Astro Boy Promotes Robots In New Awareness Campaign

Japan's Kanagawa Prefecture is battling its aging population and the threat of natural disasters with a unique solution: robots. Government officials believe high performance technology will solve these problems. 

Now, the government is teaming with agency Geometry Global Japan and Tezuka Productions to help familiarize people with robotics and this city of the future titled "Sagami, City of Robots." And to make this concept more accessible, the City of Robots features the iconic Astro Boy character, created by the founding father of modern manga (a form of Japanese animation) Tezuka Osamu.  

Astro Boy takes a soon-to-be Dad on a tour of the future in the animated film “Robot Town Sagami 2028” that portrays the future based on interviews of companies and scholars across this district.  

The two characters tour a special district that has a large concentration of industries, research centers and university laboratories specializing in research and development of personal assistant robotics.  

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The movie will be screened in elementary schools and department stores across the prefecture. “I wanted people, especially children who play a crucial role in shaping the world we live in, to picture the future we are heading for,” stated Yuji Kuroiwa, Governor of Kanagawa Prefecture. “As an iconic, much loved household name, Astro Boy will enable people to feel and see the substantial future of Sagami Robot Town.” 

Here's an online clip. 

 “The challenges Kanagawa Prefecture face are not only applicable to the local government but also for Japan and the rest of the world," stated Masato Mitsudera, head of creative, Geometry Global Japan. "I hope this animation will fly around the world just like Astro Boy does, giving inspiration and hope for the future.” 

Tezuka Productions developed the animation Astro Boy series as the first Japanese cartoon in 1963.

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