Shotaro Ishinomori`s Classic Manga is Revised for New CG Anime Film Source: Production I.G Official Website: ph9.jp (Japan)

Production I.G presents 009 RE:CYBORG (??????? ???????, Zero-Zero-Nine Re: Cyborg), a mature and thought-provoking approach to the classic manga Cyborg 009 from Kenji Kamiyama, the world-acclaimed director of the GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX series and EDEN OF THE EAST. The movie, in stereoscopic 3D full CG animation, will open in Japan October 27, 2012. 009 RE:CYBORG is based on the Cyborg 009 characters created in 1964 by Japanese comic artist Shotaro Ishinomori. In the original comic, nine regular humans from different parts of the world are kidnapped by the evil Black Ghost organization, and transformed into cyborgs with great powers for the purpose of being used as weapons. The nine cyborgs rebel and start to fight against their creators, while struggling for their own self redemption. Ishinomori continued to write Cyborg 009 until 1985 in eight different story arcs. As the first superpowered hero team ever created in Japanese comics, Cyborg 009 proved to be a greatly influential forerunner for the generations to come, receiving three animated TV series and three movie adaptations, distributed in many countries of the world. Kenji Kamiyama himself wrote the script for the new film, which is set in the present day. The main staff gathered around the project includes some of Japan`s top creators who have already collaborated with Kamiyama in his previous works. Gato Aso (MORIBITO: GUARDIAN OF THE SPIRIT) is in charge of character design duties, the score will be composed by Kenji Kawai (EDEN OF THE EAST), while the background art will be by Yusuke Takeda (GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX, MORIBITO: GUARDIAN OF THE SPIRIT). The animation is produced in collaboration with Sanzigen, one of Japan`s up-and-coming CG studios. 009 RE:CYBORG takes place decades after the nine cyborgs began their fight in the name of justice and world peace. The cyborgs seem to be untouched by time, but they live in a world where "justice" has as many nuances as the people living on the planet. What is their place in the world now? "In the beginning was the voice, and the word was him, and all men listened to his word in awe. But then men in vanity and arrogance started building towers whose top reached unto heaven, and accumulated great wealth on earth, and would not listen to his voice anymore. And so his voice descended upon earth like the roar of a great lion, and shattered their towers to dust..."

CHARACTERS

Cyborg 001: Ivan Whisky Birthplace: Russia Power: Psychic Status: Unknown A cyborg not even one year of age with more intelligence than a typical adult. He has psychic powers such as telepathy, psychokinesis and instant teleportation. Cyborg 002: Jet Link Birthplace: America Power: Super Flight Speed Affiliation: NSA Making use of the flight unit equipped in his body, Jet has the power to travel through the air at Mach 5 speeds. He currently works for the National Security Agency (NSA) in America. He has been seen flying at altitudes of over 3000 meters. Cyborg 003: Françoise Arnoul Birthplace: France Power: Enemy Detection Status: Unknown A female cyborg with enhanced hearing and sight. She also has the ability to access worldwide networks and collect information from them. Cyborg 004: Albert Heinrich Birthplace: Germany Power: Walking Arsenal Affiliation: GSG-9 A cyborg with an entire body built to be a deadly weapon. He is currently an instructor for the German Special Forces, the GSG-9. Cyborg 005: Geronimo Jr. Birthplace: America Power: Super Strength Status: Unknown A cyborg with inhumanly thick skin and superhuman strength. It is known that until recently he was involved with nature conservation activities in America. Cyborg 006: Chang Changku Birthplace: China Power: Flamethrower Status: Merchant A cyborg who can breathe fire and heat rays from his mouth. He established a Chinese restaurant franchise named Chang Changku that has turned global, and amassed a small fortune. Cyborg 007: Great Britain Birthplace: England Power: Shape shifter Affiliation: MI6 A cyborg able to rearrange his cells in order to transform into other substances. He is currently a spy working for MI6. Cyborg 008: Pyunma Birthplace: Africa Power: Underwater Status: Archaeologist Pyunma is able to breathe and live underwater, even at depths of up to 10km. He is currently an archaeologist investigating ancient fossils in the African Great Rift Valley. Cyborg 009: Joe Shimamura Birthplace: Japan Power: Acceleration Device Status: Student...? A powerful cyborg warrior with all the technology researched for the 00 Cyborgs placed into one. He acts as a leader for the 00 Cyborgs and can make use of his `acceleration device` to move at the speed of sound. He is currently living in Roppongi, Tokyo as a normal high school student. The reason for this is unknown.

