Here's a first clip with stills from the upcoming awesomeness of War of the Worlds: Goliath, a badass indie anime epic directed by Joe Pearson with the help of more than 300 artists, illustrators and animators in four countries. It gives the 19th-century sci-fi novel a distinctive steampunk twist with some brutal battle sequences against the murderous Martian tripods. The spotlight of the story are the 1200-foot-long, armored zepellin aircraft carriers that clog the skies, and the heroic heft of the allied's Goliath machine attempting to halt the voracious alien invasion.

Assimilate the cool clip, then check out the 11 images below.

Here's the official synopsis:

In a parallel universe, World War I is imminent as we follow the gripping story of human resistance fighters who march to battle against the second invasion of the Martians. In 1899, the Earth was attacked by ruthless invaders from the planet Mars. The Martians' 80 ft tall, heat-ray spewing, Tripod battle machines laid waste to the planet, but the invaders ultimately fell prey to Earth's tiny bacteria. Fifteen years later, Man has rebuilt his shattered world, in large part by utilizing captured Martian technology. Equipped with giant, steam-powered Tripod battle machines, the international rapid reaction force, is Mankind's first line of defense against the return of the rapacious Martian invaders. And return the Martians do. The rematch finds the multinational battle squad tripod "Goliath" on the front-lines of a vicious interplanetary offensive. This time the Martians are using even more advanced alien technology. In the crucible of combat, the young crew helming the mighty Goliath will be tested to the limits of their endurance and courage as they fight for Mankind's very survival under the onslaught of an implacable enemy.

War of the Worlds: Goliath features the vocal talents of Adrian Paul, Adam Baldwin and Peter Wingfield. It's currently out in a limited 3D theatrical run in Los Angeles and New York, then launches on DVD and Blu-ray via Walmart, Target, Best Buy and others on April 1.

(Via Geek Tyrant)