“The Gods of Asian animation” in Studio 4°C are coming to Anim’est 2010!

The Studio 4°C retrospective presented by Animax enriches the 2010 Anim’est International Animation Film Festival’s programme with the Romanian premiere of five cult feature films, some of the most important anime titles produced worldwide. Founded in 1986, Studio  4°C has developed rapidly into one of the best known film and animation studios in Asia, working with countless Asian and American producers, and standing out through the remarkable diversity in animation styles and story selections.

Part of the retrospective dedicated to the important Japanese studio are / Memories (1995),the film that revolutionized animation techniques and instantly became cult for the genre’s fans; Steamboy, the most expensive anime ever made and grand winner at the 2004 Sitges International Film Festival, the movie that set the name of the high-standard studio once and for all; the multi-awarded Mind Game; Tekkonkinkreet, winner of Best animated film at both the Fantasia Festival, as well as at the Japanese Film Academy Awards, and represented Japan in the race for the 2007 Oscar nominations; last but not least, the omnibus film by five important animation, comics and graphic creators, all cantered around the idea of creativity, Genius Party Beyond, a popular title amongst animation filmmakers and fans around the world and landmark film for a new step in the development of animated film language.

On Tuesday, October 12th, from  p.m. and on Sunday, October 17th, from 6 p.m., Cinema Union will be screening Memories (dir. Kôji Morimoto, Tensai Okamura, Katsuhiro Otomo, Japan, 1995), a feature film made out of independent storyline episodes, connected through a strong thematic link: in the first story, Magnetic Rose, two astronauts are made curious of an asteroid’s SOS signal; Stink Bomb is the story of a young assistant chemist accidentally turned into a human biological bomb, and Cannon Fodder will be showing the Anim’est audience a day in the life of a city with the sole goal of firing cannons upon an unknown enemy.

The big budget film Steamboy (dir. Katshuhiro Ôtomo, Japan, 2004) will fill the big screen with a story placed in an unknown future, sometime right before the first International Exhibition; an extraordinary invention with a menacing power hiding behind it, The Steam Balloon, reaches Governor Rei’s door as a gift from his grandfather in the United Sates. The Evil Ohara Foundation has already sent its people to obtain “The Steam Balloon”. On Friday, October 15^th, and on Sunday, October 17^th, from 8 p.m., at Union Cinema, the Bucharest audience will get the chance to see who is at the winning end of a crucial battle for the future of mankind.

Monday, October 11^th, from 7 p.m., at Scala Cinema and Sunday, October 17^th, from 4:30 p.m., at Patria Cinema, the provocative film Mind Game (dir. Masaaki Yuasa, Japan, 2004) arrives with Nishi’s story, a loser still in love with his childhood sweetheart. After an accidental and unfortunate encounter with the Japanese mafia, Nishi takes off on a journey to Heaven, only to return to a place surpassing the limits of imagination.

Studio  4°C’s most representative film, Tekkonkinkreet (dir. Michael Arias, Japan, 2006), suggests an electrifying dystopia placed in the Treasure City; Red and Black, two homeless brothers, go far and wide in the city as if they completely own the place. An evil force makes them enter a ruthless battle with mobsters and assassins, the end of this battle proving to be decisive for their city. Anim’est will be screening Tekkonkinkreet on Tuesday, October 12th, from 9 p.m., at Scala Cinema, and on Saturday, October 16th, from 8 p.m., at Union Cinema.

Genius Party Beyond (2008), made out of short films directed by five of the most important Japanese animation, graphic or comics creators – Mahiro Maeda, Kôji Morimoto, Kazuto Nakazawa, Shinya Ohara and Tatsuyuki Tanaka – is a mix of styles and animation techniques, brought to life from the idea of creativity. The result: another revolutionary film signed Studio 4°C, screened at Anim’est Wednesday, October 13th, from 10:30 p.m. at Patria Cinema, and Saturday, October 16th 2010, from 6 p.m. at Union Cinema.