Sony To Release Madhouse’s Marvel Hero Anime Worldwide

The Variety entertainment trade news source confirms that Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has agreed to globally distribute the four series that the Madhouse anime studio is producing with “re-imagined” characters from Marvel Comics. The company created a new International Product Expansion Group that signed the deals.

Vice President Tony Ishizuka has been assigned to lead the new group with Maxwell Mattord as a director. Marvel revealed in August that the first of the 12-episode series with Marvel’s Iron Man and Wolverine characters is launching on Sony’s Animax premium anime channel in Japan in Spring 2010.

Source: Anime News Network

Manga Studio 4 Released For Windows

Smith Micro Software Inc. Consumer Group today announced the availability of Manga Studio Debut 4 and Manga Studio EX 4 for Windows. The manga and comic art software is used by artists and hobbyists to create professional, ready-to-publish comics and print cartoons from start to finish.

“The global manga phenomenon is growing rapidly and today thousands of manga artists around the world delve into a wide range of subjects, including comedy, action, sports, business and romance,” said Sarina DuPont, product manager for Smith Micro Software. “Manga Studio has become one of the world’s most popular comic solutions because it saves artists time and resources, while offering users powerful tools to enhance their creativity.”

Manga Studio 4 offers an intuitive interface and a comprehensive suite of screen tones, content and special effects to satisfy comic artists at any level. The Debut version is designed for novice users and features a Beginner’s Assistant and dynamic help to allow them to get started quickly. Manga Studio 4 EX offers many new features including specialized color correction tools, millions of colors to choose from, enhanced filtering sets and special effects, new vector tools to create resolution-independent vector images, and more than 550 3D objects to use as comic props.

Manga Studio Debut 4 carries a suggested retail price of $49.99. Previous users can upgrade for only $19.99. Manga Studio EX 4 is available for $299.99, with upgrades from previous versions priced at $129.99. The packages are available from the Smith Micro web store or at www.smithmicro.com/manga, and from popular resellers such as Amazon.com. Find more information about the software at www.mangastudio.net.

Source: AnimationMagazine.net Read more

First 11 Minutes of ‘Resident Evil: Degeneration’ Posted

The IGN entertainment news source posted the first 11 minutes of the computer-animated Resident Evil: Degeneration feature. Makoto Kamiya and Digital Frontier are adapting CAPCOM’s Biohazard/Resident Evil zombie horror game franchise.

The story takes place seven years after the main game storyline and reunites the characters Leon (Paul Mercier) and Claire (Alyson Court). The first eight minutes are available without restrictions, although the next three minutes are age-restricted due to the graphic violence.

Sony Pictures will ship the DVD and Blu-ray version in North America on December 30. Read more

4Kids to End Its Fox Programming Block in December

In its financial statement for the third quarter of 2008 which ran from July 1 to September 30, 4Kids Entertainment has revealed on Monday that it will end its programming on the Fox Network at the end of this year. The current seventh season of 4Kids TV’s Saturday morning block on Fox includes episodes of Kirby: Right Back At Ya! and Sonic X. Fox had originally scheduled the block to run through September of next year. To back out of the contract, 4Kids had to settle with Fox for an undisclosed amount.

The relationship between 4Kids and Fox started in 2002, when the block launched under the name FoxBox. The block has aired numerous anime, including One Piece, Shaman King, and Tokyo Mew Mew. Last year, 4Kids signed a similar agreement with The CW Network to run original and licensed cartoons over a five-hour Saturday morning block and sell ads to be aired during that time. According to 4Kids CEO Alfred E. Kahn, the dissolution of the Fox contract will allow 4Kids “to focus resources” on its CW programming going into 2009.

4Kids’ quarterly results included an increase in net revenues to US$17.8 million, compared to US$12.2 million over the same term last year. About US$7.3 million of the new revenue came from sales of the Chaotic trading card game. However, 4Kids still experienced a net loss of US$5.3 million (compared to US$4.2 million last year).

For the year to date, net revenues were US$49.4 million, up from US$39.1 million, but net losses have also increased. In the first nine months of 2007, 4Kids lost US$6.6 million; this year, that figure was up to US$17.2 million. Kahn attributed this to “the increase in selling, general, and administrative expenses and cost of goods sold in the Trading Card and Game Distribution Segment of our business, coupled with decreased licensing and broadcast revenues.” However, he said he was confident that in the last quarter of the year, the company will return to profitability, and that the outlook
for 2009 will be positive as sales and licensing revenue related to Chaotic, Dinosaur King, and other 4Kids series continue to increase. 4Kids also renegotiated the terms of “representation agreement” for the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise, and now holds the licensing, broadcast, and merchandise rights to it through 2015.

