is a Japanese entertainment company owned by

Bandai Namco Holdings (commonly known as and formerly Namco Bandai until 2015, also known as Bandai Namco Group,) is a Japanese mass media and entertainment Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 2005 by the merger of Namco and Bandai. The company specia ...

with its business focused on production, planning, and management of

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

. It was founded in September 1972 by former

Mushi Production or Mushi Pro for short, is a Japanese animation studio headquartered in Fujimidai, Nerima, Tokyo, Japan. It previously had a headquarters elsewhere in Nerima. The studio was headed by manga artist Osamu Tezuka. Tezuka started it as a rivalry wi ...

staff as the animation studio branch of . In 1977, it gained independence from Shoeisha and Tohokushinsha and rebranded itself to In 1987, the studio rebranded to a name which would remain in use for over 35 years. In 1994, the company was acquired by toy and entertainment company

Bandai is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational toy manufacturer and distributor headquartered in Taitō, Taitō, Tokyo. Its international branches, Bandai Namco Toys & Collectables America and Bandai UK, are respectively headquartered ...

and was integrated into Namco Bandai Holdings in 2005. In 2022, as part of a major group restructuring of the Bandai Namco Group, the company would merge with the home video division of Bandai Namco Arts and Bandai Namco Rights Marketing to form Bandai Namco Filmworks. As part of this restructuring, Sunrise would continue to operate as a division within the company with the changes taking effect on April 1, 2022.

History

According to an interview with Sunrise members, the studio was founded by former members of

in 1972 as Sunrise Studio. Rather than having anime production revolve around a single creator (like Mushi, headed by

Osamu Tezuka Osamu Tezuka (, born , ''Tezuka Osamu'', – 9 February 1989) was a Japanese manga artist, cartoonist and animator. Considered to be among the greatest and most influential cartoonists of all time, his prolific output, pioneering techniques an ...

), Sunrise decided that production should focus on the producers. The market for mainstream anime (such as manga adaptations, sports shows, and adaptations of popular children's stories) was already dominated by existing companies, so Sunrise decided to focus on robot (mecha) anime, known to be more difficult to animate but which could be used to sell toys. Sunrise has been involved in many popular and acclaimed anime television series, including ''Mobile Suit Gundam'' (and its spin-offs and sequels since 1979), the ''

Mashin Hero Wataru is a mecha multimedia franchise originally created by Sunrise and Red Company. The first series aired on April 15, 1988, replacing the 17:00–17:30 timeslot used for '' Transformers: The Headmasters''. Sunrise credited "Hajime Yatat ...

'' series (1988–1997), the ''

Brave Brave(s) or The Brave(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Brave, an adjective for one who possesses courage * Braves (Native Americans), a Euro-American stereotype for Native American warriors Film and television * ''Brave'' (1994 film), a concept ...

'' (1990–1997) and '' Eldran'' series (1991–1993), both of which were co-produced with

Takara Tomy (trade name, trading as Takara Tomy in Asia and Tomy elsewhere) is a Japanese toy company. It was established in 1924 by Eiichirō Tomiyama as , became known for creating popular toys like the B-29 friction toy and luck-based game Pop-up Pi ...

, and the ''

Crest of the Stars is a three-volume space opera science fiction novel written by Hiroyuki Morioka with cover illustrations by Toshihiro Ono. This was followed by a second, ongoing novel series, '' Banner of the Stars'' (a.k.a. ''Seikai no Senki'', current ...

'' series (1999–2001). They produced the apocalyptic ''

Space Runaway Ideon is a 1980 anime television series produced by Sunrise, created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, produced immediately following his signature work, '' Mobile Suit Gundam''. It first premiered on TV Tokyo from 1980 to 1981, followed by two f ...

'' in 1980. The company have co-produced a number of series with

Toei Company , simply known as Toei Company or Toei, is a Japanese entertainment company. Headquartered in Ginza, Chūō, Tokyo, it is involved in film and television production, distribution, video game development, publishing, and ownership of 34 movi ...

, including ''

Majokko Tickle , also known as ''Magical Girl Tickle'' or ''Tickle the Witch Girl'', is a 1970s magical girl manga and anime by Go Nagai. Unlike Nagai's earlier ''Cutie Honey'', ''Majokko Tickle'' is much similar in structure to Toei Animation's previous ...

'' (1978), the ''

Robot Romance Trilogy A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may b ...

