Steamboy was Katsuhiro Otomo’s first feature film after Akira (1988). Originally intended as three 40-minute original video animation episodes, Steamboy remained in production for ten years and was at the time of release the most expensive Japanese animated film ever produced. While not an immense success on release, the film has gathered a large fanbase over the years and its themes of industrialization, pollution and technocriticism have grown more poignant over the years.

This program screened as part of Kaboom Anime