New York Anime Festival 2010

FUNimation Panel

FUNimation's panel at the 2010 New York Anime Festival was light on new announcements. The biggest revelation was a North American theatrical release for Summer Wars, the latest film from director Mamoru Hosoda. Licensed by FUNimation earlier this year, the movie follows the chaotic intertwining of a virtual world with real-life Japan, all backing the story of a high-school kid spending the summer working for his crushed-upon classmate's rural family. As with most anime theatrical runs on these shores, Summer Wars will start small: the film opens in Los Angeles and New York this December, with additional cities added. Of course, the numbers of theaters showing the film will increase with its success in the first round of cities, so FUNimation was quick to remind fans to go see it, suggesting that even those unacquainted with anime will enjoy Summer Wars.

“If you have a heart and soul, you will like this movie,” said dub director Mike McFarland.

According to FUNimation, DVD and Blu-ray releases for Summer Wars will follow in the spring of 2011.

FUNimation promoted another major anime film getting a brief tour of American theaters: Evangelion: 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance. In contrast to the first film's recreation of the Neon Genesis Evangelion TV show's first round of episodes, the second movie diverges significantly, adding a new EVA pilot named Mari and throwing many new twists into the storyline of the original series. FUNimation had no concrete release date for the film, just a 2011 target for its theatrical run.

During the question-and-answer session that concluded the panel, FUNimation confirmed that the Eden of the East films will arrive here in 2011; the first comes in the spring, and the second later in the year. Also hitting this spring is FUNimation's release of FLCL on Blu-Ray and DVD.