Next Club Meeting:September 20, 2025,at the Fountaindale Public Library in Bolingbrook from 11:00 am - 5:00 pm
The Animatrix Network is an anime & manga fan club located in the Southwest suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. We usually meet on the third Saturday of each month (except when holidays or conventions coincide). The meetings are free and open to the public. Join us for a day filled with anime.
This site provides news, reviews, commentaries, and previews of the world of anime and everything it inspires, such as live-action films, comics, music, art, and other weird things to enjoy and contemplate.
A magical and beautifully animated journey through time, Arco is a dazzling adventure about a 10-year-old boy from a peaceful, distant future who accidentally travels back to the year 2075 and discovers a world in peril. As Arco develops a charming and touching friendship with a young girl named Iris, they band together and along with her trusted robot caretaker Mikki, set out on a quest to get Arco home, while the two children may also be the only ones who can save our planet. A wondrous odyssey filled with hope and optimism for our future, Arco is an enchanting fable from breakout filmmaker Ugo Bienvenu, produced by Remembers’ Bienvenu and Felix de Givry, and mountainA’s Natalie Portman and Sophie Mas.
Japan is fractured into many independent nations entangled in ceaseless war. At the center lies Ashina, a land of sacred earth and ancient mystery. Two decades after Sword Saint Isshin Ashina reclaimed the region in a brutal coup, a new threat emerges from within: The Interior Ministry. Desperate to protect his homeland, Isshin’s grandson Genichiro turns to forbidden powers. The only hope lies in a kidnapped boy — the Divine Heir — and his silent protector: a loyal shinobi known only as Sekiro.
This is the story of a lord and his retainer — and their quest to restore balance to a nation on the edge.
All 12-year-old Thomas wants is to hang out with his older siblings, who both would prefer not to deal with their over-eager younger brother. One day, when attempting to prove himself, Thomas is injured and loses the ability to walk, but his adventures are only just beginning! He is about to be visited by a small furry creature from another dimension who allows him to visit a magical fantasy world where he might find the ability to heal himself. However, like many things in life, there are consequences for his actions, and Thomas must face an all-consuming monster created from his own shadow, which threatens to eat everything.
"This is a small teaser I did for a story I'm aiming to bring to life someday — a fantastic space odyssey about fate and freedom, purpose and identity. A tale of stars and memories, and the fragile blue planet that ties it all together."
A squid-like creature, known as a Happian, leaves his home planet with the desire to spread happiness across the universe. He lands on Earth, but quickly finds himself in danger of captivity by its inhabitants. Fortunately, he is found by an unsmiling little girl named Shizuka Kuze, who feeds him and names him Takopii. Feeling indebted, Takopii decides to do everything in his power to bring a smile to her face. The task is easier said than done, however. Shizuka is bullied by her classmates, she does not have a father, and her mother is never home—though the gravity of these issues flies over the naive Takopii's head. Even so, Shizuka does have one source of happiness: her dog Chappy. The connection Shizuka and Chappy share only increases Takopii's desire to make the girl smile. While Takopii's attempts to lift Shizuka's spirits lead to unintended consequences, he is determined to take things into his own tentacles, test his understanding of human beings, and achieve his goal of spreading happiness.
After cracking the biggest case in Zootopia’s history, rookie cops Judy Hopps (voice of Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (voice of Jason Bateman) find their partnership isn’t as solid as they thought when Chief Bogo (voice of Idris Elba) orders them to join the Partners in Crisis counseling program. But it doesn’t take long for their partnership to be put to the ultimate test when they find themselves on the twisting trail of a mystery tied to the arrival of a venomous snake in the animal metropolis. The trailer, poster and trailer stills are now available to download and share.
Only in theaters November 26
While “Zootopia 2” introduces Gary De’Snake (voice of Ke Huy Quan), Nibbles (voice of Fortune Feimster) and quokka therapist Dr. Fuzzby (voice of Quinta Brunson), the upcoming feature film also welcomes back a herd of characters who made their debut in the Oscar®-winning film “Zootopia.” “It’s been an absolute joy to reteam with so many actors who made the first film so special, and so exciting to expand the world with our phenomenal new cast members,” said director/writer Jared Bush (chief creative officer for Walt Disney Animation Studios). “I can’t wait for audiences to see what other surprises we have in store in this brand-new adventure.”
