Part of the Animatrix series of animated shorts set in the universe of the Wachowski brothers The Matrix, Second Renaissance, Part 1 is the first of two pseudo-documentaries created by director Mahiro Maeda. Part of the archive in the city of Zion, the short presents the history of robots on Earth and their relationship to their human creators. At times an allegory for the contemporary civil rights struggles of the real world, Second Renaissance, Part 1 leads directly into Second Renaissance, Part 2 which details the events that led to the creation of the Matrix by the machines. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide