GKIDS

GKIDS is an American film distributor based in New York with, according to the Los Angeles Times, a focus on "sophisticated, indie" animation. GKIDS uses a bespoke distribution method to release critically acclaimed, hand-drawn, international films—such as the works of renowned Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki —to North American audiences. Although the name is said to be an acronym for "Guerrilla Kids International Distribution Syndicate," the company is commonly referred to only as GKIDS (stylized in all-caps), and is legally registered as such in New York state.

The company has gained prominence since 2010 by garnering a series of Academy Award nominations for little-known "underdog" films, beating out big-budget American films such as The Lego Movie, The Peanuts Movie and Finding Dory.

History
GKIDS was founded in 2008 by Eric Beckman, who previously co-founded and ran the New York International Children's Film Festival with his partner, Emily Shapiro. Their first general release was Azur & Asmar, a French film dubbed in English for British and Irish audiences.

The company attained national recognition with the 2010 release of The Secret of Kells, the debut film by Irish animator Tomm Moore, which received a nomination for Best Animated Feature at the 82nd Academy Awards. This surprise nomination was followed by two more Best Animated Feature nominations at the 84th Academy Awards, Spanish-language Chico and Rita and French-language A Cat in Paris. Both nominations were considered highly surprising by film insiders, beating out such notables as The Adventures of Tintin and Cars 2—the first eligible Pixar film not to be nominated since the category's founding. This marked the first time that an independent distributor had two films in the Best Animated Feature category in the same year, a decision which Puss in Boots director Chris Miller said indicated the Academy's "respect for diversity."

In September 2011, GKIDS announced the acquisition of the North American theatrical distribution rights to the Studio Ghibli library, that were previously held by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, however, retained the home media distribution rights. GKIDS has since also managed the North American distribution of three new Studio Ghibli films, From Up on Poppy Hill in 2013, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya in 2014, and When Marnie Was There in 2015 as well as the first-time North American releases of Only Yesterday and Ocean Waves in 2016. On July 17, 2017, it was announced that the North American home media rights to the Ghibli library (with the exception of Grave of the Fireflies and The Wind Rises) had transitioned from Disney to GKIDS, with the distributor announcing plans to begin re-issuing the films beginning in October. Unlike most of GKIDS' material on home media, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment or Cinedigm isn't distributing the Ghibli re-releases, Shout! Factory is instead handling the distribution. Since then, Shout! Factory have gone on to distribute other GKIDS releases alongside Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

GKIDS received three more Oscar nominations in 2014 and 2015 with Ernest & Celestine, Song of the Sea, and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. These latter two films beat out The Lego Movie, widely considered to be the frontrunner for the award. GKIDS has since released four new films in 2015, of which When Marnie Was There and Boy and the World were in the running for Best Animated Feature at the 88th Academy Awards but lost out to Pixar's Inside Out. My Life as a Zucchini was nominated for the same award in 2016.

Founder Eric Beckman received the Mifa & Variety Animation Personality of the Year Award at Annecy in June 2017.

In January 2018, The Breadwinner became the tenth GKIDS film to receive an Oscar nomination. In January 2019, Mirai became their eleventh.

Style and reception


While films distributed by GKIDS span a wide range of nationalities, languages, and animation styles, the distributor focuses almost exclusively on "handmade, mostly auteur-driven animated movies" created by individual animators working with small teams. Founder Eric Beckman has described the animated market in the U.S. as "dominated by expensive-to-produce, expensive-to-distribute movies". To this end, the company relies heavily on critical reception and accolades to attract audiences, rather than big-budget marketing campaigns. Beckman has said of the Academy Awards, "The Oscars are the great equalizer. You don't have to spend millions to reach millions, you look to a smaller group of people who know and like film … But you've got to start with something super."

As a result of this focus on artful, stylistically distinct animation, GKIDS has been hailed by critics and animation insiders as a welcome complement to the standard Hollywood fare, being referred to variously as "the saints of independent animation," "one of the most notable independent distribution companies in the US," and "the country's best distributor [for] traditional hand-drawn animation." Industry magazine Film Journal International said of the company's track record, "The reason GKIDS films keep getting nominated despite the company's low (relative to Disney, DreamWorks, et al.) profile is that, simply put, their films tend to be really good."

