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'Josee, the Tiger and the Fish' Anime Film Debuts in Japan This Summer

The official website for the anime film of Seiko Tanabe's short story Josee to Tora to Sakana-tachi (Josee, The Tiger and the Fish) revealed on Friday that the film will open in Japan this summer. The site also revealed a new visual illustrated by Nao Emoto.

Kotaro Tamura (Noragami, Noragami Aragoto) is directing the anime. Nao Emoto (O Maidens in Your Savage Season) drew the original characters designs, and Haruko Iizuka (Tamayura, Children of the Whales, Endro~!) is designing those characters for animation, as well as serving as chief animation director. Sayaka Kuwamura (Strobe Edge) is writing the script. loundraw (Tsuki ga Kirei, I want to eat your pancreas character design) is credited for concept design. Evan Call (Violet Evergarden, Schwarzes Marken) is composing the music. Shochiku and Kadokawa will distribute the film.

The story centers on the relationship between Tsuneo and Josee. Tsuneo is a university student, and Josee is a young girl who has rarely gone out of the house by herself due to her being unable to walk. The two meet when Tsuneo finds Josee's grandmother taking her out for a morning walk.

The film is itself inspiring a manga adaptation that will debut in the February issue of Kadokawa's Da Vinci magazine on January 6. Emoto is drawing the manga. The film's website also previewed three pages from the manga on Friday.

Tanabe published the original story in the 1985 short story collection of the same name. The story inspired a live-action film in 2003.

Sources: Josee, The Tiger and the Fish film's website, MoCa News