Forum - View topicUnlicensed favourites -- which would/wouldn't be successful?
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EireformContinent
 Posts: 977 Location: Łódź/Poland (The Promised Land) |
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Image that you are phoned by Serious Licensing Company, willing to contact with anime expert. Said company wants to extend their offer to anime and need analysis which shows not licensed yet could be successful in USA. Company literally taken from anime, so there's nothing impossible- DVD release, online streaming and TV airing all over the country and ads to every type of potential customer. If it succeed, they will start a new campaign and you will be rewarded by money and name praised in whole industry.
Now you are sitting and trying to think business-wise. Not like anime fan wanting your favs to be licensed, but someone who must think about people's tastes. What are the dark horses of the Japanese animation? What would you advise against, even with tears in your eyes? My thoughts - -Everything older aside. People can stand much things but not older animation. -So no Legend of The Galactic Heroes. Writtenbyhistorynerdsabouthistorynerdsforhistorynerds. Very long. With old graphic. It was quite successful, Japanese won't sell the license cheap and agree for budget release. - Showa Monogatari, Hyouge Mono, Oruchuban Ebichu, everything that would require large knowledge about background. -Comedies funny for people understanding the convention, anything about otaku + -Black Jack Final- VHS release of the OVA in 90s was pretty well received, so let's add it to streaming. -Berserk Movie- maybe I'd risk cinema. with huge FANTASY FOR ADULT. -Matsumoto Queen Millennia movie- brings nostalgia about naive yet fascinating SF. But seriously I'd target children. They watch a lot of TV and, more passionate fans and even if they don't have own money they would -Bible Stories-already in English, but nearly impossible to buy, may be recommended for teaching religion (and Church doesn't support piracy:)) -Before Green Gables. It doesn't have the best graphic and didn't do well in Japan, but Anne is still popular among children, the series is really family- friendly and would be without risk aired on every cartoon channel. So what is your business plan? |
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Errinundra
Moderator
 Posts: 6611 Location: Melbourne, Oz |
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Apologies for being off-topic, but...
EireformContinent, is your location of "The Promised Land" a nod to Andrzej Wajda? Or Władysław Reymont? I haven't read the novel but I've seen a few Wajda movies, including that one. It's set in Łódź, of course. |
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ArsenicSteel
 Posts: 2370 |
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Ebichu needs a large amount of background to work as a license?
It's about sex and comedy. |
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naninanino
 Posts: 680 |
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Something new with lots of smut. I think most of them are licensed already. Maybe Koe de Oshigoto. I'm not good in knowing what is licensed or not, but if this would get some more episodes, it could be a winner.
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EireformContinent
Posts: 977 Location: Łódź/Poland (The Promised Land) |
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ArsenicSteel Ebichu is about Office Lady desperately wanting to get married before turning into Christmas cake. Humour in this series appeal mostly to specific cultural aspects that might be obvious for people familiar with Japanese culture, but not funny as a regular comedy.
errinundra. Both and literally the place where I live now.  The walking distant from former Poznański's fabric in which the scenes from Bucholc's cotton empire were set. Now it's the shopping mall and museum some buildings were added, but those from XIX century reminded in original form.
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Errinundra
Moderator
Posts: 6611 Location: Melbourne, Oz |
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Cool. I remember the quote (it's been a while so I'm paraphrasing), "I have no money, you have no money, let's build a factory", and the bloody end of the two antagonists inside their factory machinery. Was it filmed on the actual location?
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ArsenicSteel
Posts: 2370 |
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So where is the cultural disconnect in a show about a woman who wants to get married and is getting old? The show doesn't need any more work than other anime that have some puns. The show itself is hardly so Japanese that the situations and jokes are lost on a non-Japanese audience. |
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Shenl742
Posts: 1526 |
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Yeah, wasn't that basicaly the plot of Ally McBeal? With the dancing baby thing? I think she as a lawyer, but close enough ("Single Female Lawyer, Having lots of sex" [/bender]) Oh, wait. Isn't Ebichu that crazy perverted, black-comedy hamster show? Yeah, I think the OL thing may be one of the least odd thing about it... |
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EricJ
 Posts: 876 |
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AnimEigo did release both Otaku no Video OVA's, back in those prehistoric days when AnimEigo licenses lasted mere months. Even then, the joke ran a bit long (and the "interviews" even longer), even if you already new about Daicon and "Giant X".
