AXCN: Tokyo Godfathers (2003) 4K Restoration
Director: Satoshi Kon Run Time: 92 min. Rating: PG-13 Release Year: 2003
Starring: Aya Okamoto, Mamiko Noto, Satomi Korogi, Tohru Emori, Yoshiaki Umegaki
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese, Spanish, English, with English subtitles
About the film:
Gateway Film Center and Anime Expo Cinema Nights invite you to celebrate Tokyo Godfathers (2003), the acclaimed holiday classic from master director Satoshi Kon (2006’s Paprika, 1997’s Perfect Blue), as it returns to theaters to celebrate its 20th anniversary with a 4K restoration under the supervision of the original art director and producers.
In modern-day Tokyo, three homeless people’s lives are changed forever when they discover a baby girl at a garbage dump on Christmas Eve. As the New Year fast approaches, these three forgotten members of society band together to solve the mystery of the abandoned child and the fate of her parents. Along the way, encounters with seemingly unrelated events and people force them to confront their own haunted pasts, as they learn to face their future, together.
Co-written by Keiko Nobumoto (1997-1998’s Cowboy Bebop) and featuring a whimsical score by Keiichi Suzuki, Tokyo Godfathers is a masterpiece by turns heartfelt, hilarious, and highly original, a tale of hope and redemption in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.
About the filmmaker:
Satoshi Kon was a leading figure in animation and one of the most influential contemporary Japanese artists. His stories fuse fantasy and reality to explore social themes and the human psyche. He is best known for his acclaimed anime films Perfect Blue (1997), Millennium Actress (2001), Tokyo Godfathers (2003), and Paprika (2006), as well as the anime series Paranoia Agent (2004). Prior to working as a director, he worked as a scriptwriter, layout artist and background designer, and made his directorial debut with episode 5 of the OVA JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure (1993-1994). Kon was a graduate of the Graphic Design department of the Musashino Art University and a member of the Japanese Animation Creators Association.
See our upcoming films