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OTOMO: A Global Tribute to the Mind Behind Akira
With the manga and anime Akira, Katsuhiro Otomo changed art and pop culture worldwide. Now some of the most admired illustrators and comics artists in the world have come together to pay tribute to this master, in a beautiful tribute art book.
New, original cover by Katsuhiro Otomo!
This 168-page collection began life as a limited-edition tribute to Otomo given only to attendees of the prestigious Angouleme International Comics Festival, where Otomo was recipient of the Grand Prize in 2015. Now it's available to readers and collectors around the world, with additional content from a list of more than 80 fine artists, illustrators, and comics legends, including Stan Sakai, Jiro Taniguchi, Tomer and Asaf Hanuka, and many others. In full color at a large size.
New, original cover by Katsuhiro Otomo!
This 168-page collection began life as a limited-edition tribute to Otomo given only to attendees of the prestigious Angouleme International Comics Festival, where Otomo was recipient of the Grand Prize in 2015. Now it's available to readers and collectors around the world, with additional content from a list of more than 80 fine artists, illustrators, and comics legends, including Stan Sakai, Jiro Taniguchi, Tomer and Asaf Hanuka, and many others. In full color at a large size.
168 pages, Hardcover
Published March 28, 2017
1 person is currently reading
57 people want to read
About the author
Katsuhiro Otomo
314 books890 followersKatsuhiro Otomo is a Japanese manga artist, film director, and screenwriter. For his works in Japanese see 大友克洋. He is perhaps best known for being the creator of the manga Akira and its anime adaptation, which are extremely famous and influential. Otomo has also directed several live-action films, such as the recent 2006 feature film adaptation of the Mushishi manga.
Katsuhiro Otomo was born in the former town of Hasama, in Miyagi Prefecture.
As a teenager growing up in the turbulent 1960s, he was surrounded by the demonstrations of both students and workers against the Japanese government. The riots, demonstrations, and overall chaotic conditions of this time would serve as the inspiration for his best known work, Akira. Some would argue that this seminal work is an allegory of 1960s Japan, and that one could easily substitute the year 2019 for 1969 and leave little difference in the basic story.
The animation from this period (especially the works coming out of Tokyo animation studios Mushi Production and Toei Doga, now known as TOEI Animation) were influencing young Otomo. Works like Tetsujin 28-go, Astro Boy, and Hols: Prince of the Sun would help push Otomo toward a career in animation. However, it was the films coming out of America that were driving his rebellious nature. Five Easy Pieces and Easy Rider would serve as inspiration for Shotaro Kaneda and his biker gang in Akira: rebellious youth who took too many drugs and didn't care about authority or the pressures put on them by their parents' generation.
Otomo has recently worked extensively with noted studio Sunrise with the studio animating and producing his most recent projects, the 2004 feature film Steamboy, 2006's Freedom Project and his latest project, SOS! Tokyo Metro Explorers: The Next, released in 2007.
Otomo grew up a fanatic of American blockbusters, which has influenced his cinematic style throughout his huge career. He grew fond of the work of artists like Moebius, and is often regarded as the person who brought a Westernized style into manga. From the late seventies onwards, Otomo created numerous volumes of anthologies and short stories, which usually ran at 23 pages each. Serialization for Fireball was cancelled, though the premise and themes were later to appear in the Sci-Fi Grand Prix award winning Domu and Akira. Otomo later moved onto directing and creating notable anime like the film adaption of Akira, Memories, and Steamboy. His most recent manga have been the scripting of Mother Sarah and the short story Park released in an issue of Pafu last year. He has also directed several live action films, such as World Apartment Horror, Give Us A Gun/Give Us Freedom, and the 2006 feature film adaptation of the Mushishi manga.
Katsuhiro Otomo was born in the former town of Hasama, in Miyagi Prefecture.
As a teenager growing up in the turbulent 1960s, he was surrounded by the demonstrations of both students and workers against the Japanese government. The riots, demonstrations, and overall chaotic conditions of this time would serve as the inspiration for his best known work, Akira. Some would argue that this seminal work is an allegory of 1960s Japan, and that one could easily substitute the year 2019 for 1969 and leave little difference in the basic story.
The animation from this period (especially the works coming out of Tokyo animation studios Mushi Production and Toei Doga, now known as TOEI Animation) were influencing young Otomo. Works like Tetsujin 28-go, Astro Boy, and Hols: Prince of the Sun would help push Otomo toward a career in animation. However, it was the films coming out of America that were driving his rebellious nature. Five Easy Pieces and Easy Rider would serve as inspiration for Shotaro Kaneda and his biker gang in Akira: rebellious youth who took too many drugs and didn't care about authority or the pressures put on them by their parents' generation.
