Popular 90s anime series acquired by GKIDS

GKIDS, the New York-based all-ages animation film producer and distributor, has announced that it has acquired the North American rights to the 1990 animated series. Nadia: The secrets of blue waterand will release it this year on home entertainment platforms with a new 4K restoration.

The animated series comes from the acclaimed director Anno Hideakishowcasing his first directorial vision before creating the popular and critically acclaimed anime, Neon Genesis Evangelionwhich GKIDS also released last year in North America on Blu-ray.

Freely based on Jules Verneit is 20000 Leagues Under the Sea, Nadia: the secrets of blue water is set in the 19th century, specifically in 1889, a time when the world was at the peak of amazing technological discoveries. It’s the year of the Universal Exhibition in Paris, and people from all over the world come to the French capital to witness the latest scientific achievements. While attending the fair, young inventor Jean Roque Lartigue meets Nadia, the mysterious protagonist who holds in her possession a sought-after crystal called Blue Water. When an evil being called Gargoyle, obsessed with restoring the Atlantean Empire, begins to enact his plans for world conquest, Nadia, Jean and Captain Nemo aboard the submarine Nautilus must work together to save the world.

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The studios behind the series are Toho and Korad. Anno realized Nadia: the secrets of blue waterwith Yoshiyuki Sadamoto in charge of character design, Katsunori Shimizu work as sound director, and Shiro Sagisu as a musical composer. Nadia: the secrets of blue water has 39 episodes, with a total running time of over 16 hours.

Since 2010, GKIDS has garnered 12 Best Animated Feature Oscar nominations. The company also handles the North American distribution of Studio Ghibli films, which include famous titles like Taken away as if by magic, My Neighbor Totoroand Princess Mononoke. Additionally, the producer-distributor hosts the Los Angeles-based Animation Is Film festival, which views animation as any form of cinematic art worth its salt.

Nadia: the secrets of blue water was previously released on DVD and Blu-ray by Sentai Filmworks. At the moment, there is no concrete release date for the GKIDS 4K restore version, but it should be released this year.

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