20001: An Earth Odyssey, an original animated short film by Salamander Pictures, produced as a collaborative project with Nippon Animation, will be part of the ANIME NO BENTO 2026 programme during Fantasia.
The short film has been officially selected for the Competition Section of Fantasia and will have its World Premiere on July 18th, 2026. Following the world premiere screening, original 20001 An Earth Odyssey posters will be distributed to the first 100 attendees, with a signing session by Taiki Sakurai to be held on-site immediately afterward.
The story is set in the year 20,001. Long after humanity’s extinction, three aliens land on Earth. Their mission: to investigate why human civilization collapsed.Led by Captain Kepo, the team misinterprets the relics left behind by humanity, mistaking a swing for a sacred altar, an umbrella for a communications device, and a graveyard for a farm. Kepo is stubborn, but holds deep respect for humanity; Alcia attempts logical analysis; and Regal, the rookie of the group, reaches closer to the truth through pure intuition. Through the trio’s misunderstandings and discoveries, the film poses questions like “What does it mean to be human?”, “What is civilization?”, and “Were humans really an intelligent species?”, all through the lens of light, surreal comedy.
A small batch of stills can be found below.
Photos credit: ©Salamander Pictures / Nippon Animation