Sentai Filmworks have unveiled upcoming releases for April as well as new acquisitions:
HOUSTON, TX — February 11, 2021 — Sentai announced today that it acquired rights to the suspense-filled thriller Babylon, the anime series based on Mado Nozaki’s popular light novels. Sentai plans to release the series on Blu-ray as well as digital sell-through via select outlets.
Zen Seizaki, dedicated prosecutor with the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office, is assigned a seemly cut-and-dry case of false advertisement on part of a pharmaceutical company. But what starts as a routine investigation soon turns into something much darker, the strange details of the case painting a portrait of corruption and deceit that permeates the mayoral election being run in the newly formed Shiniki District. Soon Seizaki discovers depravity that puts at risk the very fabric of the Japanese justice system — not to mention Seizaki’s own sense of right and wrong.
The anime is a production of studio Revoroot (FLCL Alternative) and directed by Kiyotaka Suzuki (Psycho-Pass 2); Yutaka Yamada (Vinland Saga) provided the series’ musical composition. Babylon features the vocal talents of Takahiro Sakurai (Psycho-Pass) as Shinobu Kujin, Satsuki Yukino (When They Cry) as Ai Magase and Yuichi Nakamura (Jujutsu Kaisen) as Zen Seizaki.
The series will be released on home video, including Blu-ray and digital sell-through, in Spring 2021.
Sentai announced today that it acquired NANA, the 47-episode anime series produced by Madhouse and based on the manga by Ai Yazawa (NEIGHBORHOOD STORY, TENSHI NANKA JA NAI) with 40+ million copies sold. The series has been upconverted from its original format to vivid high definition.
Two twenty-somethings seemingly share nothing in common apart from their first name, but a chance meeting on a train bound for Tokyo sets Nana Komatsu and Nana Osaki on a collision course with destiny. Nana Komatsu, a love-at-first-sight dreamer, aims to find enduring happiness in the big city. Nana Osaki, neo punk rock vocalist, pursues her burning ambitions of musical stardom and worldwide fame. As their fates increasingly intertwine, they each chase their dreams — until the harsh realities of life in big city Tokyo threaten to tear everything apart.
A production of studio Madhouse (No Game, No Life, Parasyte -the maxim-, DEATH NOTE), NANA is directed by Morio Asaka (Chihayafuru, MY Love STORY!!, Cardcaptor Sakura) with series composition by Tomoko Konparu (Blue Spring Ride, Sunday Without God, Glass Mask) and music by Tomoki Hasegawa (Mysterious Girlfriend X, D.N.Angel, Zan Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei). The series stars Romi Park (Land of the Lustrous, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Shaman King) as punk-rocker Nana Osaki and KAORI (Kaleido Star, Final Fantasy: Unlimited, Pokémon: Advanced Generation) as the cheerful Nana Komatsu.
Sentai is planning an HD version for release on digital outlets with an HD home video release to follow.
Sentai announced today that it acquired home video rights to the action thriller series HERO MASK, a Studio Pierrot (Tokyo Ghoul, Bleach) production, through a worldwide licensing arrangement (excluding Asia).
Detective James Blood, member of an elite police unit, pushes the edges of law enforcement to bring down the criminal threats and terrorist organizations plaguing a beautiful metropolitan city. When the murder of Crown Prosecutor Monica Campbell crosses his desk, Blood finds himself embroiled in a conspiracy involving LIVE, a two-faced corporate conglomerate with ties to the sordid underworld of human experimentation. With Sarah Sinclair — the only witness to Campbell’s death — at his side, Blood will have to face an army of mask-wearing superhumans to uncover the truth and stop LIVE before its plans can come to dark fruition…
HERO MASK stars Yasuyuki Kase (The Perfect Insider, 91 Days) as James Blood, Yuuko Kaida (The Promised Neverland, A Certain Scientific Railgun) as Sarah Sinclair, Kouki Uchiyama (Amagi Brilliant Park, Haikyuu!!) as Harry Creighton and Junpei Morita (Eureka Seven, Naruto: Shippuden) as Lennox Gallagher. Director Hiroyasu Aoki (assistant director Hunter x Hunter Movie 2: The Last Mission) provides series composition and the script.