Otomo has recently worked extensively with noted studio Sunrise with the studio animating and producing his most recent projects, the 2004 feature film Steamboy, 2006's Freedom Project and his latest project, SOS! Tokyo Metro Explorers: The Next, released in 2007.
Otomo grew up a fanatic of American blockbusters, which has influenced his cinematic style throughout his huge career. He grew fond of the work of artists like Moebius, and is often regarded as the person who brought a Westernized style into manga. From the late seventies onwards, Otomo created numerous volumes of anthologies and short stories, which usually ran at 23 pages each. Serialization for Fireball was cancelled, though the premise and themes were later to appear in the Sci-Fi Grand Prix award winning Domu and Akira. Otomo later moved onto directing and creating notable anime like the film adaption of Akira, Memories, and Steamboy. His most recent manga have been the scripting of Mother Sarah and the short story Park released in an issue of Pafu last year. He has also directed several live action films, such as World Apartment Horror, Give Us A Gun/Give Us Freedom, and the 2006 feature film adaptation of the Mushishi manga.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 8, 2017
For those out there who are Akira fans this is a fascinating book to read - its basically a reprint and expansion of a book which began life as a limited-edition tribute to Otomo given only to attendees of the prestigious Angouleme International Comics Festival.
Now it has expanded from 80 pages up to 160+ pages which additional artwork and artist bios.
The book is sumptuously presented in heavy gauge art paper - it is a true labour of love and shows both the respect Katsuhiro Otomo has in world but also how far reaching and influential the story of Akira has become over the years from its first release as a massive 2200 page masterpiece.
Even now years after seeing the film on a scratchy rather worn VHS tape the beauty of the artwork and storyline still captivate me (I am lucky to have won in a competition many years ago some of the original cells from the film).
This book Is not for every fan though - like many catalogue of artists works it varies from faithful renditions to the totally bizarre. As such some I love, while others I am not sure about, but what I can related to is the fact that each and everyone one of them contributors wanted to express the respect and love for this man and his work.
Now it has expanded from 80 pages up to 160+ pages which additional artwork and artist bios.
The book is sumptuously presented in heavy gauge art paper - it is a true labour of love and shows both the respect Katsuhiro Otomo has in world but also how far reaching and influential the story of Akira has become over the years from its first release as a massive 2200 page masterpiece.
Even now years after seeing the film on a scratchy rather worn VHS tape the beauty of the artwork and storyline still captivate me (I am lucky to have won in a competition many years ago some of the original cells from the film).
This book Is not for every fan though - like many catalogue of artists works it varies from faithful renditions to the totally bizarre. As such some I love, while others I am not sure about, but what I can related to is the fact that each and everyone one of them contributors wanted to express the respect and love for this man and his work.
March 19, 2021
Hommage à l'immense auteur qu'est Otomo Katsuhiro (auteur d'Akira - avis non partial - le meilleur manga du monde). Préface du non moins respecté Benoit Peeters, dessins de grands noms de la BD mondiale (citons, entre autres, Tsutomu Nihei, Zep, Jiro Taniguchi...) et anecdotes sur la découverte de l'univers d'Otomo.
Ce livre m'a rappelé l'émotion et la claque que je me suis prise au moment où je me suis plongée dans le premier tome d'Akira, il y a bientôt 20 ans.
Magnifique !
Ce livre m'a rappelé l'émotion et la claque que je me suis prise au moment où je me suis plongée dans le premier tome d'Akira, il y a bientôt 20 ans.
Magnifique !
October 10, 2022
Más allá de la gran calidad de los artistas que le rinde homenaje a Katsuhiro Otomo en este libro, lo que más me deja es motivación para crear. Dan ganas de ponerse a hacer cosas luego de ver los artes y leer acerca de la influencia que alguien puede tener sobre los demás.
May 16, 2017
A nice collection of artwork from artists around the world who were influenced for Kasuhiro Otomo - the creator of Akira.
September 19, 2017
There is only Before Akira and After Akira; that's the way the pill is split.
December 14, 2023
A wonderful tribute to one of Manga's and Anime's greatest creators.
February 4, 2018
I bought this on a whim in Paris. Nearly solely because of a drawing of Kaneda imagined in an androgynous way
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews