Forum - View topicYour Guide to the Animator Expo Shorts
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Keichitsu0305
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I know the odds of the Animator Expo coming to the US is low (maybe Madman Entertainment in Australia will take the chance) but, I feel that there should be more anthologies in the industry. Not only to creatively support new and established talent who wouldn't have the chance to shine in a major TV series or film project, but to allow more visual diversity to Japanese animation.
Same reason why I follow Gobliens YouTube channel. So many visually compelling and short story narratives from new talent. The Diary of Ochibi is by far my favorite so far. The stop motion animation style (such as the bento for Spring and paperfans for Summer segments) is rarely seen in TV anime series unless for short segments such as the ED for Mr. Osomatsu. Really want to buy the manga by Moyocco Anno but, seems unlikely they will be licensed anytime soon. Also, enjoyed Sayo Yamamoto's Endless Night and Kanon. Haven't seen Me! Me! Me! fully (plenty of clips) although it prompted me to check out to see what the Animator Expo was like. |
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Lemonchest
Posts: 1771 |
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Must admit I stopped paying attention to AE after the first season, though kept meaning to go back to it. S1 was a hodge podge of stuff that ranged from genuinely exploiting the short format to its full potential, to promo reels that looked like they were shopping for backers to make a full series. Still, AE is a better way of doing this sort of thing than anthology films like Genius Party were, imo.
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jojothepunisher
 Posts: 799 |
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ME!ME!ME! was by far the biggest factor that made me take Animator Expo Shorts seriously. That video hit the internet like a truck when it was released, there were tons of people on YouTube making reaction videos and reviews, and everybody was talking about whether it was just a simple fanservice overloaded video or if it was "2deep4u". It turned out to be neither, because the message delivered by the video was not really all that difficult to dissect considering how prevalent this type of lifestyle is not only in Japan but in other places in the world.
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DmonHiro
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I can't agree with you on Iconic Field. I think it's fantastic, and really make me want a full series. The idea of the lost magic to move shapes that apparently everyone used to have is great.
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Vaisaga
 Posts: 13240 |
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I'm really sorry about this, but I couldn't keep my inner grammar Nazi contained.
In Soviet Russia, anime watches you!  I'm sure you meant "what's worth watching."
Either "no longer than 10 minutes" or "under 10 minutes."
Only need one soon. Again, sorry, I know I seem like a douche but I just had to point it out. As for the Expo itself, it only came to my attention when everyone was going on about ME!ME!ME! I've only watched that and the Evangelion ones so I should probably check out the others. |
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amagee
 Posts: 333 Location: Orlando, FL |
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I've never really taken the time to dig around and find out more about these so I am immensely pleased to see this editorial today. These'll probably be my afternoon anime snack for the next couple of days. We'll have to see later if I agree with the reviews.
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Carlooo
Posts: 58 |
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This writeup really proves to me how good Animator Expo is, because I disagree which of these shorts are worth watching and which aren't, which is how anthologies should be. Many different styles and kinds of stories to be found, everybody will find something they like!
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walw6pK4Alo
 Posts: 9322 |
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I think it was a nice experiment in the vein of what Studio4C used to do, but ultimately anime's direction and sustainability depends on CASH MONEY, and this won't generate that. And aside from ME!ME!ME!'s over the top sex imagery, I don't think Japan even noticed the project.
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leafy sea dragon
 Posts: 7163 Location: Another Kingdom |
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I really hope this becomes available in home video sometime, in that case. There are so many of these shorts I really liked to watch and would watch again and again. "Me! Me! Me!" was...actually something that slipped me by, not knowing where it was from until near the end of Season 1, and I didn't bother to watch until "Sex and Violence with Machspeed" as I am a fan of Imaishi and I wanted to see what his undiluted style is like. He really IS Japan's John K., only he cares a lot about the story too.
The ones I particularly liked were "Hill Climb Girl" (my sister does a lot of bicycling, and she tells me a lot about it, so I understood these characters and their motivations well), "Me! Me! Me!," "20min Walk," "Yamadeloid," "Kanón," "The Diary of Ochibi," and "I Can Friday by Day!," with my favorites being "Yamadeloid," "Kanón," "The Diary of Ochibi," and "I Can Friday by Day!." I also enjoyed "Tomorrow from There," "Gridman," "Sex & Violence" (as I discovered, pure Imaishi is good but too much for me), "Obake-chan," and "On a Gloomy Night." I actually did not like "Carnage" much, as I felt it was too over-the-top in its dark gritty seriousness; it was Animator Expo's emo teenager. "Tokio of the Moon's Shadow" seems to be intentionally confusing. Suda51 is very trollish in his writing and even more so when he directs, and his favorite thing to do is to insert in symbolism everywhere and mix in some faux-symbolism with them as red herrings. "Tokio of the Moon's Shadow" is maze-like in trying to decipher it, which is exactly his way of doing things. I like him better when he's making comedies like No More Heroes, because it allows him to be mischievous without being too obtuse. "Iconic Field" definitely came across to me as a pitch. Frankly, it annoys me somewhat to try to use a short film collection to pitch your larger idea, because that's not the point of a short film. I feel the same way with one-shot manga, which is why I enjoy stuff like "Astronerd" that tell a complete story in one chapter. For the same reason, I didn't like "Rapid Rouge." I an awaiting when a "Me! Me! Me!" reference seeps its way into some American TV show, game, or movie. That thing caught on like nothing else. (Unless there already is one...?) |
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Zhou-BR
Posts: 1461 |
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Agreed. I thought its visuals and ideas were incredibly appealing, and I hope that Yamashita, Furuhashi and co. are shopping it to sponsors in order to make it into a series. |
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Doodleboy
Posts: 296 |
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Didn't know Ōtarō Maijō did the directing and storyboarding. He is an artist but his art... isn't very good. http://space-boogie.tumblr.com/image/61546895695
Interested in seeing him work more in anime though, he seems to have a strong voice. |
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relyat08
 Posts: 4125 Location: Northern Virginia |
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I wonder if the inevitable Japanese Blu-ray release will have English Subtitles. It doesn't seem like too much to ask for, since there are Subtitles available for them on their website.
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jdnation
Posts: 2110 |
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There were more misses than hits in my opinion. But the hits were grand!
I differ from the reviewer in that I still absolutely love the concept pieces that tease at a larger world/story than shown. I'm sure they are usually test pieces that have the potential of becoming a full fleshed film/series and shorts like these could give them a boost. Even concepts can be wonderfully interesting. Where was the 3D Evangelion short though by the Appleseed guys? I loved that one too? |
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Galap
Moderator
 Posts: 2354 |
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I REALLY liked a lot of these, so I should really get around to seeing the rest before they go down.
Favorite that I've seen is by far 20min Walk from Nishi-Ogikubo Station. Really beautiful animation, especially Takeshi Honda's and Shinya Ohira's. |
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BrotatoSoup
Posts: 1 |
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Which Animation is that gif at the end from? It looks phenomenal!?!? Like I'm searching everywhere for it.
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