Akira

Akira is a Japanese animated cyberpunk action film directed by Katsuhiro Otomo that released in theaters in July 1988. The feature adapts Otomo's manga of the same name.

Otomo published the original manga series in Kodansha's Young Magazine between December 1982 and June 1990 across six volumes. Tokyo Movie Shinsha animated the film adaptation, which Otomo directed and co-wrote alongside screenwriter Izo Hashimoto. Production operated under a dedicated partnership of eight companies known as the Akira Committee. Its budget was between ¥700 million and ¥1.1 billion ($5.7 million). Toho released the 124-minute feature into Japanese theaters on July 16, 1988.

The narrative takes place in Neo-Tokyo in 2019, 31 years after a nuclear explosion destroyed the old city and initiated World War III. Shōtarō Kaneda leads a teenage biker gang that clashes with a rival syndicate across urban highways. During one street battle, his childhood friend Tetsuo Shima crashes his motorcycle to avoid hitting an escaped child with telekinetic abilities. Government troops capture Tetsuo and transfer him to a secret military laboratory overseen by Colonel Shikishima. Tetsuo develops unstable psychic powers that overwhelm his sanity as he hunts for an entity named Akira.

Shōji Yamashiro formed the musical collective Geinoh Yamashikogumi to compose the soundtrack, using traditional Indonesian gamelan instruments and Japanese theatrical choral styles. Streamline Pictures distributed the film in North American theaters in 1989, followed by an international theatrical expansion. Its theatrical runs from 1988 to 2020 earned $49 million worldwide. The film won the Silver Scream Award at the 1992 Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival. In October 2020, a 4K remaster screened in IMAX theaters across the United Kingdom and Japan.