AKIRA

About this event

New 4K restoration! Preceded by a discussion with AKIRA manga editor Takeshi Katsurada. Dir. Katsuhiro Otomo. 1988, 124 mins. DCP. In Japanese with English subtitles. With Mitsuo Iwata, Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama, Taro Ishida. Welcome to Neo-Tokyo, a metropolis painted in strokes of neon and cruelty, built on the ashes of a Tokyo annihilated by a mysterious blast in 1988 that triggered World War III. Thirty-one years later, bike gang leader Kaneda battles the combined military, political, and scientific forces of a corrupt shadowy government agency in hopes of saving his abducted friend Tetsuo, who has manifested strange, supernatural powers. Katsuhiro Otomo’s visually stunning science-fiction masterpiece is considered by many to be the finest anime film ever made and marked a watershed moment for the popularization of the art form in the United States, where it became a cult phenomenon on VHS and opened the floodgates to countless stateside anime releases. Produced by Ryohei Suzuki and Shunzo Kato, screenplay by Katsuhiro Otomo and Izo Hashimoto, music by Shoji Yamashiro, cinematography by Katsuji Misawa, edited by Takeshia Seyama, art direction by Toshiharu Misutani, character design by Katsuri Otomo. From production company Tokyo Movia Shinsha. Free with RSVP, courtesy of Crunchyroll. Please note that tickets will be distributed first-come, first-served.