Crunchyroll Acquire 'The Concierge' North American Rights

Ever since Crunchyroll merged with Funimation, the company has been upping its game in the theatrical space. Crunchyroll has had several sizable hits in cinemas including Suzume, Jujutsu Kaisen 0 and Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. Their latest announcement is that they have picked up the North American rights to the anime feature The Concierge.

The film is an adaptation of of Tsuchika Nishimura’s manga The Concierge at Hokkyoku Department Store. It follows trainee concierge Akino, who works at an exclusive department store where all the customers are animals- and the most valued amongst them are extinct species.

Crunchyroll have released the synopsis:

 Akino is a trainee concierge at the Hokkyoku Department Store, an unusual department store that caters exclusively to animals. Under the watchful eyes of the floor manager and senior concierges, Akino runs around to fulfill the wishes of customers with a myriad of needs and problems in her pursuit to become a full-fledged concierge.

The Concierge had its world premiere at the Annecy International Animation Festival this past June and had its North American Premiere at the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal. It will screen in competition at this year's Animation Is Film Festival in Los Angeles.

The Concierge is the first film from director Yoshimi Itazu (Welcome To The Ballroom). The film is produced by world-renowned studio Production IG (Ghost In The Shell), and is written by Tsuchika Nishimura and Satomi Ohshima. 

The main cast includes Natsumi Kawaida as Akino, Takeo Otsuka as Elulu, and  Kenjiro Tsuda as Woolly. 

The film is set to be released in Japan on October 20 and is expected to be released in Crunchyroll and Sony Pictures territories in 2024. Check out the trailer, here. (Region locked)