In a future world, young people are increasingly becoming addicted to an illegal (and potentially deadly) battle simulation game called Avalon. When Ash, a star player, hears of rumors that a more advanced level of the game exists somewhere, she gives up her loner ways and joins a gang of explorers. Even if she finds the gateway to the next level, will she ever be able to come back to reality?
Three women and one man - with an assortment of weaponry - wage war against giant mutant sandwhales in a barren digital landscape, all to achieve points within the virtual reality video game called Avalon.
Four segments by four different Directors. Kiriko (Takanori Tsujimoto), The Children’s Samurai (Kenta Fukasaku), The Firing Range (Makoto Tahara), and Assault Girl 2 (Mamoru Oshii). Kiriko: the spirit of a murdered assassin takes revenge on the gang that killed her and her sister. Children's Samurai: an educational film narrates the like of a modern grade-school samurai dealing with bullies. Firing Range: the rifle of a Meiji Era soldier and the pistol of a modern police officer are transformed into powerful new weapons when they face off. Assault Girl 2: two guardian angels duel in a wheat field.
The plot of Open Your Mind follows the extraterrestrial origin of life, coming from outerspace as six deities (Intermission act), evolving into water (Sho-ho) then emerging to the air (Hyakkin) and to the ground (Ku-nu). Each one of these creatures rules one of the six elements of the godai philosophy, i.e. Earth, Water, Fire, Wind (referred to as kaze in the Hyakkin chant), Sky and Consciousness (referred to as "Awakening" in the movie's title).
Gundam Mission to the Rise is a short CGI movie with a duration of 5 minutes directed by Katsuhiro Otomo aired during the Gundam Big Bang Project event (August 1998). The story is settled in the Universal Century, although it's not completely clear whether in late years (after 0093) or in an alternative UC timeline.
