Some directors joke their way through press conferences (Takeshi Kitano), while others seem to revel in the attention (the late Akira Kurosawa), but few looked as ill at ease as Katsuhiro Otomo, appearing before the media at Roppongi Hills in early June to promote "Steamboy." Nervously blinking as though he was not quite used to bright lights and human voices, Otomo responded to the mostly predictable questions with expressions of ironic puzzlement. His answers, though, were concise, to the point and often funny, giving a glimpse of the master animator behind the otaku exterior.
Presenting a striking contrast on the dais were Shigeru Watanabe, the very picture of the brisk, articulate executive producer, and voice actors Anne Suzuki and Manami Konishi, who played Ray Steam and Scarlett O'Hara, respectively. All of 17, Suzuki was poised and in charge, while Konishi, nearly a decade older, was more in the sweet, charming idol mold.
On what attracted him to the past