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About Sentai
A Cool Japan Fund portfolio company, Sentai is a leading global supplier of anime and official anime merchandise, distributing and curating one of the industry’s most diverse libraries of top trending and classic titles. Sentai offers thousands of hours of content across both traditional and digital platforms and is dedicated to bringing captivating stories and iconic characters directly from Japan. With hit series that include MADE IN ABYSS, Food Wars!, Princess Tutu and Parasyte -the maxim-, Sentai’s catalog continues to grow with new favorites like Bloom Into You, Revue Starlight and O Maidens in Your Savage Season, as well as classic anime series such as Legend of the Galactic Heroes and The Big O. For more information, visit www.sentaifilmworks.com.
Coming April 2021
Title: ELFEN LIED
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 350 min.
Street Date: 4/6/2021
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $49.98
SYNOPSIS: Critics have described Elfen Lied as “weird,” (Anime Planet), “surprisingly sadistic,” (Gamers Edge), and “addictive”(Animesou). No wonder, when you consider what makes this series hum! Lucy, a beautiful young mutant, is bred by the military to be the ultimate weapon. Now, with government killers on her trail, the disposition of a five year old, and a hair trigger for ultraviolence, Lucy and her young friends must unravel the dark secret of her legacy before it’s too late.
Title: IRON GIRL: FINAL WARS
Published by: Switchblade Pictures
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 90 min.
Street Date: 4/6/2021
Format: BD
Language: Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $19.98
SYNOPSIS: Chris may have survived the Apocalypse, but there are still plenty of threats from the past lurking in the ruins of civilization… and now one of them is actively looking for her! At least, that’s how it seems when she encounters Joe, a member of the resistance who is trying to discover why the artificial intelligence known as JUDA has been sending out murderous cyborgs with a certain heroine as their target! Even more unnerving is the fact that a mysterious young girl Sara has been having dreams calling to Chris for help… even though the two of them have never met! And if killer cyborgs alone aren’t terrifying enough, JUDA has doubled their lethality by equipping their resurrected warriors with the latest in sword technology in IRON GIRL: FINAL WARS!
Title: SUNDAY WITHOUT GOD
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 325 min.
Street Date: 4/6/2021
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $59.98
SYNOPSIS: In a world abandoned by God, the bodies of the dead will continue to walk unless they are buried by one of the mysterious Gravekeepers. Ai, one of the last children in a world where no more can be born, becomes her small village’s Gravekeeper when her mother, the previous Gravekeeper, passes on… but the arrival of a pale gun-wielding stranger destroys her village and what little remained of Ai’s old existence. Is this seemingly immortal man possibly an important figure from Ai’s past? Uncertain of what else to do, Ai finds herself compelled to set forth on a mission to learn the secrets of this strange world without proper death, unravel the mysteries of her own past, and, hopefully, find a way to put the dead permanently to rest in SUNDAY WITHOUT GOD!
Title: KIDS ON THE SLOPE
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 300 min.
Street Date: 4/13/2021
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $59.98
SYNOPSIS: Kaoru Nishimi has spent his life on the move, always struggling to fit in to new schools and having to push on just when he’d started to set down roots. But when he comes to stay with his extended family in seaside Kyushu, things will be different. Kaoru wanders through high school, meeting friends who change his life forever, and discovers a new kind of music that affects him like nothing ever has before.Ritsuko, the girl whose family owns the music store, and Sentaro, the high school delinquent, both set in motion Kaoru’s fascination with this amazing thing called Jazz. Fashions may change and fads come and go, but when you put a couple of musically obsessed teens together and let them follow their muse, magic is sure to happen in THE KIDS ON THE SLOPE!