'' ('' Combattler V'' (1976), ''

Voltes V , popularly known as simply ''Voltes V '' (pronounced as "Voltez Five") is a Japanese anime television series produced by Toei Company and animated by Nippon Sunrise (now known as Bandai Namco Filmworks and formerly known as Soeisha). It is ...

'' (1977), ''

Tōshō Daimos is a Japanese anime television series produced by Toei Company and animated by Nippon Sunrise, directed by Tadao Nagahama as his last work. It is the third and final installment of the ''Robot Romance Trilogy'', following ''Chōdenji Robo C ...

'' (1978)), '' Daltanious'' (1979), and ''

Cyborg 009 is a Japanese science fiction manga created by Shotaro Ishinomori. It was serialized in many different Japanese magazines, including '' Monthly Shōnen King'', ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'', '' Shōnen Big Comic'', '' COM'', ' ...

'' (1979). Sunrise is well known for their

mecha In science fiction, or mechs are giant robots or machines, typically depicted as piloted, humanoid walking vehicles. The term was first used in Japanese (language), Japanese after shortening the English loanword or , but the meaning in Japan ...

anime series (including ''Gundam''), such as ''

Invincible Steel Man Daitarn 3 , also known as ''The Unchallengeable Daitarn 3'', is a Japanese anime television series created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and Hajime Yatate, and animated by Sunrise. It was first broadcast on Japanese TV in 1978. The series lasted for 40 episodes. ...

'' (1978), ''

Fang of the Sun Dougram is a 75-episode anime television series, created by Ryosuke Takahashi and Sunrise, and aired in Japan from October 23, 1981 to March 25, 1983 on TV Tokyo. A 1983 full-length feature film, ''Dougram: Documentary of the Fang of the Sun'', su ...

'' (1981), the ''Armored Trooper Votoms'' and ''

Aura Battler Dunbine is an anime television series created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and produced by Sotsu and Sunrise. Forty-nine episodes aired on Nagoya TV from February 5, 1983, to January 21, 1984. A three-episode anime OVA sequel entitled ''New Story of Aura ...

'' series (1983), ''

Blue Comet SPT Layzner , sometimes translated as ''Blue Meteor SPT Layzner'', is a science fiction anime series produced by Sunrise between 1985 and 1986. It was originally written by Tsunehisa Itō with Ryōsuke Takahashi as series' director. The series focuses ...

'' (1985), ''

Patlabor , also known as ''Patlabor'' (a portmanteau of "patrol" and "labor"), is a Japanese science fiction media franchise created by Headgear, a group consisting of manga artist Masami Yūki, director Mamoru Oshii, screenwriter Kazunori ...

'' (1989), ''

The Vision of Escaflowne is a Japanese anime television series produced by Sunrise. It premiered from April to September 1996, on TV Tokyo. Sony's anime satellite channel, Animax also aired the series, both in Japan and on its various worldwide networks, includi ...

'' (1996), ''

The Big O is a Japanese mecha-anime television series created by designer Keiichi Sato and director Kazuyoshi Katayama for Sunrise. The writing staff was assembled by the series' head writer, Chiaki J. Konaka, who is known for his work on '' Se ...

'' (1999/2003), ''

Overman King Gainer is a mecha anime television series, created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, written by Ichirō Ōkouchi, and featuring character designs by Yoshihiro Nakamura, Kinu Nishimura and Ken'ichi Yoshida. The series ran from September 7, 2002 t ...

'' (2002), ''

Zegapain is a Japanese anime television series created by Sunrise staff and manga artist Takehiko Itō. Produced by Sunrise, TV Tokyo and Dentsu, it is directed by Masami Shimoda, with Mayori Sekijima handling series scripts, Takehiko Itō and ...

'' (2007), ''Code Geass'' (2006/2008), ''

Tiger & Bunny ''Tiger & Bunny'' (stylized in all caps) is a 2011 Japanese anime superhero television series produced by Sunrise and directed by Keiichi Sato. The screenplay was written by Masafumi Nishida with original character design by Masakazu ...

'' (2011), and '' Valvrave the Liberator'' (2013), and worked with

Tsuburaya Productions also abbreviated as is a Japanese special effects studio founded in 1963 by special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya and was run by his family, until October 2007, when the family sold the company to advertising agency TYO Inc. The studio is b ...

to animate ''

The Ultraman is a Japanese animated television series co-produced by Tsuburaya Productions and animated by Nippon Sunrise. It is the eighth entry in the ''Ultra Series'', the first animated work in the franchise and the first series to air in 4 years af ...

