Editing Grave of the Fireflies (section)

==Release==
===Theatrical===
The film was released on 16 April 1988, over 20 years from the publication of the short story.<ref name="Animerica9">{{cite journal |title=The Animerica Interview: Takahata and Nosaka: Two Grave Voices in Animation |journal=[[Animerica]] |volume=2 |issue=11 |pages=9 |url=https://ghiblicon.blogspot.com/2011/04/animerica-interviews-isao-takahata-and.html |year=1994  |access-date=4 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180704093747/http://ghiblicon.blogspot.com/2011/04/animerica-interviews-isao-takahata-and.html |archive-date=4 July 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The initial Japanese theatrical release was accompanied by [[Hayao Miyazaki]]'s light-hearted ''[[My Neighbor Totoro]]'' as a [[double feature]]. While the two films were marketed toward children and their parents, the starkly tragic nature of ''Grave of the Fireflies'' turned away many audiences. However, ''Totoro'' merchandise, particularly the stuffed animals of Totoro and Catbus, sold extremely well after the film and made overall profits for the company to the extent that it stabilized subsequent productions of Studio Ghibli.

''Grave of the Fireflies'' is the only theatrical Studio Ghibli feature film prior to ''[[From Up on Poppy Hill]]'' to which [[The Walt Disney Company|Disney]] never had North American distribution rights, since it was not produced by Ghibli for parent company [[Tokuma Shoten]] but for [[Shinchosha]], the publisher of the original short story (although Disney has the Japanese home video distribution rights themselves, thus replacing the film's original Japanese home video distributor, [[Bandai Visual]]).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/disney/|title=The Disney-Tokuma Deal|date=10 September 2003|work=[[Nausicaa.net]]|publisher=Team Ghiblink|access-date=5 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101229011953/http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/disney/|archive-date=29 December 2010|url-status=live}}</ref> It was one of the last Studio Ghibli films to get an English-language premiere by [[GKIDS]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://uproxx.com/hitfix/gkids-extends-its-studio-ghibli-alliance-to-grave-of-the-fireflies/|title=GKIDS extends its Studio Ghibli alliance to 'Grave of the Fireflies'|first=Guy|last=Lodge|work=[[Hitfix]]|publisher=[[Uproxx]]|date=20 November 2012|access-date=6 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180704124250/https://uproxx.com/hitfix/gkids-extends-its-studio-ghibli-alliance-to-grave-of-the-fireflies/|archive-date=4 July 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Home media and streaming===
''Grave of the Fireflies'' was released in Japan on [[VHS]] by Buena Vista Home Entertainment under the ''Ghibli ga Ippai'' Collection on 7 August 1998. On 29 July 2005, a [[DVD]] release was distributed through [[Warner Home Video]]. Walt Disney Studios Japan released the complete collector's edition DVD on 6 August 2008. WDSJ released the film on [[Blu-ray Disc|Blu-ray]] twice on 18 July 2012: one as a single release, and one in a two-film set with ''[[My Neighbor Totoro]]'' (even though Disney has never owned the North American rights, only the Japanese rights).

It was released on VHS in North America by [[Central Park Media]] in a subtitled form on 2 June 1993.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Animerica |volume=1 |issue=4 |date= June 1993 |page=18  |issn=1067-0831|title-link=Animerica |journal=Animerica: Anime & Manga Monthly }}</ref> They later released the film with an English dub on VHS on 1 September 1998 (the day Disney released ''[[Kiki's Delivery Service]]'') and an all-Regions DVD (which also included the original Japanese with English subtitles) on 7 October 1998. On 8 October 2002, it was later released on a two-disc DVD set, which once again included both the English dub and the original Japanese with English subtitles as well as the film's storyboards with the second disc containing a retrospective on the author of the original book, an interview with the director, and an interview with critic [[Roger Ebert]], who felt the film was one of the greatest of all time.<ref name="ebert"/> It was released by Central Park Media one last time on 7 December 2004. Following the May 2009 bankruptcy and liquidation of Central Park Media,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-04-28/central-park-media-files-for-chapter-7-bankruptcy |title=Central Park Media Files for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy |work=[[Anime News Network]] |first=Egan |last=Loo |date=28 April 2009 |access-date=3 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180704155908/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-04-28/central-park-media-files-for-chapter-7-bankruptcy |archive-date=4 July 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> [[A.D. Vision#ADV Films|ADV Films]] acquired the rights and re-released it on DVD on 7 July 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-05-05/adv-adds-grave-of-the-fireflies-now-and-then-here-and-there|title=ADV Adds Grave of the Fireflies, Now and Then, Here and There|date=5 May 2009|access-date=24 November 2012|work=[[Anime News Network]]|first=Egan|last=Loo|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121129075349/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-05-05/adv-adds-grave-of-the-fireflies-now-and-then-here-and-there|archive-date=29 November 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> Following the 1 September 2009 shutdown and re-branding of ADV,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-09-01/adv-films-shuts-down-transfers-assets-to-other-companies|title=ADV Films Shuts Down, Transfers Assets to Other Companies|work=[[Anime News Network]]|date=1 September 2009|access-date=25 January 2010|first=Egan|last=Loo|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003054028/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-09-01/adv-films-shuts-down-transfers-assets-to-other-companies|archive-date=3 October 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> their successor, [[Sentai Filmworks]], rescued the film and released a remastered DVD on 6 March 2012, and planned to release the film on digital outlets.<ref name="Martin">{{cite web|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/grave-of-the-fireflies/dvd-remastered-edition|title=Review: Grave of the Fireflies: DVD&nbsp;– Remastered Edition|last=Martin|first=Theron|date=5 March 2012|access-date=22 November 2012|work=[[Anime News Network]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107054812/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/grave-of-the-fireflies/dvd-remastered-edition|archive-date=7 November 2012|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Sentai Filmworks Adds Grave of the Fireflies|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2011-12-01/sentai-filmworks-adds-ghibli-grave-of-the-fireflies|work=[[Anime News Network]]|access-date=1 December 2011|date=1 December 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111202131501/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2011-12-01/sentai-filmworks-adds-ghibli-grave-of-the-fireflies|archive-date=2 December 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> A [[Blu-ray]] edition was released on 20 November 2012, featuring an all-new English dub produced by [[Seraphim Digital]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Grave-Fireflies-Blu-ray-Artist-Provided/dp/B008XEZXRA|title=Grave of the Fireflies [Blu-ray] (2012)|website=Amazon|access-date=22 November 2012}}</ref>

[[StudioCanal]] released a Blu-ray in the United Kingdom on 1 July 2013, followed by ''[[Kiki's Delivery Service]]'' on the same format.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-06-29/kiki-delivery-service-and-grave-of-the-fireflies-double-play-released-monday |title=Kiki's Delivery Service and Grave of the Fireflies Double Play Released Monday (Updated) |work=[[Anime News Network]] |access-date=27 December 2014 |date=29 June 2013 |first=Andrew |last=Osmond |author-link=Andrew Osmond (journalist) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150204201939/http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2013-06-29/kiki-delivery-service-and-grave-of-the-fireflies-double-play-released-monday |archive-date=4 February 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> It was the UK's tenth annual best-selling [[foreign language film]] on [[home video]] in 2019 (below seven other Japanese films, including six [[Hayao Miyazaki]] anime films).<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/industry-data-insights/statistical-yearbook |title=BFI Statistical Yearbook 2020 |publisher=[[British Film Institute]] (BFI) |year=2020 |location=United Kingdom |pages=94 |access-date=26 April 2022}}</ref> [[Madman Entertainment]] released the film in Australia and New Zealand.

On 16 September 2024, the film started streaming exclusively on [[Netflix]] in over 190 countries, excluding Japan, as part of ongoing efforts to expand the platform's extensive lineup of  anime from Japan.<ref>{{Cite press release|url=https://about.netflix.com/en/news/grave-of-the-fireflies-streams-september-16|title=Studio Ghibli's 'Grave of the Fireflies' Streams on Netflix on September 16|website=[[Netflix|Netflix Newsroom]]|date=August 20, 2024}}</ref>