Synopsis for the Theatrical Short Asura (Ashura), Watch Video

Mid 15th-century Japan. Flood, drought and famine have transformed the landscape of Kyoto into a barren wasteland. More than 80,000 people perished between 1459 and 1461.

This desolate state serves as the backdrop to the beginning of the country's greatest civil war. In this era, a boy is born a beast - Asura. Abandoned as an infant, Asura is forced to learn the means of surviving in the wild. In time, he learns to kill humans as well. Asura's lost soul is saved by a young girl, Wakasa.

Through love, she tames Asura's beastly heart and teaches him the lessons of humanity. Nevertheless, as Asura attempts to assimilate himself into village life, the poverty-stricken villagers are unwilling to accept the strange outsider and retaliate.

Though he was taught kindness, love and empathy, it is jealousy and prejudice that drives him and Wakasa. A controversial masterpiece from the 1970s, Asura has been adapted into this hybrid animation feature film.