Michael Arias

Directing

Michael Arias

Born 1968-02-02 · Los Angeles, California, USA

Michael Arias (born 1968) is an American-born filmmaker active primarily in Japan. Though Arias has worked variously as visual effects artist, animation software developer, and producer, he is best known for his directorial debut, the anime feature Tekkonkinkreet, which established him as the first non-Japanese director of a major anime film. Description above from the Wikipedia article Michael Arias, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Acting credits

Godzilla Minus One poster
7.6

In postwar Japan, Godzilla brings new devastation to an already scorched landscape. With no military intervention or government help in sight, the survivors must join together in the face of despair and fight back against an unrelenting horror.

Godzilla Minus One

2023

The People vs. George Lucas poster
6.4

The passion the original Star Wars trilogy inspires in its fans is unparalleled; but when it comes to George Lucas himself, many have found their ardor has cooled into a complicated love-hate relationship. This hilarious, heartfelt documentary delves deep into Lucas’s cultural legacy, asking all the tough questions. Has Lucas betrayed his masterwork? Should he just have left the original trilogy alone? Is The Phantom Menace so bad it should carry a health warning? Utilizing interviews taken from over 600 hours of footage, and peppered with extraordinary Star Wars and Indiana Jones recreations lovingly immortalized in song, needlepoint, Lego, claymation, puppets and paper-mâché, above all this film asks the question: who truly owns that galaxy far, far away—the man who created it, or the fans who worship it?

The People vs. George Lucas

2010

Scrolls to Screen: A Brief History of Anime poster
10.0

A short documentary on Japanese animation featured on the DVD for The Animatrix (2003).

Scrolls to Screen: A Brief History of Anime

2003

No artwork available
NR

Rare access to animation filmmaker Oshiyama Kiyotaka (Look Back) allows cameras to follow as he dives into creating his latest film. Having honed his skills under legendary titans Miyazaki Hayao and Anno Hideaki, Oshiyama's process astonishes. It is one where he wears many, many hats. Also, interviews with the creators of the Academy Award-winning "Magic Candies", as well as A-list directors from the world-renowned production house MAPPA reveal the current state and concerns for the future of the anime industry.

Innovators of Japan Anime

2025

Behind the camera

The Animatrix poster
7.2

Straight from the creators of the groundbreaking Matrix trilogy, this collection of short animated films from the world's leading anime directors fuses computer graphics and Japanese anime to provide the background of the Matrix universe and the conflict between man and machines. The shorts include Final Flight of the Osiris, The Second Renaissance, Kid's Story, Program, World Record, Beyond, A Detective Story and Matriculated.

The Animatrix

2003

Tekkonkinkreet poster
7.4

Two penniless orphans, Black and White, struggle to survive on the mean streets of Treasure Town. When a megacorporation threatens to tear down the town to build an amusement park, Black and White engage in the fight of their life.

Tekkonkinkreet

2006

Harmony poster
6.8

Set in a future world. Japan has created a great medical technology that controls ethics, health, and social interaction to create a perfect world. Three young girls attempt to stand up to this by committing suicide, but it doesn't work. Years later, Tuan, one of the girls who attempted suicide must prevent a crisis that threatens this "perfect" world.

Harmony

2015

Sturgill Simpson Presents Sound & Fury poster
6.1

In this anime visual album, a mysterious driver heads deep into a postapocalyptic hellscape toward a ferocious showdown with two monstrous opponents.

Sturgill Simpson Presents Sound & Fury

2019

Heaven's Door poster
6.2

A young man Tomoya Nagase and a girl Mayuko Fukuda both learn that they have an untreatable illness and are nearing death. When one reveals that they have never been to the ocean, they embark on a comical adventure to see the sea.

Heaven's Door

2009

Ani*Kuri15 poster
6.3

15 one-minute shorts created by various people from Japan's animation industry. The title of the collection, Ani*Kuri15, is abbreviated from the words "anime" and "creators".

Ani*Kuri15

2008

Ani*Kuri15 poster
6.3

15 one-minute shorts created by various people from Japan's animation industry. The title of the collection, Ani*Kuri15, is abbreviated from the words "anime" and "creators".

Ani*Kuri15

2008

The Twilight World poster
NR

An adaptation on the novel that tells the story of the Japanese soldier Hiro Onoda who, after the end of World War II, hid in the jungles for 30 years, convinced that he was still fighting a war.

The Twilight World

Sunny poster
NR

The story of an orphanage, the children who live in it, and the beat-up old Nissan Sunny 1200 which provides a trio of boys with a means of escape from their bleak everyday lives.

Sunny

Sunny poster
NR

The story of an orphanage, the children who live in it, and the beat-up old Nissan Sunny 1200 which provides a trio of boys with a means of escape from their bleak everyday lives.

Sunny