TRON: Ares follows a highly sophisticated Program, Ares, who is sent from the digital world into the real world on a dangerous mission, marking humankind’s first encounter with A.I. beings. The feature film is directed by Joachim Rønning and stars Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Hasan Minhaj, Jodie Turner-Smith, Arturo Castro, Cameron Monaghan, with Gillian Anderson, and Jeff Bridges. Sean Bailey, Jeffrey Silver, Justin Springer, Jared Leto, Emma Ludbrook and Steven Lisberger are the producers, with Russell Allen serving as executive producer.
In theaters October 10
Step into the Grid as director Joachim Rønning (Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales) and the cast of TRON: Ares take the stage to discuss the highly anticipated next installment in the Tron saga.
During a rainy day, a woman comes across a strange animal waiting by the side of the road. Pleading to be taken in, the creature offers the woman an umbrella in an attempt to show off its appeal. Intrigued by its clever nature, she brings the dog-like creature home and thus begins their life together.
In a world where the Oni and Momotaro have been locked in conflict for generations, Shiki Ichinose is just a regular high school dropout. That changes when a mysterious man attacks him and his father, and Shiki discovers that he is an Oni. Now dragged into a dark and bloody secret war, Shiki must master his powers in order to exact his revenge.
Mortal Kombat II is the sequel to the action combat movie based on the Mortal Kombat game IP distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. Bask in the gore-filled trailer with plenty of blood, no mercy, and fatalities galore. Mortal Kombat II is in theaters and IMAX across North America on October 24, 2025, and internationally beginning 22 October 2025.
From New Line Cinema comes the latest high-stakes installment in the blockbuster video game franchise in all its brutal glory, Mortal Kombat II. This time, the fan favorite champions—now joined by Johnny Cage himself—are pitted against one another in the ultimate, no-holds barred, gory battle to defeat the dark rule of Shao Kahn that threatens the very existence of the Earthrealm and its defenders.
Karl Urban stars as Johnny Cage, alongside Adeline Rudolph, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, Ludi Lin, Mehcad Brooks, Tati Gabrielle, Lewis Tan, Damon Herriman, with Chin Han, Tadanobu Asano as Lord Raiden, Joe Taslim as Bi-Han, and Hiroyuki Sanada as Hanzo Hasashi and Scorpion.
Director Simon McQuoid returns to helm the follow up to his explosive 2021 cinematic adventure, from a screenplay by Jeremy Slater, based on the videogame created by Ed Boon and John Tobias. The film is produced by Todd Garner, James Wan, Toby Emmerich, E. Bennett Walsh and McQuoid, and executive produced by Michael Clear, Judson Scott, Slater and Lawrence Kasanoff.
Joining McQuoid behind the camera are director of photography Stephen F. Windon, production designer Yohei Taneda, editor Stuart Levy and costume designer Cappi Ireland, with casting by Rich Delia and music by Benjamin Wallfisch.
Kenji is a shy, part-time moderator for OZ, the virtual reality world that powers everyday life, until pretty and popular Natsuki recruits him to be her fake boyfriend. While posing as an affluent suitor to Natsuki’s family, Kenji finds that a rogue A.I. program has stolen his online identity, and Kenji is accused of hacking OZ and causing real-world catastrophes. As the destruction in OZ throws Natsuki’s family into disarray, Kenji must unite his newfound connections to overcome an impending cyber apocalypse.
In theatres July 27-29
Against a backdrop of stunning countryside vistas and virtual spaces bursting with color, Summer Wars is a timeless epic that explores life in the digital age from Academy Award®-nominated director Mamoru Hosoda (BELLE).
