Trailer: Annecy-Selected Track Anime ‘100 Meters’ Races to Theaters in October

Having announced plans to release the pic earlier this year, producer-distributor GKIDS has confirmed that 100 Meters (Hyakuemu), the upcoming animated feature film from acclaimed director Kenji Iwaisawa (On-Gaku: Our Sound), will hit theaters in North America on this fall. The film will hold a Los Angeles opening starting October 10, with a nationwide event release to follow on October 12-14.

GKIDS will present 100 Meters in original Japanese and a new English dubbed version. The film will be released domestically in Japan on September 19.

Based on the manga by Uoto — author of Orb: On the Movements of the Earth, which also received a recent anime adaptation — the adaptation of 100 Meters was first announced prior to its sold-out Work-in-Progress session at last year’s Annecy International Animation Film Festival. The film went on to hold its world premiere as an official selection at the 2025 Annecy Festival.

Synopsis: 100 Meters follows Togashi, a track star who is born to run. As a kid, he is naturally gifted and wins every 100-meter race without effort. But in sixth grade, he meets Komiya, a transfer student who is full of determination but lacks technique. In teaching him, Togashi gives Komiya a new purpose: to win no matter what. Years pass by, and Togashi and Komiya meet again as rivals on the track and reveal their true selves.

Produced at studio Rock’n Roll Mountain, director Iwaisawa is joined by character designer and executive animation director Keisuke Kojima and art director Keikankun Yamaguchi. The screenplay is written by Yasuyuki Muto (Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway, Tokyo Revengers) and the score is composed by Hiroaki Tsutsumi (Jujutsu Kaisen, Tokyo Revengers, Dr. Stone). In addition to GKIDS, the project is being produced by Pony Canyon, Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS) and Asmik Ace.

Iwaisawa quickly rose to prominence after his debut film, the deadpan music comedy On-Gaku: Our Sound. An independent film in production for over seven years, On-Gaku was composed of over 40,000 hand-drawn frames, using the Rotoscoping animation technique, and went on to receive multiple award nominations including Best Independent Animated Feature at the Annie Awards. GKIDS distributed On-Gaku in North America, and 100 Meters marks its second collaboration with Iwaisawa.