The Final Flight Of The Osiris, Warner Bros and Village RoadshowPictures' first in a series of nine short films envisioned by The Matrix directors Larry and Andy Wachowski, willaccompany the worldwide theatrical release of Warner Bros' supernatural thrillerDreamcatcher on Mar21. Like its counterparts in the nine-film set dubbed The Animatrix, The Final Flight Of The Osiris combines CG-animation and Japanese animeand is a companion piece to the Matrix trilogy, offering complementary storylines that explorehistory and characters.

"The Wachowski Brothers' vision for The Matrix is one that extends far beyond thetheatrical trilogy, and the world they have created is so rich that we'vechosen to tell these inter-connected Matrix-related stories in multiple mediums[sic]," Matrix producerJoel Silver said in a statement today (Jan 27). "The Animatrix takes fansbeyond the boundaries of the movie screen and into the vast realm of TheMatrix, introducing themto new characters and scenarios that further the trilogy's mythology andamplify their cinematic experience."

In The Final Flight Of The Osiris, which was written by the WachowskiBrothers and directed by Andy Jones, rebel warriors flee the Machine Army onboard the hovercraft Osiris and attempt to send a warning to Zion, the lasthuman city on Earth. Four other films from the series will be streamlinedonline from Feb 4 at www.theanimatrix.com. The entire set will be released on DVDand VHS on Jun 3, between the theatrical release of the second and third Matrix instalments. The Matrix Reloaded is due to open on May 15 and TheMatrix Revolutions inNovember. In addition, a computer game called Enter The Matrix will be released on May 15.

Silver said thetiming of the theatrical release of The Final Flight Of The Osiris meant it could be considered as "chapter1.5 in the Matrixtrilogy". "It's not crucial that fans see Final Flight or play Enter The Matrix to enjoy The Matrix Reloaded, but their movie-going experience willbe immeasurably enhanced and they will gain a deeper understanding of the worldof The Matrix."