AKARI (2022)

AKARI Directed by Takeshi Yagi Producer Takeshi Yagi, Todd Silverstein, Jordan A. Y. Smith Written by Takeshi Yagi, Todd Silverstein, Jordan A. Y. Smith Music by Darin Dahlinger Distributor Narō Running time 6 minutes Rate this film! 4.11 (9 votes)

AKARI is a Japanese tokusatsu kaiju proof-of-concept short film directed by Takeshi Yagi and written by Yagi, Todd Silverstein, and Jordan A. Y. Smith. It is the end result of a tokusatsu film production course taught by Yagi for the online subscription service Narō. Though only about six minutes of footage was cut together and shown at Tokyo Comic Con on November 24, 2022, Yagi and his crew intend to put proceeds from course subscriptions toward getting AKARI made as a feature film or television series. The short stars Akari (played by Kanon Miyahara), a woman turned giant by alien technology who must fight off the berserk cybernetic monster Pythagodon (played by Kazuki Hamatani). The two were designed by prolific monster artists Matt Frank and Akihiko Iguchi, respectively.

Description

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2076. Tokyo. Technology has flourished, but the powers of governments world-wide have waned. Parts of the city have become “free (lawless) zones,” and a secret branch of weapons manufacturing company, TEPPO CORP, has taken advantage of these zones to conduct risky research on neural-hacking, DNA engineering, and semi-automated giant animal soldiers. TEPPO CORP has been quickly progressing on research attempting to weaponize a giant creature – PYTHAGODON, a hybrid grown from a mix of kabutomushi, tardigrade, and dinosaur DNA. TEPPO CORP's goal: to make the creature stronger and superior to conventional technology-based weapons. When activated, PYTHAGODON is supposed to be rendered into a zombie state, requiring a human to "remote pilot" it. TEPPO CORP's research is also aiming to improve PYTHAGODON's mental ability with AI supplements that will enable it to instantly analyze attacks and predict enemy movements. The research and development have been progressing much faster than the government or public realizes, with many physical supplements having already been incorporated into the hybrid's body (armor, guns/lasers). Recently, a number of scientists and employees working on the project have become increasingly alarmed by the creature’s AI supplements, as they partially override the need for full remote-piloting. News of this work has just been leaked to the media by these concerned scientists. Large demonstrations and protests have been organized in response. Our heroine's boyfriend, HARUTO, is one of the protest organizers and leaders. As the protestors gather in the city, the creature appears and begins behaving erratically.  It seems PYTHAGODON has somehow been activated – and a renegade scientist, DR. SAKAI is implicated in a terror plot on the city. Police capture the scientist, believing they have stopped the threat and saved the day. However, PYTHAGODON's AI supplements have been evolving thanks to SAKAI's removal of some of the few remaining code safeguards. Will the successful protests and capture of DR. SAKAI turn into a tragedy? As the AI singularity looms, the CHI'SORA arrive over Tokyo's skies, and our heroine AKARI, who has suffered a recent personal tragedy, is about to have her life further upended. Is she capable of assuming the mantle of Earth's new champion?

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Staff

Staff role on the left, staff member's name on the right.

• Directed by   Takeshi Yagi
• Written by   Takeshi Yagi, Todd Silverstein, Jordan A. Y. Smith
• Produced by   Takeshi Yagi, Todd Silverstein, Jordan A. Y. Smith
• Music by   Darin Dahlinger
• Cinematography by   Alexandre Bartholo
• Edited by   Niko Lanzuisi
• Production design by   Yuji Terai
• Assistant director   Yuichi Kikuchi
• Stunt coordinator   Tatsuro Koike
• Practical effects by   Yoshinori Muraishi
• Tokyo visual design by   Mad Dog Jones
• Akari designed by   Matt Frank
• Pythagodon designed by   Akihiko Iguchi

Cast

Actor's name on the left, character played on the right.

• Kanon Miyahara   as   Akari
• Kazuki Hamatani   as   Pythagodon

Appearances

Monsters

• Akari
• Pythagodon

Theatrical releases

• Japan - November 24, 2022 (Tokyo Comic Con)
• Canada - July 22, 2023 (Fantasia International Film Festival)

Foreign releases

AKARI had its international premiere at the 27th Fantasia International Film Festival on July 22, 2023. It played before Hideaki Anno's Shin Kamen Rider.

Gallery

Concept art

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  Akari concept art by Matt Frank

Pre-production

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Production

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External links

• The full short (archived)
• Narō course page (archived)

References

This is a list of references for AKARI (film). These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: ^[1]

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