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Kitty Media Explains Editing of Adult Anime DVD
posted on by Egan Loo
Anime on DVD reported in an early review of Kitty Media's Legend of the Pervert DVD that six to seven minutes of footage was removed, despite boilerplate text on the packaging stating it was "uncut and uncensored." In a related forum thread, Media Blasters CEO John Sirabella acknowledged the issue with the footage of "obviously under-aged" characters in an explicit sex scene, and explained that the boilerplate text was a mistake. The Kitty Media production supervisor for the DVD (which is scheduled for April 24) provided Anime News Network with further details this past week:
"Generally, Kitty Media's standard policy on hentai is if it has to be cut, then it's not worth licensing. However, this title had high animation quality and character designs, and it was generally felt to be a waste of a strong title to not release it." The supervisor noted that the DVD's suggested retail price of US$19.95, compared to the standard price of US$29.95, reflects the shorter running time.
He also reaffirmed that the inclusion of the boilerplate text on the packaging was an accident. "The phrases 'Uncensored and Uncut' and 'Absolutely Not for Children' are not considered selling points (at least internally). These lines are on the box as a warning to indicate that the title contains unobstructed animations of genitalia and sex, to separate them from the 'blurred out' Japanese releases and to prevent people purchasing them who are not prepared for the content. Because of this, the word 'uncut' on the package didn't ring any warning bells during our QC process. We will be more careful in the future."
The supervisor also noted that uncensored masters for adult Japanese animated videos without "blurring" is getting more difficult to obtain for overseas licensees. "I'm not positive why, but if I had to guess I would say that the Japanese market is taking a hit from bootleggers, who copy American uncensored product and sell it back to Japan. If the native Japanese product has its own advantages over our American product, then perhaps it will give the Japanese public a good reason to buy it instead of getting the bootlegs."
