Sonic the Hedgehog or Sonic the Hedgehog the Movie, is a two-part 1996 Japanese original video animation (OVA) based on the video game franchise by Sega. Produced by Pierrot and directed by Kazutaka Ikegami, the OVA was originally released in Japan on January 26, 1996 and March 22, 1996. The series was later licensed and dubbed in English by ADV Films, which released it as a single direct-to-video film on September 7, 1999, to coincide with the international release of Sonic Adventure. The anime features Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Dr. Eggman, Metal Sonic and a few supporting characters created exclusively for the OVA. Taking the English dub into consideration, it is also the first Sonic animated media to not feature Jaleel White voicing the titular character.
1999 North American VHS cover
Pierrot Co., Ltd. is a Japanese animation studio established in May 1979 by Yuji Nunokawa, previously an animator and director for Tatsunoko Production. Its headquarters are located in Mitaka, Tokyo. Pierrot is renowned for several worldwide popular anime series, such as Naruto, Bleach, Tokyo Ghoul, Yu Yu Hakusho, Black Clover, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, Ghost Stories, Great Teacher Onizuka, and Saiyuki.
Pierrot headquarters in Mitaka, Tokyo