On Friday 6th February, I attended a lecture at the Japanese Information and Cultural Centre (in Washington, DC). Rintaro, a veteran anime director, gave the talk.
It was very interesting to hear Rintaro-san's perspective on the anime industry. He directed the first anime TV series in Japan, Astroboy in 1963, and has since directed numerous other anime classics, including Galaxy Express 999, and more recently, Metropolis. He was funny and entertaining, and the talk didn't leave me looking at my watch. He mentioned anime conventions several times, and he seemed particularly enthusiastic about cosplayers. I think the overall feeling I got from him on this point was that he felt inspired that anime could, in turn, inspire millions of people to spend their time, effort, and money to make costumes of characters that they love, and to attend the anime cons. Rintaro-san also spoke about computer techniques being combined with traditional cel animation. He seems to regard cel animation as more 'alive' than animation that is purely made inside a computer.
If you guys get the opportunity to show Metropolis, do so. It's pretty good.
[hr]samus