Title: LAIDBACKERS
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 60 min.
Street Date: 4/13/2021
Format: BD
Language: Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $29.98
SYNOPSIS: A funny thing happened to Kumi when she moved to Kyoto to take over her grandmother’s sweet shop. While she does find a store that sells cheap snacks, the supposedly empty adjoining residence is instead inhabited by three other girls: Harami, Mai, and K, plus a dog, who claim to be legendary heroes reincarnated into our world! However, that’s not as exciting as it sounds, as the Demon Lord they were seeking never showed up, so they’ve just been hanging out, waiting for something interesting to happen. That’s when ANOTHER cute young girl, Ran, shows up, and it seems that she WAS the Demon Lord, but botched up her own resurrection and now wants to make amends for the things that she did in the past. But in order to do that, she’s going to need a little demon-hunting help from the LAIDBACKERS!
Title: KAIJI
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 1250 min.
Street Date: 4/20/2021
Format: BD
Language: Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $99.98
SYNOPSIS: Unemployed degenerate Kaiji Ito spent his time drinking, gambling, and racking up bills, and was sure that his life had hit rock bottom. Then that bottom fell out when Endo the Loan Shark arrived to inform him of a friend’s default on a loan that Kaiji foolishly co-signed, making Kaiji responsible for a soul crushing 3,000,000 yen! But there is one possible way out; if Kaiji goes to a secret gambling ship and plays successfully for one night, his debt could be absolved. It’s a trick, of course, but what choice does Kaiji have? Trapped into playing a series of increasingly ruthless contests that are hopelessly rigged against the players, Kaiji finds himself a pawn in a competition where the game pieces aren’t expected to survive… and the real players are all actively betting against KAIJI!
Title: ASSASSINS PRIDE STEELBOOK
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 300 min.
Street Date: 4/27/2021
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $99.98
SYNOPSIS: Against the savage monsters that lurk outside the glass walls of Flandore, the last remnants of humanity have only one defense: the mana magic wielded only by members of the Noble class. When Melida, heiress to House of Angel, fails to manifest her magic upon reaching majority, the half-vampire Kufa is sent with orders from her own Grandfather to resolve the issue… and if Melida cannot manifest mana, Kufa is to execute her for the crime of impure blood. But when Melida fails the test, Kufa can’t bring himself to kill the spirited young woman whose only fault was to have an adulterous mother. And so, instead, he commits the crime of giving Melida some of his own mana. Now, bound by magic and a deadly secret, the two must work together in order to stay alive in ASSASSINS PRIDE!
Title: HERO MASK
Published by: Sentai Filmworks
Distributed by: Section23 Films
Run Time: 600 min.
Street Date: 4/27/2021
Format: BD
Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles
SRP: $89.98
SYNOPSIS: Are a series of bombings and the murder of a high-ranking government official linked to the actions of the huge international pharmaceutical company LIVE? Ordered to investigate, Detective James Blood of the Special Service of Crime quickly discovers far more than just a conspiracy. There’s a new technology on the street: masks as thin as paper that completely alter the appearance of the wearer’s face while also granting amazing strength and agility… at the cost of years off their users’ lives! Together with assistant attorney/murder witness Sarah Sinclair, Blood must unearth the secrets behind the masks and their connection to LIVE’s mysterious founder. But the clock is ticking down and James and Sarah may already be living on borrowed time. Because when the ultimate disguise powers the ultimate human killing machines, death can be lurking anywhere in HERO=MASK!
About Section23 Films:
Section23 Films provides home video marketing and distribution services for a variety of companies, including Sentai Filmworks, Switchblade Pictures, Maiden Japan, Kraken Releasing and AEsir Holdings. With its special focus on genre entertainment, Section23 Films distributes some of the very best anime, martial arts, and horror titles on the market today.