'' (1979). In February 1994, Sunrise Inc. became part of the Bandai Group. On April 1, 2022, Bandai Namco Holdings adopted a new logo that had been initially revealed in October 2021, and with it, a major organization shuffle occurred, resulting in Sunrise subsuming the visual arts division of Bandai Namco Arts, which was dissolved that same day. Following this, the company has adopted the same logo as its parent, and adopted the name of Bandai Namco Filmworks. Its music division, Sunrise Music, has similarly subsumed Bandai Namco Arts' music operations, including Lantis, and changed its name to

Bandai Namco Music Live formerly Bandai Namco Arts, is a Japanese company formed by the merger of Bandai Visual and its subsidiary Lantis (company), Lantis by its owner Bandai Namco Holdings in February 2018. The company is responsible for the same area of its predece ...

. The Sunrise name has been kept as one of the major brands of the company as of August 2023. On March 1, 2024, Bandai Namco Filmworks announced the acquisition of anime studio Eight Bit, making it a wholly owned subsidiary. On February 4, 2025, Bandai Namco Holdings USA announced the establishment of Bandai Namco Filmworks America to handle the company's licensing and brand management activities internationally, which will take effect on April 1st. The announcement coincided with the start of the co-financing and co-production of the ''Gundam'' film with

Legendary Pictures Legendary Entertainment, LLC (also known as Legendary Pictures or simply Legendary) is an American mass media and film production company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull. The company has often collaborated with the major stu ...

Sunrise

the

trade name A trade name, trading name, or business name is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is fictitious business name. Registering the fictitious name with ...

of the company's IP Production Group division, is an

animation studio An animation studio is a company producing animation, animated media. The broadest such companies conceive of products to produce, own the physical equipment for production, employ operators for that equipment, and hold a major stake in the sales ...

founded in September 1972 and is based in

Ogikubo, Tokyo is a suburban, residential area of Tokyo in Suginami-ku, Tokyo, Suginami ward, approximately 8 km west of Shinjuku. Ogikubo has the Ogikubo Station on the East Japan Railway Company, JR Chūō Line (Rapid), the JR Chūō-Sōbu Line, the Toky ...

. Its former names were also Soeisha, Sunrise Studio and Nippon Sunrise. The studio is renowned for critically praised and popular original anime series such as ''

Gundam is a Japanese military science fiction media franchise. Created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and Sunrise (now Bandai Namco Filmworks), the franchise features giant robots, or mecha, with the name "Gundam". The franchise began on April 7, 1979, with ...

'', ''

Cowboy Bebop is a 1998 Japanese neo-noir space Western anime television series that aired on TV Tokyo and Wowow from 1998 to 1999. It was created and animated by Sunrise (company), Sunrise, led by a production team of director Shinichirō Watanabe, ...

'', ''

Armored Trooper Votoms is a Japanese military science fiction mecha anime series produced by Nippon Sunrise, created and directed by Ryosuke Takahashi and featuring mechanical designs by Kunio Okawara. Following directly in the footsteps of Takahashi's ...

'', ''

'', '' Yoroiden Samurai Troopers'', ''

Future GPX Cyber Formula is a Japanese futuristic motorsports anime television series produced by the advertising agency Asatsu-DK, the Tokyo-based entertainment producer VAP (Video & Audio Project), and the animation studio Sunrise. The series originally aired ...

'', '' Crush Gear Turbo'', ''

'', ''

Love Live! is a Japanese multimedia project created by Hajime Yatate and Sakurako Kimino and co-produced by Kadokawa Corporation, Kadokawa through ASCII Media Works; Bandai Namco Music Live through music label Lantis (company), Lantis; and animation studi ...

'', ''

Witch Hunter Robin ''Witch Hunter Robin'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese anime television series produced by Sunrise and animation director Shūkō Murase. The series originally aired in Japan on TV Tokyo between July and December 2002. The series was li ...

'', ''

My-HiME is a Japanese anime television series produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks, Sunrise. Directed by Masakazu Obara and written by Hiroyuki Yoshino (screenwriter), Hiroyuki Yoshino, it premiered in Japan on TV Tokyo from September 2004 to March 2 ...

'', ''

My-Otome is a Japanese anime television series produced by Sunrise. Directed by Masakazu Obara and written by Hiroyuki Yoshino, it is a spinoff of the '' My-HiME'' anime series and as such ''My-Otome'' takes place in a new setting with new main c ...

