Kyoto Animation will celebrate the 4th anniversary of the KyoAni fire.
As seen in Jさん’s tweet (@/soukatsu_), Kyoto Animation has revealed details of the memorial to honor those who lost their lives in the KyoAni arson four years ago. The studio had originally planned an in-person memorial service for July 18, but decided to keep it online “for everyone’s safety and to prevent any confusion regarding to the facility of Studio 1 and our Company.” The memorial video will stream on YouTube as it did last year. The video will be streamed worldwide on July 18 from 10:30am to 10:40am JST with a moment of silence at 10:35am. The memorial video will be made available throughout July 18.
The announcement describes additional details, including asking fans not to visit the First Studio facility and surrounding areas at all. The studio also asked fans not to send any flowers or monetary condolences. “Although it has been four years since the tragic incident at our Studio 1, our grief has not yet subsided,” the statement read. “However, the unwavering support from our fans has pushed us forward, allowing us to continue producing animated works. We sincerely thank each and every one of you for this support, because without it we would not be where we are today.”
On the morning of July 18, 2019, a 41-year-old man named Shinji Aoba entered KyoAni’s first studio and burned the building with 40 liters of gasoline. The fire left 36 people dead and 34 injured, including the perpetrator. The perpetrator alleges that Kyoto Animation plagiarized one of his novels, but police investigations revealed those claims to be untrue. After pre-trial proceedings begin on May 8, Aoba will appear in court for the first time on September 5. The verdict is expected to be made in January 2024.
KyoAni initially wanted to build a memorial in honor of the victims but decided to decline after neighborhood residents voiced concern that this would disrupt the “peaceful way of life”. In May 2023, the studio announced its intention to build two memorials with one for the public and the other at the site of the attack but built inside businesses. A memorial video has been streamed every year since 2020.
The 4th anniversary video will be streamed on July 18 on KyoAni’s official YouTube channel.
Source: Twitter, via Kyoto Animation