One anime that really captured the essence of summer festivals for me is "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time" in Japanese "Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo". It’s technically a movie, not a series, but the way it portrays summer especially the festival scene has stuck with me ever since I watched it.
The whole story takes place during a high school summer break, filled with sunshine, lazy afternoons, bike rides, and the kind of tension that only youth can bring. There’s one scene where Makoto, the main character, goes to a festival with Chiaki and Kousuke, her two close friends. They’re just teens in casual yukatas, standing in the glow of lanterns with the sound of taiko drums in the background. Fireworks explode above them but beneath it all is a growing emotional storm.
What made it special to me wasn't just the fireworks or the romance, but how nostalgic it felt. That feeling of wanting summer to last forever while knowing it can’t. I was watching it on a hot July night, lying on the floor in front of a fan, and I remember pausing the movie just to take in the quiet sadness in Makoto’s eyes during that scene. She had the power to leap through time, to redo moments, something I think we all wish we could do sometimes, especially during summer, when everything feels more alive.
That scene made me think of one summer years ago, when I was with my cousins at a local end of term celebration. No yukatas or fireworks, just old fashioned yellow bulbs, fried snacks, and music booming from a dusty speaker. It was loud and chaotic and beautiful. We didn’t know then how short those moments were. Now, every time I see a summer festival in anime, I feel that ache, that sweet, warm ache of something good slipping through your fingers.
Anime like The Girl Who Leapt Through Time remind us that summer isn't just a season, it's a memory in motion. It’s laughter, choices, regrets, and fleeting beauty. And summer festivals? They’re like bookmarks in the story of growing up. You can’t leap through time like Makoto, but anime helps you revisit those feelings even years later.
I highly recommend The Girl Who Leapt Through Time