'', '' Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion'', ''

'', and '' Cross Ange: Rondo of Angel and Dragon'', as well as its numerous adaptations of acclaimed

light novel A is a type of Genre fiction, popular literature novel from Japan usually classified as young adult fiction, generally targeting Adolescence, teens to Young adult, twenties or older. The definition is very vague, and wide-ranging. The abbr ...

s including ''

'', ''

Dirty Pair is a series of Japanese light novels (the first one being a fix-up) written by Haruka Takachiho and illustrated by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko that was later adapted into anime and manga versions. The first stories that make up the first volume ...

'', '' Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere'' and ''

Accel World is a Japanese light novel series written by Reki Kawahara and illustrated by . It has been published by ASCII Media Works under its Dengeki Bunko imprint since February 2009. The series has spawned three manga series; ''Accel World'' b ...

'', and

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

such as ''

City Hunter is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tsukasa Hojo. It was serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1985 to 1991, with its chapters collected in 35 volumes. The manga was adapte ...

'', '' Inuyasha'', ''

Yashahime is a Japanese anime television series produced and animated by Sunrise. It is a sequel spin-off to the '' Inuyasha'' anime television series, which itself is based on Rumiko Takahashi's manga series. The series follows the adventures of Tow ...

'', ''

Outlaw Star is a media franchise#Japan, Japanese media mix primarily consisting of an anime Television show, television series produced by Sunrise (now a division of Bandai Namco Filmworks) and a corresponding Seinen manga, ''seinen'' manga series w ...

'', ''

Angel Links is a Japanese anime television series produced by Sunrise. It was originally aired across the Japanese Wowow television network from April 7 to June 30, 1999. It is a spin-off of the manga ''Outlaw Star'' by Takehiko Itō. Premise The s ...

'', ''

Yakitate!! Japan is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Takashi Hashiguchi. It was serialized in Shogakukan's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Sunday'' from December 2001 to January 2007, with its chapters collected in 26 volumes. A 69-ep ...

'', ''

Planetes is a Japanese hard science fiction manga written and illustrated by Makoto Yukimura. It was serialized in Kodansha's manga magazine ''Morning'' between January 1999 to January 2004, with its chapters collected into four volumes. It was ...

'', ''

Sgt. Frog ''Sgt. Frog'', known in Japan as , is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Mine Yoshizaki. It was launched in '' Monthly Shōnen Ace'' in April 1999. The story follows the attempts of a platoon of frog-like alien invaders t ...

'', ''

Gin Tama is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hideaki Sorachi. It was serialized in Shueisha's Shōnen manga, manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from December 2003 to September 2018, later in ''Jump Giga'' from De ...

'', and ''

Kekkaishi is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yellow Tanabe. It was serialized in Shogakukan's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Sunday'' from October 2003 to April 2011, with its chapters collected in 35 volumes. The series is abo ...

''. Their productions usually feature fluid animation and action sequences and many fans refer to the quality of their work as "Sunrise Smooth". Most of their work are original titles created in-house by their creative staff under a collective pseudonym,

Hajime Yatate is a pseudonym for the collective contributions of the Bandai Namco Filmworks#Sunrise, Sunrise（Bandai Namco Filmworks） animation staff. Name "Hajime Yatate" is considered to be named after a quote of Matsuo Bashō's ''Oku no Hosomichi'': ...

. They also operated a defunct video-game studio,

Sunrise Interactive is a Japanese entertainment company owned by Bandai Namco Holdings with its business focused on production, planning, and management of anime. It was founded in September 1972 by former Mushi Production staff as the animation studio branch of ...

. Sunrise launched a light-novel publisher, ''Yatate Bunko Imprint'', on September 30, 2016, to publish original titles and supplement their existing franchises with new materials. Anime created by Sunrise which have won the

Animage is a Japanese anime and entertainment magazine published by Tokuma Shoten since July 1978. Notable works serialized in the magazine include Hayao Miyazaki is a Japanese animator, filmmaker, and manga artist. He co-founded Studio Ghibli a ...

Anime Grand Prix are ''

Mobile Suit Gundam , also retrospectively known as ''First Gundam'', ''Gundam 0079'' or simply ''Gundam '79'', is a Japanese anime television series produced by Nippon Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Na ...

'' in 1979 and the first half of 1980, ''

'' in the second half of 1980, ''

Crusher Joe is a series of science fiction novels written by Haruka Takachiho and published by Asahi Sonorama from 1977 to 2005 (an additional trilogy was published between 2013 and 2016). During the late 1970s one of the founding fathers of Studio ...

