ANI-MAY – Anime on the Big Screen
Anime on the big screen just hits different… so this May, we’re keeping things tight and going big with three absolute heavy-hitters.
Anim-May lands at Newcastle Community Cinema from 1–2 May 2026, bringing together three of the most iconic and influential anime films ever made — each one showcasing a completely different side of the medium.
We’re diving into the psychological deep end with Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue, exploring dreamlike, mind-bending cinema with Paprika, and stepping into the cyberpunk future with the groundbreaking Ghost in the Shell.
Three films. Three distinct visions. All best experienced where they belong… on the big screen.
Whether you’re already an anime fan or just curious to see what all the fuss is about, this is a perfect introduction — and trust us, you’ll never look at animation the same way again.
PERFECT BLUE
FRIDAY 1 MAY AT 8PM
Friday Fright Night goes anime for Ani-May… and we’re diving straight into the deep end.
Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue is a cult classic psychological thriller that follows a pop idol whose life begins to unravel after she leaves music for acting. Reality blurs, paranoia creeps in, and nothing is quite what it seems.
Dark, stylish and seriously unsettling, this is anime at its most intense.
Not for the faint-hearted… but absolutely unmissable.
PAPRIKA
SATURDAY 2 MAY AT 7PM
Our Ani-May weekend continues with the mind-bending masterpiece Paprika.
From visionary director Satoshi Kon, this dazzling sci-fi thriller explores a world where therapists can enter and shape people’s dreams. When a device that makes this possible is stolen, reality and imagination begin to blur with dangerous consequences.
As dreams spill into waking life, a surreal and visually spectacular journey unfolds. Bold, inventive and endlessly imaginative, Paprika is a landmark anime that challenges perception and dazzles the senses — a perfect centrepiece for our celebration of anime cinema.
GHOST IN THE SHELL
SATURDAY 2 MAY AT 9PM
Our Ani-May weekend concludes with the iconic cyberpunk classic Ghost in the Shell.
Set in a futuristic world where cybernetic enhancement blurs the line between human and machine, the film follows Major Motoko Kusanagi as she tracks a mysterious hacker known as the Puppet Master. As the investigation deepens, questions of identity, consciousness and what it truly means to be human come to the fore.
Visually groundbreaking and philosophically rich, Ghost in the Shell is a landmark anime that has influenced generations of filmmakers, a fitting and thought-provoking finale to our celebration of anime cinema.
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