Source: Anime News Network

‘Astro Boy’ Teaser Trailer Added To Madagascar 2, Bolt

The Variety entertainment trade news source reports that the teaser trailer for IMAGI’s computer-animated Astro Boy film has been put before DreamWorks’ Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa and will be added to Disney’s Bolt. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa opened in North America this past Friday as the weekend box office’s #1 film, and Bolt will open on November 21. Felix Ip, the creative director of the IMAGI animation studio, has updated his personal blog on Sunday with confirmation of the news. David Bowers is directing this US$65-million adaptation of robot boy hero created by the “God of Manga,” Osamu Tezuka (Jungle Emperor/Kimba the White Lion, Metropolis, Black Jack).

Variety also reports that Kadokawa Pictures has acquired the rights to distribute the film in Japan. Kadokawa will release the film next October, the same month as Summit Entertainment’s North American opening for the film. Golden Harvest and Enlight Pictures have the rights to distribute in Hong Kong and China.

Source: Anime News Network

Cartoon Network Japan buys Chhota Bheem Episodes

Cartoon Network Japan has acquired 13 episodes (season three) of Chhota Bheem, an animated television series developed by Hyderabad-based Green Gold Animation Private Limited. The Chhota Bheem series, currently on air on Pogo, is claimed to be India’s first animated TV series to be co-produced with Turner International.

“CN Japan has also initiated talks with us to buy the season one and season two series (each comprising 13 episodes) of Chhota Bheem and the deal may come through soon. The channel will telecast the season three series from August 2009,” Rajiv Chilaka, founder and managing director of Green Gold, told mediapersons on the sidelines of Nasscom’s two-day Animation and Gaming India 2008 conference, which began here on Thursday.

Chhota Bheem, the 2D cartoon series, is based in the mythical land of Dholakpur, a kingdom in India. The story revolves around the hero of the village — Bheem — a nine-year-old brave and intelligent boy and his friend Chutki, Raju and Jaggu. The rival Kalia and his sidekicks Dholu and Bholu are always seen involved in weaving plots that are designed to defeat Bheem, but in vain.

Chilaka said the company was currently developing a 13-episode new series on Krishna, which will go on air on Cartoon Network India from August next year. “We currently have an employee strength of 100 developing around 16 episodes per year. We will be trebling our workforce next year, after which we will be able to produce 39 episodes a year,” he added.

Green Gold is planning to make available its television cartoon series in the print format. From next year, it will release comic books based on its series library, merchandising products including activity books (colouring books), room makeover kits, t-shirts, ceramic mugs and school bags besides selling DVDs and home videos.

“We are already in talks with major retail chains including Odyssey, Crossword and Planet M for the same,” Chilaka said.

The seven-year-old animation studio expects to close the current year with revenues of $1.5 million (Rs 7.2 crore) and projects a 30 per cent growth next year.

Source: BusinessStandard.com

In Memoriam: Toonami, 1997-2008

Sanjo-chan from centume.info has a goodbye to say to his favorite afternoon anime: Toonami…

Ah, the good old days when you can watch anime on weekday afternoons. Toonami was the leading the way in decent anime you can see without staying up late at night on a Friday night to see the SciFi Channel’s anime lineup–provided your parents could let you see them at the time where anime was considered “Too Hot for TV”.

Sadly, those days of watching anime in the daytime is gone. The longest running action cartoon block on the Cartoon Network said its last goodbye in September 2008. While it’s a little late to mention this, I would like to share my memories of the one block that changed the lives of many anime fans new and old in the US.

I had just turned 8 when Toonami first aired, I didn’t take notice of it right away until one day I decided to check it out to see what the hype was about. I started watching Dragonball Z in the midst of the Saiyan Saga (now known as the “Vegeta Saga”). The episodes shown was where Gohan tells Nappa he “smelled like toenails!”. I’m sure everyone will agree that while it was a very corny line to say, it will remain in our hearts as one of the best quotes ever for a heavily (and badly) edited dub.

