Kyoto Animation's Sparks of Tomorrow Premieres July 5 on Netflix

What was announced

Netflix has set a July 5, 2026 premiere for Sparks of Tomorrow, a new television anime the streamer unveiled as part of its anime slate at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival. The official Netflix Anime account says the series "premieres globally July 5," and Netflix's own Tudum confirms it will air on Japanese television and stream worldwide on Netflix the same day.

What it's about

According to Netflix, the story unfolds in "an alternate early 20th century Kyoto," a city where technology advanced along a path shaped by steam power rather than electricity. A distrustful boy and a devout girl cross paths and begin uncovering the secrets of the "20th Century Electrical Catalog," a glimpse of the future they both long for. The official synopsis frames the series around whether the pair can confront their pasts and build the future they believe in. It is a setup that trades action spectacle for something quieter, two wounded people trying to imagine a way forward in a city stuck in soot and steam.

The studio and staff

Netflix's Tudum identifies Sparks of Tomorrow as a Kyoto Animation production, adapting a novel published under the studio's own KA Esuma Bunko label. It marks the directorial debut of Minoru Ota, who introduced the project in an official featurette about what it takes to bring a steam-powered Kyoto to life. Adapting an in-house novel is familiar territory for Kyoto Animation, whose KA Esuma Bunko line has previously been the source for some of the studio's best-known original work.

A world-premiere rollout

The Annecy showing was not a one-off. According to What's on Netflix, Sparks of Tomorrow was given an early theatrical and festival rollout ahead of its streaming debut, the kind of premium launch Netflix has increasingly used to position prestige anime titles. By the time the series reaches the July 5 simulcast, a global audience will already have had a first look.

Why it matters

For Kyoto Animation, one of the most admired names in the medium, a globally simulcast original adaptation is a notable swing, and the steampunk setting gives the studio's detail-driven craft an unusually rich playground. The torii-lined streets and brass machinery in the first key visuals are exactly the kind of texture KyoAni is known for rendering with obsessive care. Netflix is positioning the series as a centerpiece of its 2026 anime lineup, and with a date this close, the wait is short.