'' (a co-production with

Studio Nue Studio Nue, Inc. () is a Japanese design studio formed in 1972 (as Crystal Art Studio) by Naoyuki Kato, Kenichi Matsuzaki, Kazutaka Miyatake, and Haruka Takachiho. Crystal Art Studio would change their name to Studio Nue in 1974. They were know ...

) in 1983, ''

'' in 1985, ''

'' in 1991, ''

Gundam SEED is an anime series developed by Sunrise and directed by Mitsuo Fukuda. The ninth installment in the ''Gundam'' franchise, ''Gundam SEED'' takes place in a future calendar era, in this case the Cosmic Era. In this era, mankind has devel ...

'' in 2002, ''

Gundam SEED Destiny is an anime television series, a direct sequel to ''Mobile Suit Gundam SEED'' by Sunrise and the overall tenth installment in the ''Gundam'' franchise. It retains most of the staff from ''Gundam SEED'', including Director Mitsuo Fukuda. S ...

'' in 2004 and 2005, '' Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion'' in 2006 and 2007 and '' Code Geass R2'' in 2008, making Sunrise the studio which won the largest number of Animage Awards.

Studios

*Studio 1 was created when Sunrise was founded in 1972. Notable works include ''

'', ''

'', and '' Inuyasha''. It was also the studio responsible for various later ''

'' installments: '' G'', ''

Wing A wing is a type of fin that produces both Lift (force), lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform (aeronautics), planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-d ...

'', '' X'', '' Turn A'', ''

Unicorn The unicorn is a legendary creature that has been described since Classical antiquity, antiquity as a beast with a single large, pointed, spiraling horn (anatomy), horn projecting from its forehead. In European literature and art, the unico ...

'', '' Reconguista in G'', ''

Thunderbolt A thunderbolt or lightning bolt is a symbolic representation of lightning when accompanied by a loud thunderclap. In Indo-European mythology, the thunderbolt was identified with the 'Sky Father'; this association is also found in later Hel ...

'', ''

Narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, whether non-fictional (memoir, biography, news report, documentary, travel literature, travelogue, etc.) or fictional (fairy tale, fable, legend, thriller ...

'', and '' Hathaway''. *Studio 2 was created around 1974–75, and some key members left to form

Bones A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, an ...

in 1998. Notable works include ''

'' and some installments of Gundam: including ''

Zeta Zeta (, ; uppercase Ζ, lowercase ζ; , , classical or ''zē̂ta''; ''zíta'') is the sixth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 7. It was derived from the Phoenician alphabet, Phoenician letter zay ...

'', '' ZZ'', ''

Victory The term victory (from ) originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal duel, combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes a strategic vi ...

'', '' Char's Counterattack'' and '' F91''. It also worked on ''

'' and ''

'', co-producing a film adaptation of each with Bones. *Studio 3 was created in 1975. Early works included ''

'' and ''

''. It was responsible for many Gundam installments, including '' 0083'', '' 08th MS Team'', and TV series of the franchise: '' SEED Destiny'', '' 00'', ''

AGE Age or AGE may refer to: Time and its effects * Age, the amount of time someone has been alive or something has existed ** East Asian age reckoning, an Asian system of marking age starting at 1 * Ageing or aging, the process of becoming older ...

'', '' Build Fighters'', '' Build Fighters Try'', '' Iron-Blooded Orphans'' and '' The Witch from Mercury.'' *Studio 4 was created in 1979, and notable works include ''

'' anime. The studio became inactive in 1987. The current Studio 4 began as support for Studio 2, and was known as Studio Iogi (井荻スタジオ) (named after the pseudonym of longtime Sunrise director

Yoshiyuki Tomino is a Japanese anime director, screenwriter, songwriter and novelist best known for creating the ''Gundam'' anime franchise. Early life and family Tomino was born on November 5, 1941, in Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture, to an old family of regio ...

). The studio's first major work was 1985's ''

'', and other notable works include ''

'', '' s-CRY-ed'' and ''

Code Geass , often referred to as ''Code Geass'', is a Japanese anime television series produced by Sunrise. It was directed by Gorō Taniguchi and written by Ichirō Ōkouchi, with original character designs by Clamp. Set in an ...

''. *Studio 5 was also created in 1979. One of its producers was Mikihiro Iwata, a founder of

A-1 Pictures is a Japanese animation studio and production company founded by ex- Sunrise producer Mikihiro Iwata. It is a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment Japan's anime production firm Aniplex. History The company was established by SMEJ's animat ...

