Drifting Home Trailer: A Sweet Summer Anime Movie Comes To Netflix

A second teaser for Hiroyasu Ishida's "Drifting Home" has dropped, and it is an absolute delight to witness the beautiful, fluid animation style of the upcoming Netflix film. Produced by Studio Colorido, who received global acclaim for their 2020 fantasy romance, "A Whisker Away," "Drifting Home" is the animation studio's third feature-length offering, their first feature being 2018's "Penguin Highway." Ishida had helmed "Penguin Highway," which was a lovely coming-of-age adventure praised for its animation style.

Check out the teaser for Netflix's "Drifting Home" below, and be sure to be gripped by a sense of nostalgia for the bittersweet emotions attached to adolescence.

The trailer opens with two kids, Kosuke and Natsume, spending their summer holidays with their group of friends. Seeking out adventure, the group decides to sneak into a crumbling apartment complex that is believed to be haunted. However, things get more fantastical when they find themselves surrounded by water, with the apartment drifting aimlessly on the sea. The tension between the group heightens, especially with the presence of Noppo, who seems pretty tight-lipped about the phenomenon that is unfolding.

Despite this precarious situation, Kosuke, Natsume, and their friends decide to stick together and find a way back home, and it is this sense of friendship and camaraderie which unites them together against this unfavorable scenario. Needless to say, the animation style is delightful to behold, acting as a window to a strange, yet beautiful alternate world. Although I'm not sure how exactly the story will unfold, I know for a fact that "Drifting Home" will succeed in tugging at the heartstrings, as it is a tale about found family and the purity of love.

Hayashi Mori has written the script for "Drifting Home," and he is also known for working on several episodes of "Cells at Work: Code Black." The Japanese voice cast for the film includes Mutsumi Tamura, Asami Seto, Daiki Yamashita, Yumiko Kobayashi, Inori Minase, and Kana Hanazawa. The theme song for the animated film has been performed by Japanese rock band, ZUTOMAYO.

Here's the official synopsis for "Drifting Home":

"Raised like brother and sister, Kosuke and Natsume have been friends since childhood, but their relationship begins to strain in sixth grade after Kosuke's grandfather Yasutsugu passes away. One day during their summer vacation, Kosuke and his classmates sneak into an apartment complex that is scheduled to be demolished, and rumored to be haunted. Both Kosuke and Natsume grew up there, so the place holds a lot of memories for them.

There, Kosuke stumbles into Natsume and is asked if he knows about the mysterious Noppo. But suddenly, they get caught up in a mysterious phenomenon. When they regain consciousness, they see a vast ocean before them. As the apartment complex drifts in a mysterious sea with Kosuke and the others on board, they band together to try and survive. There are tears and fights, and maybe even reconciliation. Will they be able to return to their previous world? A summer farewell journey begins..."

"Drifting Home" is slated to release on September 16, 2022, on Netflix.