Genius Party is a collection of seven short films from different directors. Atsuko Fukushima's intro piece is a fantastic abstraction to soak up with the eyes. Masaaki Yuasa, known for MIND GAME and CAT SOUP, brings his distinctive and deceptively simple graphic style and dream-state logic to the table with "Happy Machine," his take on a child's earliest years.
Shinji Kimura's spookier "Deathtic 4" taps into the creepier corners of a child's imagination, opening up a toybox full of dark delights. Hideki Futamura's "Limit Cycle" conjures up a vision of virtual reality, while Yuji Fukuyama's "Doorbell" and Shinichiro Watanabe's "Baby Blue" use understated realism for very surreal purposes.
Shoji Kawamori's "Shanghai Dragon" takes the tropes and conventions of traditional anime on a fun joyride, adding a unique twist to the collection of short films.