Sunrise Launches Multi-Year 50th Anniversary Project

Bandai Namco Filmworks has kicked off a sweeping multi-year celebration of its Sunrise studio legacy.

It disclosed a new initiative to produce six original 3DCG short films alongside a commemorative key visual.

The ‘Sunrise 50th Anniversary’ project, announced Wednesday, will run from 2026 through 2028.

It builds toward the 50th anniversary of the studio’s first original work, Muteki Chōjin Zambot 3, in 2027.

The centerpiece of the announcement is the ‘Mirai e no Kōro’ (A Voyage Towards the Future) short film project.

Bandai Namco Filmworks describes it as a collaboration with multiple production studios to create six original 3DCG animated works.

The works are united by the common theme of ‘the future.’ The first two titles have been revealed: Dice with Demon (titled Haseo Sugoroku in Japanese) and Metafear.

Two Short Films Lead the Slate

Dice with Demon is directed by Hidekazu Ohara (Digital Juice, Kogepan) at SUNRISE Studios.

The story is set in Heian-era Japan, where a nobleman named Ki no Haseo confesses to playing a high-stakes game with a demon to resurrect his late wife.

Bandai Namco Filmworks describes it as a tale hovering between blessing and ruin.

Metafear is directed by Shuhei Morita (Tokyo Ghoul, Coicent) at YAMATOWORKS.

Tatsuyuki Tanaka (A Farewell to Weapons) serves as character and visual designer.

The plot follows a girl tormented by nightmares who writes down and names her dreams to keep from forgetting her fears.

Until an unnamed nightmare transforms into a monster and throws the world into chaos.

Votoms Returns as Part of the Celebration

Also folded into the ‘Sunrise 50th Anniversary’ project is the previously announced Sōkō Kihei Votoms Haiiro no Hexe (Armored Trooper Votoms: Die Graue Hexe).

It is a new entry in the long-running Armored Trooper Votoms franchise produced by Sunrise and Production I.G.

The first of two films is slated to open in Japan on November 20.

The anniversary key visual is a newly drawn illustration featuring 50 selected works from Sunrise’s catalog of more than 500 titles.

It spans from its debut Muteki Chōjin Zambot 3 to the most recent 2022 series Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury.

The project’s website and teaser trailers for Dice with Demon and Metafear have also gone live.

The six short films, produced across six studios and led by SUNRISE Studios, represent one of the most ambitious anniversary undertakings in recent anime history.

They reflect the breadth of a studio that helped define the mecha and sci-fi genres over five decades.