Highlights
- The 30th Fantasia International Film Festival will spotlight anime through its Animation Plus and Anime no Bento programs.
- Major titles include Grotesqqque, A New Dawn, and the Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice’s anime adaptation, which will screen at the event.
- Beyond screenings, Fantasia 2026 serves as an important platform connecting anime creators with international distributors and critics.
The 30th Fantasia International Film Festival is placing anime at the center of its 2026 program with a broader slate featuring films and short-form works. Running from July 16 to August 2 in Montreal, the festival will screen high-profile titles including Grotesqqque, A New Dawn, Cherry and Virgin, and Sekiro: No Defeat.
The festival’s anime lineup is divided between Animation Plus, where anime titles screen alongside animated productions from around the world, and Anime no Bento, a curated showcase of Japanese anime shorts. Animation Plus lineup features original theatrical work with major video game and manga adaptations.
Founded in 1996, Fantasia is one of North America’s largest genre film festivals, running more than 125 features and 200-plus shorts this year across venues including Concordia Hall, J.A. de Sève cinema, and Cinéma du Musée.
Sekiro: No Defeat, Grotesqqque, and More Anime Selections for 30th Fantasia International Film Festival
Animation Plus carries the festival’s six anime selections, including CloverWorks’ Grotesqqque, From Software’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice game’s film adaptation, and a Japan-France co-production, A New Dawn. The segment will also showcase Madhouse’s 2009 anime feature Redline.
One of the highly anticipated world premieres, Grotesqqque, directed by Atsushi Nishigori, bundles three shorts, A(E)liens, Yoroshiku★girl, and Nocturne: Nuit Grotesque, into a single 104-minute program. Another prominent Canadian premiere is Cocoon – One Summer of Girlhood, commissioned by NHK for the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
Cocoon will mark the first production from Sasayuri, a studio founded by veteran Studio Ghibli staff. Cherry and Virgin, a romance drama from Masanao Kawajiri, first announced in 2021, will finally screen ahead of its 2027 theatrical opening.
Anime no Bento gathers seven shorts spanning studios such as Nippon Animation, STUDIO4ºC, and newer studios Gemstone and ETERNA, highlighting the breadth of contemporary Japanese animation.
The category will function as a world premiere stage for several titles, including the Kubrick-inspired 20001 An Earth Odyssey, Taka Yuki's Don't Dodge Life, and Dust of the Simulacrum. While Animation Plus has different screening dates for each work, all of the Anime no Bento category titles will screen on the third day of the Fantasia festival.
All anime screening at the 30th Fantasia International Film Festival:
| Anime | Type | Screening Date |
| Cherry and Virgin | Movie | July 18 |
| Redline | Movie | July 19 |
| Sekiro: No Defeat | Movie | July 23 |
| Grotesqqque | Movie (anthology) | July 24 |
| A New Dawn | Movie | July 26 |
| Cocoon – One Summer of Girlhood | Movie | Aug 1 |
| Echo | Short | July 18 |
| Future Kid Takara Episode 1 | Short (series) | July 18 |
| 20001 An Earth Odyssey | Short | July 18 |
| Don't Dodge Life | Short | July 18 |
| Ambivalent Garden | Short | July 18 |
| Foxing: Kitsuné-tsuki | Short | July 18 |
| Dust of the Simulacrum | Short | July 18 |
Apart from the anime offerings, the Fantasia festival will also host the international premiere of WIND BREAKER live-action adaptation, following Satoru Nii’s famous delinquent manga. The film was released across Japan in December 2025.
For anime creators, selection at Fantasia offers more than festival exposure. The event has become an important launchpad for international distribution, connecting anime with North American distributors, critics, and audiences before theatrical or streaming releases.