. Notable works include ''

'', the '' InuYasha'' movies, ''

Daily Lives of High School Boys is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by . The manga was serialized in ''Gangan Online'' and was released in seven manga volumes between May 21, 2009, and September 27, 2012. A twelve-episode anime series produced by Sunrise air ...

'', ''

Aikatsu! is a multimedia franchise spawned from an arcade collectible card game in Bandai's ''Data Carddass'' line of machines, which launched in October 2012. The game revolves around using collectible cards featuring various clothes to ...

'', ''

Good Luck Girl! ''Good Luck Girl!'', known in Japan as , is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by . The manga was serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Jump Square'' from June 2008 to July 2013, with its chapters collected in 16 volumes. A ...

'', ''

Mobile Suit SD Gundam is a series of animated shorts released in theaters and as original video animation between 1988 and 1993 by Sunrise. Part of the '' SD Gundam'' media franchise, the anime was based on the popular ''Gashapon'' capsule toys and model k ...

'' and '' Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket''. *Studio 6 was created in 1983. Notable works include ''

'', ''

'', and ''

''. they also provided animation to '' Batman: The Animated Series''. Some members left to form

Bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

in 2007. *Studio 7 was created in 1985. Its first work, uncredited, was on the American cartoon series '' Centurions: Power Xtreme'', and it is noted for ''

Sacred Seven , is a 2011 Japanese science fiction anime television series produced by Sunrise under the direction of Yoshimitsu Ōhashi. Script supervisor is Shin Yoshida with mechanical designs by Ippei Gyōbu. The series began broadcasting in Japan star ...

'', '' s-CRY-ed'' and the ''Brave'' series. Some members left to form

Manglobe was a Japanese animation studio based in Suginami, Tokyo and formed on February 7, 2002 by Sunrise producers Shinichirō Kobayashi and Takashi Kochiyama. Manglobe filed for bankruptcy in September 2015, having accumulated an estimated debt of � ...

in 2002. *Established around 1995, Studio 8 is notable for ''

'', '' Buddy Complex'', '' Idolmaster: Xenoglossia'', ''

The Girl Who Leapt Through Space is a Japanese anime television series, created and produced by Sunrise (company), Sunrise. Based on the original concept by Hajime Yatate, the Sunrise animation staff, the series is directed by Masakazu Obara and written by Jukki Hanada, ...

'', '' Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere'', ''

'' and ''

''. *Studio 7's sister studio, Studio 9 was established in 1996. Notable works include ''

Gasaraki is a 1998 mecha anime television series produced by Sunrise. It was directed by Ryousuke Takahashi, who also co-created the series along with Sunrise (Hajime Yatate). Goro Taniguchi was the assistant director. The screenplay was written by ...

'', ''

Infinite Ryvius is a 26-episode science fiction drama anime series produced by Sunrise. The character and mecha designs in ''Ryvius'' were created by Hisashi Hirai, who later went on to design characters for '' Gundam SEED''. The series is noted for its ...

'', ''

Mobile Suit Gundam SEED is an anime series developed by Sunrise and directed by Mitsuo Fukuda. The ninth installment in the ''Gundam'' franchise, ''Gundam SEED'' takes place in a future calendar era, in this case the Cosmic Era. In this era, mankind has devel ...

'', ''

Argento Soma (stylized as ) is a Japanese anime TV series produced by Sunrise. It aired on TV Tokyo from October 6, 2000, to March 22, 2001, with the final episode, releasing direct-to-video. The anime was originally licensed by Bandai Entertainment in N ...

'' and '' Battle Spirits''. *Studio 5's sister studio, Studio 10 was established around 1996. Notable works include ''

'', ''

Dinosaur King is a 2005 card-based arcade video game from Sega that uses similar gameplay mechanics to '' Mushiking''. The game was revealed in JAMMA 2005. A Nintendo DS version was also later released. In the fall of 2008, Upper Deck Company rele ...

'' and '' Phi Brain: Puzzle of God''. *Studio 8's sister studio, Studio 11 was established in 2009 and worked on '' Kurokami'' and the ''

SD Gundam Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors is a Japanese anime adaptation of the SD Gundam model kit series '' BB Senshi Sangokuden'' produced by Sunrise. Loosely based on the classic 14th century Chinese historical novel, ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'', with characters being ...

'' series. *Sunrise's CG production studio, D.I.D. helps creating CG for many of the company's shows (notably ''

'', ''

Cross Ange , also known as simply ''Cross Ange'', is a Japanese mecha anime television series produced by Sunrise that aired from October 2014 to March 2015. A manga adaptation began publication in August 2014. Plot Through the development of ground ...

