Flower Mound, TX – March 24, 2009 – FUNimation® Entertainment has acquired varied rights in North America to the Japanese action film ICHI from major entertainment studio Shochiku Co., Ltd.

ICHI (released in Japan in 2008) is a live action drama directed by Fumihiko Sori whose last work, the cg-animated VEXILLE, was released to critical acclaim in the U.S. in 2008.

In ICHI, Haruka Ayase stars as the blind musician Ichi who leads a life of solitude as she wanders from town to town. When a village she is passing through becomes hostage to two opposing clans, Ichi must reveal her deadly sword fighting skills to protect the villagers. Sori’s film pays tribute to the long-running and immensely popular ZATOICHI franchise, but by making the main character a blind swordswoman instead of a blind swordsman, Sori adds his own intriguing twist to the ever popular franchise.

The film also stars Takao Osawa, Shidou Nakamura and Yosuke Kubozuka.

ICHI will make its U.S. film festival premiere at the Hawaii International Film Festival April 3rd followed by a screening April 11th at the Japan Film Festival Los Angeles.

FUNimation Entertainment will bring ICHI to DVD in 2010.