Ruri Rocks (Japanese: 瑠璃の宝石, Hepburn: Ruri no Hōseki; lit. 'Ruri's Jewels'), also known as Introduction to Mineralogy, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Keiichirō Shibuya. The story features high school student Ruri, a girl who loves minerals and jewelry who meets graduate student Nagi, fostering an interest in mineralogy. It has been serialized in Enterbrain's seinen manga magazine Harta since August 2019, with its chapters collected into five tankōbon volumes as of September 2024. An anime television series adaptation produced by Studio Bind is set to premiere in July 2025.
Virgin Punk: Clockwork Girl Conditions for Receiving Bounty:
Bring the brain of a wanted criminal possessing illegal Somadea to authorities. Whether the target is alive or dead… is irrelevant.
The year is 2099. Humanity has advanced, overcoming all injuries and illnesses with the development of the Medical Android Technology “Somadea.” However, along with the development of Somadea, crimes misusing said technology have rapidly increased. Somadea grants physical abilities far superior to those of normal flesh and blood, and by illegally modifying it, Somadea can be misused for criminal purposes. To deal with these Somadea crimes, the government established the Bounty Hunter System. Civilians registered as bounty hunters are permitted to kill illegal Somadea users designated as wanted criminals by the police. In return, they are rewarded with large amounts of bounty money. In this unforgiving world, Ubu Kamigori makes a living hunting down criminals as a bounty hunter. But one day, when she returns home from a job, she finds the man with whom she has a sordid history waiting there – Mr. Elegance. And so, her destiny begins to unravel. A tale woven by mechanical girls and the smell of gunpowder smoke, this suspenseful action begins!
A Yasuomi Umetsu X SHAFT Collaboration Yasuomi Umetsu is an incredibly talented writer, director, and character designer from Japan who has captivated fans from all over the world with his unique worlds from works such as KITE (1998) and MEZZO FORTE (2000), among others. In recent years, he has worked in multiple capacities, including directing the opening and ending sequences of various popular titles and working as an animator. This occasion marks his return as animation director, for the first time in 10 years, with the title VIRGIN PUNK.
Animation studio SHAFT joins forces with Director Yasuomi Umetsu to animate the visuals for this title. The studio has created and gifted the world with much-loved titles such as Puella Magi Madoka Magica and the Monogatari series.
VIRGIN PUNK is the progeny of Yasuomi Umetsu and SHAFT, an entirely original animation series created and planned by this talented team.
Yuya Takahashi, a screenwriter known for his work on the Kamen Rider series and drama Mountain Doctor, takes the reins of the script. Maximizing the unique animated expressions found in VIRGIN PUNK, he depicts the anguish experienced by Ubu, the story’s protagonist, who must live her life as a bounty hunter, painting a story of the intense characters that draw her in with their desires and chaos, interwoven into her life.
After receiving mysterious organ transplants, five strangers awaken with extraordinary abilities. Banding together, they become an unlikely superhero team known as the “Hi-Five.” Directed by: Kang Hyeong-cheol Cast: Yoo Ah-in, Oh Jung-se, Park Jin-young, Ahn Jae-hong ,Lee Jae-in, Ra Mi-ran, Kim Hee-won, & Shin Gu.
Based on Andy Weir's New York Times best-selling novel, starring Academy Award® nominee Ryan Gosling, and directed by Academy Award® winning filmmakers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.
Only in theaters and IMAX - 3.20.26
In the near future, scientists observe a global dimming event coinciding with the formation of a bright line from the Sun to Venus. The exponential rate of dimming will cause a catastrophic ice age within 30 years. The world's governments cooperate and appoint former European Space Agency administrator Eva Stratt unilateral authority and legal immunity to solve the problem. A space probe is sent to Venus, and it is discovered that the line contains alien microbes.
Stratt appoints Ryland Grace, a junior high (middle) school teacher and former molecular biologist to study a sample of the organism recovered from Venus. He discovers that the single-celled organism consumes electromagnetic radiation and uses radiant energy to move, naming it "Astrophage". Grace also discovers that Astrophage reproduces by feeding on the heat of the Sun and carbon dioxide on Venus. Other scientists discover that Astrophage can be mass-bred for use as rocket fuel.
