‘Goodbye, Don Glees!’ Will Get U.S. Theatrical Run After GKIDS Pickup

GKIDS has picked up North American rights to Atsuko Ishizuka’s Goodbye, Don Glees! ahead of the film’s competition screening at next month’s Annecy Festival.

Details:

• Goodbye, Don Glees! is produced by Studio Madhouse and directed by Atsuko Ishizuka, who also wrote the film’s screenplay. Ishizuka is best known for directing the popular series A Place Further Than The Universe, available on Crunchyroll. Other credits include directing on No Game No Life: Zero, Hanayamata, and The Pet Girl of Sakurasou.
• The film’s official synopsis reads: “Teen misfits Roma, Toto, and Drop call themselves the ‘Don Glees,’ an informal name for their backyard adventures. One day, when the trio gets blamed for a nearby forest fire, they set off into the woods to prove their innocence. As disaster strikes their expedition, tensions flare between the friends as they realize that growing up has taken them on wildly different paths in life. With luminescent animation and lush backdrops, Goodbye, Don Glees! is a tender coming-of-age story about the fearlessness of being young and the bittersweet journey of self-discovery.”
• Key artistic talent on the film includes Ayano Okamoto as art director, Takahiro Yoshimatsu as character designer, and voice performances from Ayumu Murase (Haikyu!!), Natsuki Hanae (Demon Slayer), Kana Hanazawa (Psycho-Pass), and Yuuki Kaji (Attack on Titan).
• Kadokawa is selling the film internationally. GKIDS will distribute both the dubbed and subtitled versions of the film in the U.S.
• “We were all incredibly moved by Atsuko Ishizuka’s perceptive and fresh take on a classic story of teenage friendship,” said GKIDS president David Jesteadt. “We can’t wait for audiences to share this beautiful blend of comedy and drama, set in the days of summer when anything seems possible.”
• GKIDS hasn’t announced a release date yet, but has said the film will hit U.S. theaters sometime this year. The film was released last February in Japan.