When I first saw the film, it was on the Sci-Fi channel's now extinct "Saturday Anime" program. At first I wasn't entirely sure what I was watching, which is what I believe the director of the first short film wanted the viewer to feel. In the first story a small figure slowly makes his way across the screen while various scenes of humanity are displayed in the background. Upon further study and a trip to the Anime Web Turnpike I learned the hidden meaning of this film was of one robot's (the small figure) quest for humanity. This made sense with the themes in the rest of the film and was a perplexing introductory piece.
Some of my other favorite shorts were two more story based films. One involved a scientist who created a sentient robot girl, while neglecting his family responsibilities. When the robot reaches out to him as a companion, he shuns her and leaves his world of invention alone until she returns to him many years later. The second was almost music video in nature. An entertaining robotic war story plays out begining with a young girl sending her prized android off to fight with other to protect their home. She is later captured by a larger more villanous robot, who is then dispatched by a very human looking machine, who reveals himself to be the girl's robot. During this typical anime sythesizer music plays and makes for a most entertaining sequence.
"Robot Carnival", released by Streamline Pictures is another video that is no longer available on store shelves. However I have discovered that several video rental stores have a copy and it is often available on various online auctions. This movie is definitely worth the trouble to see.
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