There was also Sailor Moon, which also received the same editing treatment as DBZ. I watched it in the middle of the series–and the only part of the series I’ve ever watched. It was the “Heart Snatcher” and “Dream Snatcher” arcs; Unfortunately, I can’t recall which arc came first… These were the only two arcs of Sailor Moon I took interest in–after that, it was completely unwatchable for my tastes. Read more

Funimation Posts Free 1st Episodes of 4 Anime on iTunes

Anime New Network has some cool info about some free downloads on iTunes…

The North American anime distributor FUNimation has begun offering the first episodes of the Afro Samurai, Burst Angel, Basilisk, and MoonPhase anime series for free on the iTunes Store service. The FUNimation 4 Episode Sampler requires an account on the iTunes Store in the United States. The first episode of Witchblade debuted on iTunes for free last month.

FUNimation’s own website is also offering selected episodes of Aquarion, Baki the Grappler, Black Blood Brothers, Burst Angel, Glass Fleet, Gunslinger Girl, Guyver, Kiddy Grade, MoonPhase, Mushishi, Ouran High School Host Club, Ragnarök, School Rumble Season 2, Shikabane Hime, Shin-chan, Shuffle!, Solty Rei, and Suzuka.

Source: Anime News Network Read more

Review: Vampire Hunter D - Vol 1

Here is a great review by Theron Martin over at Anime News Network.

SYNOPSIS
In the wake of an apocalyptic war, vampires – eventually popularly called Nobility – rose to supernatural, psychological, and technological dominance over humanity despite their daytime weakness. They rebuilt the world to their liking and, for thousands of years, subjugated what was left of humanity through power and terror. Gradually their dominance waned and a class of Hunters able to fight them and their genetically-engineered denizens arose, but still they remained fearsome presences. In the frontier village of Ransylva, farm girl Doris Lang, the tough and beautiful daughter of a Werewolf Hunter, has found herself the target of the ancient vampire Count Magnus Lee, who seeks to draw her into the Nobility and marry her, much to her dismay and to the consternation of the Count’s daught Larmica. Thus she seeks out the aid of D, a passing Vampire Hunter who also happens to be a dhampir (i.e. a half-vampire). What follows is a multifaceted battle between D and Doris, Magnus Lee, Larmica, village tough Greco (who is obsessed with Doris), and a deadly band of mutant bandits led by the suave but lethal Rei-Ginsei.

REVIEW
In the early 1980s, writer Hideyuki Kikuchi, heavily inspired by the 1958 American movie Horror of Dracula, penned the first of a long line of Vampire Hunter D novels, two of which would eventually be made into anime movies. The first, an iconic 1985 movie
based on the seminal novel, is one of those anime movies that nearly any anime fan whose fandom dates back at least to the ’90s has probably seen at some point, as despite its aged technical merits it still stands as a classic tale of a stoic hybrid hero and his battle against the forces of darkness. (And if you are too new to fandom to have ever seen it, Halloween is an ideal time of year to check it out.) Due to the popularity of that movie and its 2000 follow-up, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, Digital Manga has spent the last three years releasing many of the novels in the series. No place is more fitting to start reviews with than with the original, however. Read more

Warner Brothers To Produce Live-Action Ninja Scroll

The Variety entertainment news source reports that Warner Brothers and Leonardo DiCaprio’s Appian Way production company have acquired the live-action feature adaptation rights for Yoshiaki Kawajiri’s Ninja Scroll action anime film from the Madhouse anime studio. Kawajiri wrote this tale about a wandering ninja fighting a conspiracy of demons, and he also directed the anime with ultraviolent yet fluid animation. Alex Tse (Watchmen, The Illustrated Man) is slated to write the live-action version, but DiCaprio himself is not planning on acting in the film. Appian Way’s Jennifer Davisson Killoran and Mike Ireland will produce with Madhouse itself.

Warner and Appian Way have already acquired the rights to produce two live-action films based on Katsuhiro Otomo’s Akira manga. Killoran is also planning to produce the Akira project as well.

Manga Entertainment released the original 1993 Ninja Scroll anime film in North America, while Urban Vision helped produce and later released the 2003 television series adapation. The American publisher WildStorm created its comic book take on the story in 2006. Madhouse revealed at Anime Expo 2008 that it was still planning a sequel to the original anime film.

Source: Anime News Network

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