K2 Pictures Closes $33M Fund, Unveils 10-Film Slate
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- K2 Pictures closed its K2P Film Fund I at $33 million, backed by Mitsubishi UFJ Bank and the Development Bank of Japan, and secured an additional $67 million in debt financing — bringing total capital to $100 million.
- K2 Pictures unveiled a 10-title slate at Cannes: three productions are already complete (one opened theatrically in February), three are in post-production, and five are scheduled for release between June and December 2026.
- Miike Takashi made his documentary debut with "Shumei – The Living Legacy of Kabuki," a September release capturing the behind-the-scenes preparations for Ichikawa Danjūrō XIII's formal name-inheritance debut performance, with a teaser premiering at the press conference.
- Director Nagata Koto ("Baka's Identity") will helm "The Nuke Crab," a social noir set in Fukushima in the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake, co-written by novelist Akamatsu Riichi — a former decontamination worker — and filmmaker Iwai Shunji, who also serves as executive producer.
- Director Otomo Keishi ("Rurouni Kenshin") will helm "Conde Koma," a Japan-Brazil-U.S. co-production tracing Mitsuyo Maeda, the jujutsu master whose global travels are credited with sparking Brazilian jiu-jitsu and contemporary MMA.
- K2 Pictures also announced its first animation, "Gigant" (based on Hiroya Oku's manga), a Mexico-Japan horror from former Bong Joon-ho assistant Katayama Shinzo, and "The Book of Human Insects," a dark musical adaptation of Tezuka Osamu's manga as part of the Tezuka 100th anniversary project.
- K2 Pictures was founded in 2023 by CEO Kii Muneyuki, a former head producer at Toei with experience across exhibition, distribution, and production.
Why it matters: K2 Pictures, founded in 2023 by former Toei head producer Kii Muneyuki, has assembled $100 million in total financing and a 10-title pipeline in under three years — a notable capital scale for a young Japanese production house. The slate's heavy reliance on international co-productions (Japan-Brazil-U.S., Japan-France-Iceland, Mexico-Japan) positions the company to compete on the global festival and streaming circuit from its Cannes base.
