When the melodies of Studio Ghibli fill the room, carried by three cellos, piano and percussion, film music becomes something you do not just hear but truly feel. In 2026 the Cellotic Soundtrack Ensemble (CSE) brings exactly this experience to the stage of Anime Messe Babelsberg: instrumental reinterpretations of beloved anime, film and series soundtracks, from Ghibli classics through epic fantasy worlds to modern blockbusters. Hear familiar themes in an entirely new light, live and full of emotion, in the Festsaal on Saturday at 18:00 and Sunday at 10:40.
Some melodies stay with us for a lifetime. The Cellotic Soundtrack Ensemble (CSE) brings these moments back to life at Anime Messe Babelsberg 2026 (17 to 19 July): instrumental, atmospheric and wonderfully close.
With three cellos, piano and percussion, the ensemble, founded in Berlin in 2019, transforms well-known soundtracks from anime, film, series and games into arrangements of its own. The repertoire ranges from the sound worlds of Japan's Studio Ghibli through Game of Thrones, The Lord of the Rings and The Last Unicorn to Interstellar, Disney and Star Wars. Every piece takes on a new and unmistakable character, at times deeply melancholic, at times powerfully rock-driven.
Inspired by formations such as The Piano Guys and Break of Reality, the CSE is today one of the sought-after show acts at major conventions, among them AnimagiC in Mannheim. In 2025 it created a special Violet Evergarden collaboration there together with the Japanese studio ABC Animation, culminating in a European premiere.
At Anime Messe Babelsberg the ensemble performs on both days in the Festsaal:
After each performance you will have the chance to meet the ensemble in person at the signing session.
Film music as you know it, and yet entirely new: experience the Cellotic Soundtrack Ensemble live in Potsdam.