Nine feature films released by GKIDS have a perfect, 100% "Fresh" rating on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes: Sita Sings the Blues, Only Yesterday, Approved for Adoption, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, Mind Game, This Magnificent Cake!, Okko's Inn, Buñuel in the Labyrinth of the Turtles, and Weathering with You. Sita Sings the Blues, combining stylistic elements of Rajput painting, shadow puppetry, vector graphic animation, and Squigglevision, was selected by Chicago Sun-Times reviewer Roger Ebert for his annual Ebertfest, calling it "one of the year's best films".

Not all have been broadly successful with critics, though: Mia and the Migoo (distributed in theaters by GKIDS and on home video by Entertainment One), Fireworks, and MFKZ are, as of August 2019, the only three with "Rotten" ratings.

Films distributed by GKIDS
Some Studio Ghibli films currently theatrically distributed by GKIDS were distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures for DVD and Blu-ray Disc. However, on July 17, 2017, GKIDS announced that they have acquired the home video rights for the entire Studio Ghibli catalogue except Grave of the Fireflies and The Wind Rises.

The company also tours selections of short and feature films screened at NYICFF across the country. In mid-2009, the live-action features Tahaan and West of Pluto (À l'ouest de Pluton) were licensed for potential general releases but plans for both were dropped by late 2011 in favour of a focus on animation.

Studio Ghibli Fest
Since 2017, GKIDS has partnered with Fathom Events to host an annual event called Studio Ghibli Fest, which features limited theatrical screenings of select Studio Ghibli films in select AMC, CineMark, Regal, Cineplex Entertainment and other theaters.

Academy Awards
!Ref. ! scope="row"| 2009 ! rowspan="2" scope="row"| 2011 ! scope="row"| 2013 ! rowspan="2" scope="row"| 2014 ! rowspan="2" scope="row"| 2015 ! scope="row"| 2016 ! rowspan="2" scope="row"| 2017 ! scope="row"| 2018
 * The Secret of Kells
 * rowspan="10"| Best Animated Feature
 * Nominated
 * style="text-align:center;"|
 * A Cat in Paris
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;"|
 * Chico and Rita
 * Nominated
 * Nominated
 * Ernest & Celestine
 * Nominated
 * style="text-align:center;"|
 * Song of the Sea
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;"|
 * The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
 * Nominated
 * Nominated
 * Boy and the World
 * Nominated
 * rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;"|
 * When Marnie Was There
 * Nominated
 * Nominated
 * My Life as a Zucchini
 * Nominated
 * style="text-align:center;"|
 * The Breadwinner
 * Nominated
 * style="text-align:center"|
 * Revolting Rhymes
 * Best Animated Short Film
 * Nominated
 * style="text-align:center"|
 * style="text-align:center"|
 * Mirai
 * Best Animated Feature
 * Nominated
 * style="text-align:center"|
 * }
 * }

Annie Award
!Ref. ! scope="row"|2009 ! rowspan="3" scope="row"| 2011 ! scope="row"|2012 ! rowspan="2" scope="row"|2013 ! rowspan="2" scope="row"|2014 ! rowspan="3" scope="row"|2015 ! rowspan="2" scope="row"|2016 ! rowspan="3" scope="row"|2017 ! rowspan="3" scope="row"|2018
 * The Secret of Kells
 * rowspan="9"|Best Animated Feature
 * Nominated
 * A Cat in Paris
 * Nominated
 * Chico and Rita
 * Nominated
 * Wrinkles
 * Nominated
 * Wrinkles
 * Nominated
 * Wrinkles
 * Nominated
 * The Rabbi's Cat
 * Nominated
 * Ernest & Celestine
 * Nominated
 * A Letter to Momo
 * Nominated
 * A Letter to Momo
 * Nominated
 * Song of the Sea
 * Nominated
 * The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
 * Nominated
 * The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
 * Nominated
 * Boy and the World
 * rowspan="11"|Best Animated Feature — Independent
 * Won
 * The Prophet
 * Nominated
 * When Marnie Was There
 * Nominated
 * When Marnie Was There
 * Nominated
 * When Marnie Was There
 * Nominated
 * Miss Hokusai
 * Nominated
 * My Life as a Zucchini
 * Nominated
 * My Life as a Zucchini
 * Nominated
 * The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales...
 * Nominated
 * The Breadwinner
 * Won
 * Napping Princess
 * Nominated
 * Napping Princess
 * Nominated
 * Napping Princess
 * Nominated
 * MFKZ
 * Nominated
 * Mirai
 * Won
 * This Magnificent Cake!
 * Nominated
 * }
 * This Magnificent Cake!
 * Nominated
 * }
 * }
 * }
 * }