Netflix has placed an order for a new series My Melody & Kuromi, a stop-motion animation based on Sanrio characters. My Melody & Kuromi comes from Toruku, which is part of WIT Studio. For Toruku, it marks a first stop-motion animation.

My Melody debuted in Japan in 1975, with Kuromi (the little devil cat) being added as a foil to My Melody in 2005. Sanrio being Sanrio, though, Kuromi really only pretends to be hard metal. Since her debut, she’s been one of their top three characters.

The series, directed by Tomoki Misato (Pui Pui Molcar), will roll out in July, and will center on My Melody, a straightforward, cheerful girl who bakes cookies with her mother and cares deeply for her younger brother.

The isolation enforced by the COVID-19 pandemic is the genesis of more than one creative effort, and the series writer Shuko Nemoto wrote the scripts for the series during that time, making the best of a bad situation.

“Having My Melody and Kuromi speak lines I wrote felt like a reward for me as a writer,” she said. “Because of the pandemic, I couldn’t meet with director Misato or the producers in person, but we connected remotely each week, carefully building this together. The project is filled with love for the world of My Melody, beloved by people of all ages. I believe everyone, from adults to children, will have favorite scenes and lines.”

 “I’m thrilled that this project is finally announced in this important year marking the 50th anniversary of My Melody and the 20th anniversary of Kuromi,” said Misato. “This momentous project motivated all of us to come together, take on various challenges, and push the envelope with stop-motion. I hope everyone will enjoy this exciting story set in our handcrafted Mariland, the thrilling action that pushes the limits of stop-motion, and, of course, the cute and dynamic characters.”

Japan is turning out to be an important market for Netflix, and they are answering the call. Other originals debuting this year including Bullet Train Explosion, a film reboot of the 50-year-old film that inspired Hollywood movie Speed; Last Samurai Standing, Netflix’s first samurai action series; and a third season of Alice in Borderland.

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Gene Turnbow

President of Krypton Media Group, Inc., radio personality and station manager of SCIFI.radio. Part writer, part animator, part musician, part illustrator, part programmer, part entrepreneur - all geek.