTS event in July before the wider theatrical rollout. The 63-minute feature, directed by Yukimitsu Ina in his directorial debut, follows two schoolgirls, San and Mayu, on a tropical southern island during World War II. As war escalates, the students are ordered to nurse the wounded in a military hospital hidden in a cave, and they lose friends one by one. The anime originally debuted on BS-NHK in March 2025 and later aired on NHK General that August. The music was composed by Kensuke Ushio, and Hitomi Tateno, a former Studio Ghibli animator, served as animation producer. The studio Sasayuri produced the anime. Gkids said it will announce home entertainment plans and details about the English-language cast later this year.
Jun 16
Beneath the Tangles' June 16th Reader's Corner features reviews of several new manga releases, headlined by the long-awaited English release of Naoki Urasawa's Billy Bat and the one-volume historical manga cocoon about the Himeyuri schoolgirls during the Battle of Okinawa.