Katsuhiro Otomo is a Japanese comic book creator, screenwriter and film director. He is best known as the creator of the manga Akira and its animated film adaptation. He also directed several live-action movies.
Biography from TMDB.
- April 14, 1954 (72)
- Miyagi, Japan
- Writer and director, also producer
- 11 on MovieCove · 31 credits in all
Known for
What are Katsuhiro Ōtomo's films like?
Across their 9 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Ideas.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 1 · Wry 1 · Earnest 7
Light 0 · Serious 6 · Dark 3
Grounded 0 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 8
Gentle 0 · Charged 2 · Intense 7
Steady 1 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 4
Straight-faced 7 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 1
Slow burn 0 · Even-paced 6 · Relentless 3
Casual 2 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 3
Easy watch 1 · Affecting 5 · Heavy 3
A split, not a type: Resolved 4 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 2
Moods and endings
- Happy1
- Bittersweet4
- Ambiguous3
- Cyclical1
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Katsuhiro Ōtomo's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 6 of their 11 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
- Crunchyroll
Subscription and free streaming for Katsuhiro Ōtomo's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
31 credits, 11 with a MovieCove page; 6 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Nezumikozo Jirokichi (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)
Tokyo Reborn (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)
DOMU (Pilot) (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)
SHORT PEACE (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)
A Farewell to Weapons (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)
Short Peace(2012)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films
Combustible (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)
Midcredits score: 36th percentile of all films
Hipira: The Little Vampire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)
Mushi-Shi: The Movie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)
SOS! Tokyo Metro Explorers: The Next (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)
Freedom (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
Steamboy(2004)
Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films
Metropolis(2001)
Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films
Spriggan(1998)
Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films
Gundam: Mission to the Rise (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)
Gondora (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)
Memories(1995)
Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films
Roujin Z(1991)
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films
World Apartment Horror (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)
Neo Tokyo(1987)
Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films
空前のアニメ巨編 AKIRA アキラが動き出す! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)
Akira(1988)
Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films
So What (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)
Robot Carnival(1987)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films
Robot Carnival (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1987)
Harmagedon(1983)
Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films
Give Me a Gun, Give Me Freedom (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)
Shuffle (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)
High School Erotopia: Red Uniforms (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
Orbital Era (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 31 titles, 30 of them dated from 1979 to 2023.
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Katsuhiro Ōtomo's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 75th percentile, the median of all 11; across their 9 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 77th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up6
- 50th to 74th3
- 25th to 49th2
Shape of the crowd
7 of their 11 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved2
- Crowd Pleaser7
- Mixed2
Reviewers score the dialogue 43/100 and the plot and story 47/100 in their films, across 9 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Katsuhiro Ōtomo's work okay for kids?
Across a limited sample of up to 3 MovieCove titles with content scores.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.
Who does Katsuhiro Ōtomo work with?
People who share at least 2 of Katsuhiro Ōtomo's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Takeshi Seyama shares the most, 5.
Directors
- Kōji MorimotoShared titles: Short Peace (2012), Memories (1995), Robot Carnival (1987)See all 3 shared titles with Kōji Morimoto
- RintarōShared titles: Metropolis (2001), Neo Tokyo (1987)See all 2 shared titles with Rintarō
- Hiroyuki KitakuboShared titles: Roujin Z (1991), Robot Carnival (1987)See all 2 shared titles with Hiroyuki Kitakubo
Actors
- Tarô IshidaShared titles: Short Peace (2012), Metropolis (2001), Akira (1988)See all 3 shared titles with Tarô Ishida
- Koichi YamaderaShared titles: Short Peace (2012), Memories (1995)See all 2 shared titles with Koichi Yamadera
- Takeshi KusaoShared titles: Short Peace (2012), Akira (1988)See all 2 shared titles with Takeshi Kusao
- Masane TsukayamaShared titles: Steamboy (2004), Neo Tokyo (1987)See all 2 shared titles with Masane Tsukayama
Cinematographers and editors
- Takeshi SeyamaShared titles: Short Peace (2012), Steamboy (2004), Spriggan (1998), Memories (1995), Akira (1988)See all 5 shared titles with Takeshi Seyama
- Hitoshi YamaguchiShared titles: Metropolis (2001), Memories (1995)See all 2 shared titles with Hitoshi Yamaguchi
- Harutoshi OgataShared titles: Neo Tokyo (1987), Robot Carnival (1987)See all 2 shared titles with Harutoshi Ogata
Producers
- Shigeru WatanabeShared titles: Steamboy (2004), Metropolis (2001), Spriggan (1998), Memories (1995)See all 4 shared titles with Shigeru Watanabe
- Masao MaruyamaShared titles: Metropolis (2001), Memories (1995), Neo Tokyo (1987)See all 3 shared titles with Masao Maruyama
- John LedfordShared titles: Short Peace (2012), Spriggan (1998)See all 2 shared titles with John Ledford
- Kazumi KawashiroShared titles: Short Peace (2012), Metropolis (2001)See all 2 shared titles with Kazumi Kawashiro
