Though his name may not be as recognized as Hayao Miyazaki or Makato Shinkai, Satoshi Kon is considered one of the greatest animation directors of all time. So influential are his works, that he even inspired acclaimed western filmmakers like Darren Aronofsky and Christopher Nolan. Though he only directed four films –Perfect Blue, Millenium Actress, Tokyo Godfathers,andPaprika– and one TV series (Paranoia Agent), all these works are considered masterpieces by critics, animation historians, and fans of animation. His untimely death was a shock to the industry and is still mourned to this day.
Satoshi Kon was working on his fifth film when he died unexpectedly of pancreatic cancer at the age of 46. In his final days, Kon’s producer – Masao Maruyama – assured the ailing director to not worry about the film he was directing. He promised that he would “take care of it,” and he fully intended to finish the movie “no matter what.” That promise remains unfulfilled as complications and red tape continue to get in the way of finishing Satoshi Kon’s final masterpiece.
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The Fifth Film
Before he died, Satoshi Kon was working on his fifth film titledDreaming Machine. Regarding the story of the film, he told Anime News Network in an interview:
The title will be Yume-Miru Kikai. In English, it will be The Dream Machine. On the surface, it’s going to be a fantasy-adventure targeted at younger audiences. However, it will also be a film that people who have seen our films up to this point will be able to enjoy. So it will be an adventure that even older audiences can appreciate. There will be no human characters in the film; only robots. It’ll be like a “road movie” for robots.
The film would have centered on three robot characters named Ririco, Robin, and King. No human characters would have been featured in the film.
Kon’s Death and Development Hell
When Kon was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer production onDreaming Machinewas suspended indefinitely while he received treatment. When it became clear that Kon might not survive, he apologized to his producer – the head ofMadhouse StudiosMasao Maruyama – for leaving the film in the unfinished state it was in. Maruyama assured Kon thatDreaming Machinewould be completed. Once Kon died though a series of financial troubles would stall the project.
On Jul 31, 2025 Madhouse Studios announcedDreaming Machinesproduction would resume with character designer and chief animation director Yoshimi Itazu taking over as the new director of the film. However, Maruyama would announce at Otakon 2011, that production had been forced to be put on hold due to financial difficulties in finishing the movie. He promised that he was still dedicated to getting the film finished at some point in the future. At that moment Maruyama revealed that roughly 600 of the 1,500 shots had been completed.
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In 2011, production would be further complicated when Maruyama left Madhouse to found MAPPA, leaving the fate ofDreaming Machineup in the air once again. The following year at Otakon 2012, he would revel those financial difficulties still prevented the film from being completed:
Unfortunately, we still don’t have enough money. My personal goal is to get it within five years after his passing. I’m still working hard towards that goal.
This would be the last fans would hear about the project for several years. Maruyama would eventually give another update on the film, but it would not be the update fans of the late director wanted to hear.
The Future of Dreaming Machine
A few years later during a panel at an Otakon 2015 when Maruyama would give another update on the film. Instead of blaming finances for the film still not resuming production, he blamed the fact that he felt there was no director out there capable of being able to finish the film, as well as Satoshi Kon, could. As he told the crowd:
For 4 to 5 years, I kept searching for a suitable director to complete Kon’s work. Before his death, the storyboard and script, even part of the keyframe film was already completed. Then I thought, even if someone can mimic Kon’s work, it would still be clear that it’s only an imitation. For example, if Mamoru Hosoda took the director’s position, the completed Dreaming Machine would still be a good piece of work. However, it’s Hosoda’s movie, not Kon’s. Dreaming Machine should be Kon’s movie, him and only him, not someone else’s. That means we cannot and should not “compromise” only to finish it. I spent years, finally reached this hard conclusion. Instead, we should take only Kon’s “original concept”, and let somebody turn it into a feature film. By doing so, the completed piece could 100% be that person’s work, and I’m OK with that.
While fans of Kon were hoping that this would not be the final word on the project, as of August 2018, Maruyama reconfirmed that the movie will not be completed in the foreseeable future for the same reasons he mentioned in 2015. While the future ofDreaming Machineseems to be in dire straits, as the years have gone by bits and pieces of the movie have been revealed to the public. In the French documentarySatoshi Kon: The Illusionist, several scenes of the movie were revealed to the public for the first time. Furthermore, in the book“Animation! Dream vs. Real, several storyboard sequences were printed for the first time.
At the time of this writing, it doesn’t appear that there are any plans to finishDreaming Machine. That said, it is the final film of one of someone who is considered one of the greatest animation directors of all time. The most likely thing that will happen is for someone else to make the film and start from scratch, making it another director’s work that was inspired by the original creator. There is a precedent for this: in 2001 Steven Spielberg releasedA.I.: Artificial Intelligenceafter original creatorStanley Kubrick diedbefore being able to film it. Whatever happens, it’s clear fans of anime and Satoshi Kon are keen to one day see the film, and that kind of desire CAN make things happen, so never give up hope!
