[Astro Boy: born without nipples]Written by GL
Shown above are the first official screens of the retro-remake of Astro Boy, Japan's most famous anime.
Animator Jakob Jensen is the name to remember. He's the person whose going to turn Japan's classic manga into a big screen production and he's doing it in Hong Kong - Imagi Animation Studio to be more precise.
Now in production, Astro Boy is set for release in 2009. It is a computer graphics adaptation of Osamu Tezuka's famous manga about a boy robot, first published in 1952. Which makes it so retro it's growing fungus.
[Retro Cover: the Japanese Mickey Mouse]The film is Imagi's third theatrical feature, following TMNT and Gatchaman, which is also now in production. And as additional information, TMNT debuted at No. 1 at the U.S. Box Office when it opened in March, with $25.45 million in ticket sales. It was a pure sleeper hit.
However, both the above-mentioned movies are action-heavy, whereas Astro Boy is going to be a largely emotional plot, spotlighting the character more than storyline, so says Jensen.
Jensen was not familiar with Astro Boy before being approached to work on the film, but he notes that Imagi Studios is going to be faithful to original story arc.
