Iou Kuroda is the author of the cult classic crime manga Sexy Voice and Robo, as well as the short story collection Nasu, which was later adapted into the animated film Nasu: Summer in Andalusia, the first Japanese animated film to be selected for the Cannes Film Festival. Winner of the Excellence Prize at the 2002 Japan Media Arts Festival, Kuroda's distinctive inkbrush style sets him apart from every other manga artist. Shirow Masamune is a living legend of manga and creator of the classics The Ghost in the Shell and Appleseed. His highly technical, action-packed science fiction style helped shape the cyberpunk genre, directly influencing The Matrix, among many other works. More than a dozen films and TV series have been based on his works, and his graphic novels and illustration collections are a mainstay of American comic shop shelves.

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