Astronomy data reveals that Astrophage has also infected and dimmed nearby stars, but one star, Tau Ceti, has resisted the infection. An Astrophage-fueled starship, the Hail Mary, is created to travel to Tau Ceti and obtain information about Astrophage resistance. There is only enough time to breed enough Astrophage for a one-way trip, so the crew are tasked with returning the findings to Earth with unmanned mini-ships called "beetles". Grace trains the science experts for the mission, but they are killed in an accident shortly before launch. With no time to train a comparably-skilled replacement, Stratt forces Grace to join the mission. Grace threatens sabotage, so a sedative is administered to him before launch, with a temporary amnesia-inducing drug set to be administered shortly before he awakens.
Years later, Ryland Grace emerges from his coma aboard the Hail Mary with no memory of his identity or situation. Grace finds that his crew members have died and gives them a space burial. Hail Mary reaches Tau Ceti and is approached by an alien starship, which Grace names "Blip-A". The other ship indicates that its home system in 40 Eridani is also plagued by an Astrophage infection. Blip-A docks with Hail Mary, and the two ships establish first contact. Grace develops a system to communicate with the spider-like five-legged alien, whom he names "Rocky". Rocky, a skilled engineer, has been in the Tau Ceti system for 46 years and is the last survivor of his crew.
Unfamiliar with the concept of relativity, the Eridians greatly overestimated the amount of fuel needed for a round-trip to Tau Ceti, and Grace learns that the Blip-A has enough Astrophage fuel for both ships to return to their planets. Grace and Rocky discover Astrophage's home planet in orbit around Tau Ceti, which Rocky names after his mate and Grace names "Adrian". The planet's atmosphere is found to contain a natural predator of Astrophage. The predator is found to live in the upper atmosphere of Adrian, forcing Grace and Rocky to construct a 10 kilometer chain made of xenonite, an Eridian xenon compound with extraordinary tensile strength and heat resistance. While collecting a sample, a hull breach occurs, and Grace and Rocky risk their lives to save each other...
Kuromi Girls' Academy is a refined, elegant school that expects the very best in deportment from its young ladies. Aya got into this peerless rich-girls' institution on a scholarship, and hopes to grow as lovely as her fellow student and idol Shirayui. But Shirayui hides a terrible secret: she's a trash-talking, combo-chaining, newbie-stomping, ruthless hardcore gamer! Could a mutual indulgence in no-holds-barred video game combat grow into a deeper rapport between these two girls?
Mai Otonashi is a second-year student and the captain of the Ikkokukan High School Bowling Club, and recently, she’s struggled to win. Whenever she scores a Turkey, three consecutive strikes, she follows it up with an unbeatable split—the Snake Eyes. This is the story of Mai, Rina, Sayuri, Nozomi, and Nanase as they fight, fall, and rise again in pursuit of victory in the final days of summer.
The end of the third season teased that Raphtalia would be at the center of a huge new story, but the trailers and promotional materials have instead teased that the brother and sister duo Alta and Fohl will be taking the center stage this time. Either way, there’s going to be a lot of chaos coming Naofumi and his party’s way as the new season hits our screens later this Summer.
The first season adapts approximately the first four volumes of the original manga, leaving off with Akane's restored memories of Ranma. If the second season plans to cover a similar amount of material, it should include Mousse's arrival and finish up with Happosai's introduction to the story.
The story begins in the year 1349 of the Epoch Calendar. Zhou Mingrui, a Chinese youth transmigrates into the body of a university graduate, Klein Moretti, after the latter's questionable suicide.
Arriving June 2025
Finding himself in a world reminiscent of late Victoria era England with mystical powers, Zhou Mingrui (now Klein Moretti) searches for a way to go home. After reproducing a ritual that presumably was the catalyst of his transmigration, he masquerades as a god-like entity and forms an organization known as the 'Tarot Club'. After becoming an official Beyonder (Those with supernatural abilities), he tries to find out what happened with Klein's suicide while growing his power to eventually return home.
