The FitzSimons Civics and Civility Initiative presents: Films Worth Talking About Even If Difficult: Akira. Directed in 1988 by Katsuhiro Otomo, based on his 1982 manga Akira.

Thursday, April 3, 6 pm, LC Visual Arts Complex Screening Room SL 24L. All are welcome. Pizza!Sponsored by the FitzSimons Civics and Civility Initiative in collaboration with the Visual Arts Program

Faculty panelists: Nushelle de Silva, Assistant Professor of Art History; Terrence Mosley, Adjunct Professor, Theatre Program; Anthony A. Berry, FitzSimons Fellow; Rachel Annunziato, Professor of Psychology, Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives; and Stephan Apicella-Hitchcock, Clinical Professor, Head of the Visual Arts Program

One randomly chosen lucky winner will take home Volume 1 of Otomo’s AKIRA manga.

The following faculty will lead an open discussion about the film with attendees:

Nushelle de Silva, Assistant Professor of Art History. A historian of the built environment; her research is broadly concerned with the relationships between architecture and mobility from the mid-nineteenth century to the present.Terrence Mosley, Adjunct Professor, Theatre Program.

Terrence I. Mosley is a narrative-based director, writer, and performer. He is committed to exploring how collective and personal traumas shape our world. Through that exploration, he aims to build healthier, more equitable social systems.

Anthony A. Berry, FitzSimons Fellow. In this role, he helps coordinate events, programs, and other opportunities across Fordham’s various campuses, engaging the community in how to approach difficult topics with civility and how to engage the different levers of democracy.

Rachel Annunziato, Professor of Psychology, Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives, Fordham College at Rose Hill, upcoming Vice Dean for Undergraduate Education. Dr. Annuziato is concerned with the transition to adulthood for medically ill adolescents/young adults, healthcare care management in adolescents with a medical illness, and Interactions between medical and psychiatric symptoms.

Stephan Apicella-Hitchcock, Clinical Professor, Head of the Visual Arts Program. He leads a study abroad course in Tokyo and is a bit of an Akira nerd.

Considered the most influential feature-length anime film ever made, groundbreaking in the cyberpunk genre, Akira has had an extraordinary impact on popular culture and effectively advanced anime and Japanese popular culture worldwide. The film unflinchingly takes on challenging topics, and societal messages abound pertaining to nuclear holocaust, political corruption, social unrest, the dangers of unchecked power, and the misuse of technology, as well as themes of individuals exploring identity, power, friendship, and the effects of their decisions. Akira powerfully demonstrated the potential of animation to address complicated and mature themes and became a cultural phenomenon, inspiring countless films and anime for almost four decades after its release.

Synopsis: “In 1988, the Japanese government dropped an atomic bomb on Tokyo after ESP experiments on children went awry. In 2019, 31 years after nuking the city, Kaneda, a bike gang leader, tries to save his friend Tetsuo from a secret government project. He battles against anti-government activists, greedy politicians, irresponsible scientists, and a powerful military leader until Tetsuo’s supernatural power suddenly manifests. A final battle is fought in the Tokyo Olympiad, exposing the experiment’s secrets.” —Rotten Tomatoes (91% rating).