'', '' Valvrave the Liberator'', '' Gundam MS Igloo'' and '' Gundam The Origin''). They also produce CG work for other animation studios, including

Xebec A xebec ( or ), also spelled zebec, was a Mediterranean sailing ship that originated in the barbary states (Algeria), it was used mostly for trading. Xebecs had a long overhanging bowsprit and aft-set mizzen mast. The term can also refer to a ...

's ''

Space Battleship Yamato 2199 ''Star Blazers 2199'', known in Japan as , is a 2012–2013 Japanese military science fiction anime television series that is a remake of the first ''Space Battleship Yamato'' television series created by Yoshinobu Nishizaki and Leiji Matsu ...

''. *Formerly known as Ogikubo Studio (荻窪スタジオ) or Sunrise Emotion, Nerima Studio is best known for the ''

Freedom Project ''Freedom Project'' is a Japanese promotional project by Nissin Cup Noodles for their 35th anniversary in 2006. As part of the project, the 7-part OVA series, titled ''Freedom'', was commissioned with and designed by Katsuhiro Otomo (of ...

'', '' Valvrave the Liberator'', the '' King of Thorn'' anime film and ''

''. *Sunrise Origin Studio (サンライズオリジンスタジオ) is Sunrise's in-between animation studio that does in-between animation for other studios' anime titles such as ''

My Hero Academia is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kōhei Horikoshi. It was serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from July 2014 to August 2024, with its chapters collected in 42 volumes. Set in a wor ...

'' to ''

The Boy and the Beast is a 2015 Japanese animated adventure fantasy film written and directed by Mamoru Hosoda. The film stars the voices of Kōji Yakusho, Aoi Miyazaki, Shōta Sometani, Suzu Hirose, Kazuhiro Yamaji, Mamoru Miyano, Kappei Yamaguchi, Keishi Nag ...

''. *White Base is a new studio that recently opened in November 2021 and is named after the famous battleship from the original Gundam.

Former

* Sunrise Beyond Inc. was a subsidiary of Sunrise established after the majority purchase and closure of

. Some of their works include '' Gundam Build Divers Re:Rise'' and '' King's Raid: Successors of the Will''. In January 2024, it was announced that the studio will be dissolved and be merged with Sunrise.

TV animation

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

Films

OVAs/ONAs

Foreign production history

Video game animation work

Miscellaneous work

* '' Nagoya TV'' (1981–1987, The "Space Boy" mascot opening/closing credits) * ''Pink Crows'' (did the animation and designs for this animated band and their music videos) * '' Shadow of China'' (1989 live action movie) * '' Cold Fever'' (1994, live action movie co-produced with Icelandic Film Corporation, Iciclefilm, Pandora Film, Zentropa Entertainments and

George Gund III George Gund III (May 7, 1937 – January 15, 2013) was an American businessman and sports entrepreneur. Biography Gund III was born in Cleveland, Ohio on May 7, 1937, to Jessica Roesler and George Gund II, a powerful banker in Cleveland. A ...

* '' Pop Team Epic'' (2020–2022, Series 1 Special Episode 1 1st half prologue skit and opening animation; Series 2 Episode 2 story part and ending animation) * ''

'' (2021, live action TV series co-produced with

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

, Midnight Radio and Tomorrow Studios)

International distribution

Most anime produced by Sunrise and Bandai and licensed by Bandai Visual in Japan was licensed and distributed in the United States by

Bandai Entertainment was a Japanese anime, film production, and distribution company, established by Bandai and a subsidiary of Bandai Namco Holdings. They focused mainly in international distribution of anime properties in North America. Most of the anime and ...

and in Europe by Beez Entertainment, but both companies shut down in 2012 after Bandai Entertainment's restructuring. In North America, distributors such as

Funimation Funimation was an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming service. Launched in 2016, the service was one of the leading distributors of anime ...

Viz Media Viz Media, LLC is an American entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California, focused on publishing manga, and distribution and licensing Japanese anime, films, and television series. The company was founded in 1986 as Viz, ...

Sentai Filmworks Sentai Filmworks, LLC (or simply Sentai) is an American entertainment company. Located in Houston, the company specializes in the dubbing and distribution of Japanese animation and Asian cinema. Its post-production arm is Sentai Studios. The ...

NIS America is a Japanese video game developer and publisher. The company was founded in 1991 and has developed several role-playing video games, most notably the ''Disgaea'' and '' Marl Kingdom'' series. Its mascot is the penguin-like ''Disgaea'' charact ...

and

Aniplex of America Aniplex of America, or Aniplex USA, is an anime distributor based in Santa Monica, California that serves as the American distribution enterprise of Aniplex, an entertainment company owned by Sony Music Entertainment Japan, where its goal is to ...

, as well as Sunrise USA, have licensed Sunrise properties. In Europe, Anime Limited and

Manga Entertainment Manga Entertainment was a producer, licensee, and distributor of anime in the United States and the United Kingdom. Originally founded in the UK in 1991, the UK branch became Funimation UK and Ireland in 2021, also currently known as Crunchyr ...

(in the UK) and

Kazé Kazé was a French publishing company that specializes in anime and manga. Its head office was in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. Founded in 1994, the company debuted by publishing ''Record of Lodoss War'' on VHS. It was owned by Sony through t ...

(in France) have begun to distribute titles distributed by Beez and other unreleased Sunrise productions. In Australia, Sunrise productions are licensed and distributed by

Madman Entertainment Madman Entertainment Pty. Ltd., also known as Madman Films, stylized as MADMAN, is an Australian film and television production, distribution, entertainment, and rights management company headquartered in East Melbourne, Victoria, specialising ...

. At Anime Boston 2013, Sunrise confirmed that they would begin licensing anime in North America and were negotiating with Sentai, Funimation, and Viz to distribute their titles on DVD and Blu-ray.

Right Stuf Right Stuf Inc. (formerly known as The Right Stuf International Inc.) was an American video publisher and distributor of video programming that specialized in Asian entertainment (anime and live action films). It had several divisions includin ...

agreed to distribute and re-release ''

Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn is a novel series written by Harutoshi Fukui with character and mechanical designs provided by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko and Hajime Katoki, respectively. It is first serialized in Kadokawa Shoten's '' Gundam Ace'' magazine from February 2007 to ...

'' on DVD in North America. In 2014 the deal expanded, releasing the Gundam previously licensed by Bandai Entertainment (''

'', ''

Turn A Gundam , also stylized as ''∀ Gundam'', is a 1999 Japanese mecha anime series produced by Sunrise (company), Sunrise, and aired between 1999 and 2000 on Fuji Television and other Fuji Network System, FNS stations. It was created for the ''Gunda ...

'') and several works not released in North America (including ''

Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ is the third installment in Sunrise's long running '' Gundam'' franchise and the last TV series in the franchise released in Japan's Shōwa period. A direct follow up to '' Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'', it is directed and written by Yoshiyuki ...

'') in 2015.

Anime studios founded by former Sunrise staff

Studio Deen is a Japanese animation studio founded in 1975 by former Sunrise producer Hiroshi Hasegawa, along with a team of ex-Sunrise animators. The studio owns three subsidiaries: Danny Donghua (), a Chinese sub-contracting studio; Megumi (め組), a di ...

(founded in March 1975) by Hiroshi Hasegawa and Takeshi Mochida. * Studio Dub (founded in January 1983) by Masa Yahata, acquired and became BNP Iwaki Studio in 2019. * Lifework (founded in 1984) by Yutaka Kanda and Masahiro Toyozumi, closed. * Studio Takuranke (founded in September 1987) by Yasuhiko Kondō and Hiroyuki Yamada. * Studio Gazelle (founded in September 1993) by Ikuo Sato. *

(founded in October 1998) by

Masahiko Minami is a Japanese anime producer and president of Bones. Early life Minami was born in Mie Prefecture, Japan. Career A graduate of the Osaka University of Arts's department of arts, Minami joined the noted anime studio Sunrise in 1984, whe ...

. *

(founded in February 2002) by Shinichirō Kobayashi and Takashi Kochiyama, filed for bankruptcy on 29 September 2015. *

(founded in May 2005) by Masuo Ueda and Mikihiro Iwata. *

(founded in August 2007) by Chie Ohashi. * Odd Eye Creative (founded in February 2011) by Naotake Furusato. * Yaoyorozu (founded in August 2013) by Tatsuki, closed in 2020, animation business transferred and integrated to new company 8million. * Buemon (founded in April 2014) by Kiyohiko Takayama.

Notes

References

External links

*
Official Website for Sunrise
**

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bandai Namco Filmworks Animation studios in Tokyo Home video distributors Animax Bandai Namco Filmworks Mass media companies established in 1972 Japanese animation studios Japanese companies established in 1972 Suginami Film distributors of Japan