Beloved Toy Franchise Sylvanian Families/Calico Critters To Receive First Anime Feature Film

Epoch, the Japanese toy company, has announced that its popular Sylvanian Families toy line will be adapted into its first-ever anime film, titled “Gekijōban Sylvanian Families: Freya Kara no Okurimono” (Sylvanian Families the Movie: A Gift From Freya). The computer-generated (CG) film is set to release in Japan this fall and will explore the secrets that make the Sylvanian village such a wonderful place. The film’s story will revolve around Freya, a rabbit girl who tries to make everyone happy during the annual star festival in the Sylvanian village. The film is directed by Kazuya Konaka and written by Hirotoshi Kobayashi. Jun Ichikawa will compose the music, and Frebari is producing the film.

In addition to the anime film, the franchise has also inspired a new television anime that premiered in October 2022. LandQ studios animates the series, with Aya Yamane as Freya Chocolate, Saya Tanaka as Lyla Persian, Madoka Murakami as Ralph Walnut, Eriko Kadokura as Melinda Cakebread, and Misaki Watada as Creme Chocolate.

The Sylvanian Families franchise originated from Epoch’s toy line in 1985 and has since expanded into an American animated series in 1987, a British stop-motion animated series in 1998, and a three-episode Japanese CG anime video series in 2007. Shogakukan Music & Digital Entertainment animated the franchise’s 2017 anime series, which received a second and third season in 2018 and 2019. The franchise is also known as Calico Critters in the United States.