It has been announced that voice actors Koki Uchiyama and Kenjiro Tsuda will appear in the movie "Hyakuem.", which is based on the manga by Uoto , known for " Orb: On the Movements of the Earth (Chi: Chikyu no Undo ni Tsuite), " which was also made into a TV anime. The movie is about track and field, and Uchiyama will play Zaitsu, the absolute champion who leads the track and field world, while Tsuda will play Kaito, who is constantly being prevented from becoming champion by Zaitsu.
Uchiyama said, "His lines use many unique phrases, so I was worried about how to express them, but Director Iwaizawa (Kenji) carefully directed me, and I was able to see the story through to the very end. I am personally very excited to see how '100 M' will be visualized, including the way running is expressed, which is unique to animation. Be sure to see it in the theater!"
Tsuda commented, "I believe a sports anime in a new realm has been born. It's a sports-themed work, but it's also more philosophical, profound and fascinating. It was an honor to be able to play a character with such a strong personality in the world that Uoto sensei has created. I tried to act as carefully as possible, but without losing the sense of dynamism. Please look forward to this sports anime like no other before. Be sure to see it in the theater!"
Following its release in Japan on September 19th, it was announced that the film will be released in North America in October. GKIDS, known for distributing Studio Ghibli films in North America, has acquired investment and distribution rights for the film, leading to the decision to release it in North America.
The film was officially screened on June 12th (local time) at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival 2025 in France. After winning the Best Original Music Award for "Ongaku" in 2020 and being selected for the Work in Progress category last year for "100 M.", director Iwaizawa will be participating in the festival for the third time. "My previous work, Ongaku, was made by a small team, but many people saw it, and that led to this work, 100 M."," he said. "I couldn't come to Annecy for Ongaku because of the COVID-19 pandemic, so I'm really excited to finally be standing in front of everyone in Annecy today. The 100-meter sprint is a simple sport where you just run straight, so it was difficult to express, but I put a lot of thought into it and worked hard to make it enjoyable."
"Hyakuem." is Uoto's debut serialization, and was serialized on Kodansha's web manga app "Magazine Pocket (Magapoke)" from 2018 to 2019. It depicts the madness and passion of those who are fascinated by the brilliance of the "100m (meter)" in the world of track and field, which lasts less than 10 seconds. Togashi, who is naturally fast and has found friends and a place to belong, meets Komiya, a transfer student who simply runs as hard as he can to forget his harsh reality, and the two gradually become rivals and best friends through the 100-meter race. A few years later, Komiya, who has become one of the top runners, appears in front of Togashi, who is known as a genius runner but is terrified of the fear of having to keep winning... This is the story.
The anime will be directed by Iwaizawa, who was nominated for an Annie Award for his work on "Music," and produced by Rock'n'Roll Mountain, the studio behind "Music." Actor Tori Matsuzaka will play Togashi and Shota Sometani will play Komiya.
