Born from a single illustration on X and now one of Japan's signature characters, “Chiikawa” has arrived at its first feature film. “Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of the Mermaid Island” opened on July 24, 2026, and the same day an original soundtrack packing all 52 tracks was released. Don't let the adorable art fool you—and that warning applies to more than just the story. The “sound” of this film is astonishingly serious craft.
Shugo Tokumaru: An Almost Unfair Choice
The music is by Shugo Tokumaru, carried over from the TV anime. A one-of-a-kind multi-instrumentalist, he plays dozens of instruments himself in home recordings and has released work on overseas labels. His euphoric pop—toy-like tones, xylophones, bells, and whistles layered again and again—sounds seamlessly continuous with the world of “Chiikawa.” Behind the cuteness lies meticulous sonic design, and Tokumaru's sensibility fits this project as if tailor-made. He himself didn't hide his excitement on X, writing that he was “moved at every turn while making it.”
A “Tom and Jerry” Scholar as Co-Composer
Sharing the credit on the film is Chikara Uemizutaru. He has an unusual résumé: at the graduate school of Tokyo University of the Arts he researched the music of cartoon animation and earned his doctorate with a dissertation on Scott Bradley. Bradley, of course, is the composer who scored MGM cartoons including “Tom and Jerry,” nailing action to sound through the technique known as “Mickey Mousing.” In other words, someone who pursued the art of welding image and sound as academic study is here painting the characters' every movement in music. Having long arranged Tokumaru's works for chamber ensemble and performed together as the “Chikara Uemizutaru Chamber Orchestra,” the two need no words to sync.
52 Tracks, and “Island Song” Keeps Transforming
The soundtrack is split into Part 1 and Part 2, covering not only the score but also insert songs and the theme. The real highlight is how the island's traditional “Island Song” returns again and again in new guises. A festival-band version, a Siren version, an a cappella version, a Shimajiro version—the way a single melody changes costume scene by scene is textbook leitmotif writing, the royal road of film scoring. It also includes the theme “Kutsuzure,” sung by Hachiware (CV: Makoto Tanaka), and the beloved “Today Is Goodbye” in Hachiware and choral versions, letting you carry home the full afterglow of a movie that makes you laugh and cry.
The music of “Chiikawa” is by no means “laid-back” background BGM. A globally acclaimed multi-instrumentalist and a scholar who mastered cartoon music as a field of study—precisely because these two teamed up at full power, that little island's adventure resonates this richly. This is an album to sit down with and replay, especially after you've seen the film.
