On January 26, 2026, Netflix released a new animated movie titled Cosmic Princess Kaguya. This movie is a modern retelling of the Japanese folktale, The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, which describes the life of a princess from the moon who is discovered as a baby in a bamboo plant. After she grows older and five men want to marry her, she ultimately returns back to the moon.

In the movie Cosmic Princess Kaguya, the protagonist, Iroha, finds a baby in a glowing telephone pole. The baby quickly grows up and begins to cause problems for Iroha. After entering the virtual world, Tsukuyomi, they become streamers and sign up for the Yachiyo Cup, an event where, if they win, they get to perform with the popular streamer and administrator of Tsukuyomi, Yachiyo Runami. They aim for the win while battling rivals, learning things about each other, and becoming amazing friends.

Cosmic Princess Kaguya is packed with stunning visuals, unique storytelling, and a superb soundtrack. All the elements truly compliment one another and it never leaves a dull moment. The movie was animated by Studio Colorido who did other amazing movies such as A Whisker Away and Drifting Home. The movie began development in 2022 and with the noticeable love and care put into the movie, it’s no surprise it took four years to release. I’ve been searching for development screenshots like pictures of storyboards and still frames being posted, but have yet to find anything.

I have already watched this movie twice and it’s one that I could easily rewatch ten more times without even getting the slightest bit bored. On my second watch through, I took more time to appreciate the amazing level of animation they did for this work and gained a strong sense of motivation to increase the quality of my own stuff . I plan to do a study of lighting and background work at some point using a frame from this movie.

Have you watched this movie? If not, I 100% recommend you should, even if it’s just to experience the stunning visuals.

Thanks for reading and I hope you look forward to reading my next post!!

The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter Image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tale_of_the_Bamboo_Cutter

Cosmic Princess Kaguya first image: https://www.ddmcd.com/movies/cosmic

Cosmic Princess Kaguya second image:https://www.avclub.com/cosmic-princess-kaguya-review