Giant God Warrior Appears in Tokyo

Giant God Warrior Appears in Tokyo (巨神兵東京に現わる, Kyoshinhei Tôkyô ni Arawaru) is an live-action kaiju short film released during the exhibition "Director Hideaki Anno’s “TOKUSATSU” Special Effects Museum-Craftsmanship Of Showa & Heisei Eras Seen Through Miniatures" held on July 10, 2012 at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo. The film was directed by Shinji Higuchi and produced by Studio Ghibli. It was subsequently released in theaters and screened alongside "Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo" on November 17, 2012.

The design of the film's giant creature was provided by Hayao Miyazaki from his manga series "Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind". Featuring practical effects such as miniatures, the film is Studio Ghibli's first live-action production.

Synopsis
During an average day in Tokyo, the narrator is shocked by the arrival of her brother, who has been away at college. He tells her that a great disaster is coming and the city will be destroyed tomorrow. She exclaims that it is just a rumor being spread around the Internet, but her sibling insists. He explains that before every disaster there is an omen or warning that precedes it. The narrator becomes frightened and believes the person in front of her to be an imposter. He tells her that he is the omen and that she should carefully decide how to react to this event before vanishing before her.

Meanwhile, glowing spores have descended upon Tokyo, eventually coalescing to form an enormous being that hovers above the city. The narrator explains that gods are not only creators, but also destroyers, which is why humans worship them. The giant being begins aimlessly walking through Tokyo as the city's inhabitants look on. Suddenly, it stops and its mouth opens to reveal a device that unleashes a horrifying beam that ravages Tokyo, destroying the entire city and leaving a mushroom cloud in its wake.

The narrator explains that the world has a set life span and that, if it were up to humans, life would be prolonged indefinitely. Despite its inhabitants' objections, the Earth itself called upon the God Warrior to initiate the Seven Days of Fire which will end the planet's existence. She believes that if the Earth took seven days to create, it will take just as long to destroy it.

As the entire legion of God Warriors descend upon the ruins of Tokyo, the narrator says that she will forego what the gods have planned and is awaiting what will remain after they have destroyed Earth.

Overview
The film was planned by Hideaki Anno, who was the director of the exhibition "Hideaki Anno Special Effects Museum", which has been held on July 10, 2012. The giant god warriors from "Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind" make an appearance in the film, as Anno was once an animator of the giant god warrior scene of that film. Shinji Higuchi, a storyboard artist whose credits include series such as "Attack on Titan", "Gunbuster", "Diebuster", "Macross Plus", "Tekken: Blood Vengeance" and "Shin Ultraman", was tapped to direct.

Anno restricted the use of CG for the project, instead relying on practical special effects technology and digital composition. Many classic miniatures from the Marbling Fine Arts, Toho, and Tokusatsu Research Institute were used in the film.

Megumi Hayashibara, the voice of Rei Ayanami in the Evangelion franchise, narrates the film while Hayao Miyazaki provides the "voice" of the god warriors.

It received the VFX-JAPAN Award on February 23, 2013.

Release
On November 17, 2012, it was screened alongside "Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo" under the title "Theatrical Version Giant God Warrior Appears in Tokyo". Unlike the museum version, the narration and sounds was altered, and an end credits roll was added. The god warrior's wings are now in done in CG, and cosmetic enhancements were made to utility poles, sparks, etc. It was included on the BD/DVD release of "Evangelion: 3.0" that was released on April 24, 2013.

"Giant God Warrior Appears in Tokyo Theatrical Version TV Version" was aired for the first time on terrestrial broadcasting together with "Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo TV Version" on September 5, 2014. The audience rating on the "Friday Road SHOW!" program it was aired on was 10.0% in the Kanto region.