CREATOR PROFILES

Shotaro Ishinomori Shotaro Ishinomori (1938 - 1998) is considered one of the most representative and influential Japanese comic artists. His opera omnia, encompassing an astoundingly broad variety of themes, includes 770 works collected into 500 volumes for a total of 128,000 pages, making him the Guinnes World Record-holder for the "most comics published by one author". He received the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette, the Japan Cartoonists Association Award and the Minister of Education Award for his work. He also received the special Osamu Tezuka Cultural Prize for his long lasting contributions to the manga medium.

Kenji Kamiyama Born in Saitama Prefecture on March 20, 1966. In 1985 he joined the background atelier Studio Fuga. A rare example of a background artist shifting to directorial roles, Kamiyama worked as animation director in JIN-ROH: THE WOLF BRIGADE (1999) and wrote the script for BLOOD: THE LAST VAMPIRE (2000), then debuted as director in MINIPATO (2002). International attention eventually arrived with the TV series GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX (2002, Excellence Prize winner, Japan Media Arts Festival 2002) and its second season, GHOST IN THE SHELL: S.A.C. 2ND GIG (2004), followed by the feature-length GHOST IN THE SHELL: S.A.C. - SOLID STATE SOCIETY (2006, Jury Recommended Work at the 10th Japan Media Arts Festival, Jury Prize at the 21st Digital Content Grand Prix). In 2007, after almost 6 years spent in the world of GHOST IN THE SHELL, Kamiyama directed the high-fantasy TV series MORIBITO: GUARDIAN OF THE SPIRIT (Jury Recommended Work at the 11th Japan Media Arts Festival) followed in 2009 by EDEN OF THE EAST (2009, Best TV Animation at the 14th Animation Kobe), Kamiyama`s highly anticipated fully original TV series. In 2006 he `acted` as a superlivemation digital puppet in Mamoru Oshii`s TACHIGUI: THE AMAZING LIVES OF THE FAST FOOD GRIFTERS, in the role of Manager Kamiyama. 2011 has seen the theatrical release of the stereoscopic 3D version of his multiple award-winning GHOST IN THE SHELL: S.A.C. - SOLID STATE SOCIETY, of which Kamiyama personally supervised the 3D conversion.

CREDITS

Based on the characters created by: Shotaro Ishinomori Director/Screenplay: Kenji Kamiyama (GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX, EDEN OF THE EAST) Music: Kenji Kawai (GHOST IN THE SHELL, THE SKY CRAWLERS) Character Design: Gato Aso (MORIBITO: GUARDIAN OF THE SPIRIT) Storyboard: Yasuhiro Aoki, Yuichiro Hayashi Animation Director: Daisuke Suzuki Assistant Director: Kohdai Kakimoto Lead Animator: Masanori Uetaka Art Settings: Takashi Watabe, Hiroshi Takiguchi Background Art: Yusuke Takeda (GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX) Color Designer: Yumiko Katayama Director of Photography: Takahiro Uesono Sound Desinger: Tom Myers Line Director: Reina Kawabata Animation Producer: Hiroaki Matsuura Producer: Tomohiko Ishii (THE SKY CRAWLERS, EDEN OF THE EAST) Animation: Production I.G (GHOST IN THE SHELL) and Sanzigen (TOWANOQUON) Distribution: Production I.G and T-JOY Promotion: STEVE N` STEVEN and Presidio © 2012 009 RE:CYBORG Production Committee

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About Production I.G

Started as the joint collaboration of visionary production manager Mitsuhisa Ishikawa and popular character designer Takayuki Goto, Production I.G was established on December 15, 1987. The company has produced a number of acclaimed feature films, OVA (original video animation), TV shows, and videogames. For their storytelling and quality of animation, GHOST IN THE SHELL (1995, directed by Mamoru Oshii, No. 1 in US Billboard Top Video Sales Chart 1996), JIN-ROH: THE WOLF BRIGADE (1999, directed by Hiroyuki Okiura, Jury`s Special Prize at Fantasporto 1999), and BLOOD: THE LAST VAMPIRE (2000, directed by Hiroyuki Kitakubo), have earned critical accolades in Japan and all around the world. INNOCENCE, directed by Mamoru Oshii in 2004, became the first Japanese animation feature ever to compete for the Palme d`Or at the Festival de Cannes. In 2008, Mamoru Oshii`s animated feature film, THE SKY CRAWLERS, was nominated for the Golden Lion at the 65th Venice Film Festival and won 3 awards at Sitges in the same year. The studio`s first 3DCG animation feature film, OBLIVION ISLAND: HARUKA AND THE MAGIC MIRROR (2009), directed by Shinsuke Sato was Animation of the Year at the 33rd Japan Academy Prizes.