Galaxy Express 999 (the Series, and not on VHS) turned out to make a big cult comeback on website streaming....Who knew? (We did. )
Queen Millenia (coming out on fansub, one episode every six months?)....nnnot so much of the instantly cult-addictive power. Gives away its "surprise" ending in the title screen spoiler[("A New Version of the Bamboo Princess")], and feels too much like an earthbound version of Tetsuo and Maetel, without the cool Anna Karenina dress. Toei obviously felt that streaming/VOD would be The New DVD when they wanted to reassert their Puss in Boots brandname, but we wouldn't mind a few remastered hard-disks, thank you very much. |
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EireformContinent
Posts: 977 Location: Łódź/Poland (The Promised Land) |
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ArsenicSteel- the Chinese zodiac of new neighbours, the matchmaker catalogue brought by mother, panchiko addiction- there are quite important plot points that may not translate quite well. The same goes for otaku stuff- I was wondering what may appeal to wider audience not familiar with Japan or anime at all.
EricJ- you've lost the key word. Queen Millennia movie. |
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ArsenicSteel
Posts: 2370 |
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The relevance of the Chinese zodiac is easy to explain. Just like all shows that cover astrology signs and compatibility the characters take 5 seconds to explain that those two signs either are compatible or they are not.
Before the internet there were things like dating magazines, mail order bride/husband catalogs, and dating services in newspapers. All that is needed to understand the matchmaker catalog is to accept the show takes place before the rise of internet and that paper was the medium for dating services at the time. What's there to understand about pachinko, it is a cross between pinball and slot machines, the player uses metal balls instead of coins. In Ebichu there isn't much to translate. All a viewer needs to understand is pachinko is a form of gambling and the currency used are metal balls. The dialogue between OL and Kaishounachi cover those two points just fine. There's no anime that's going to appeal to an audience not familiar with Japan or anime at all without a lot of tampering and misdirection to get random spectators to try something they have no clue about or interest in. As mentioned before Ebichu is a kitschy, black comedy whose subject matter immediately removes any "potential" at a "wider audience". |
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EireformContinent
Posts: 977 Location: Łódź/Poland (The Promised Land) |
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My point was that Japanese audience catches the jokes when the balls turn roll from his pocket, western would still be confused when the former finished to laugh. That's not the primary role of comedy to listen carefully to dialogues, to get what the heck they are talking about. Some comedies appeal worldwide, some are specific about cultural points and don't bear translation very well.
Is you step aside from things discussed here, there are lots of the series that can be translated word by word for Western audience. Especially kids series should get a chance- they are overlooked even in fandom, while they usually have value on their own and don't need additional info. (BTW I don't understand why for example Berserk would require any knowledge about Japanese animation- age ghetto problem aside). |
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ArsenicSteel
Posts: 2370 |
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I laughed when the OL said pachinko and figured that the balls that dropped were a clue that he was lying. Did some Japanese guy laugh before me, maybe. I don't feel that my enjoyment was impeded because I laughed at the revelation he was lying a second or two after some native speaker might have. I don't really know what primary role you think comedy has but some jokes have delayed reactions, some even take a lot of build up, and some might take you a while to 'get' but you'll laugh eventually and to me that's all that matters.
The overlooked kids shows I've checked out seem to be about reinforcing/teaching Japanese kids about cultural norms through entertainment; Potecco Babies, Shugo Chara, Hikaru no Go, Happy Kappy...it's generally the kid shows that get messed with the most, if they are licensed, because who wants to expose children to foreign concepts at such a vaguely young age. |
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EireformContinent
Posts: 977 Location: Łódź/Poland (The Promised Land) |
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Most of the normal people who knows what their children are watching and are not afraid to answer the questions.
Adaptations of Western literature did well all over the world and I haven't heart that hey did cause any problems besides some historical value dissonance. Chi's Sweet Home also don't look as treat for Western authorities. And you still didn't explain what kind of qualification I should have to watch Berserk, besides knowing that there's fantasy and there will be blood and porn. On one hand you insist that
(I see that we go too offtopic, if you want to discus further PM me) |
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ArsenicSteel
Posts: 2370 |
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I've only said that the examples you've given are not as obscure as you make them out to be and that the jokes are more or less self-evident when looking at what's taking place on the screen and listening to the dialogue. I do recall mentioned that word puns(still jokes) would need to be changed a bit.
Case by case exceptions that don't disprove the rule. |
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