News

Anime, Manga Industry Members Interviewed

The following English-language manga and anime industry interviews have recently been posted online:

• The Graphic Novel Reporter website posted an interview with Tokyopop's Senior Editor Lillian Diaz-Przybyl. In the interview, Diaz-Przybyl discussed how she got involved in the manga-editing business, and what types of manga she personally reads and what she loves about the manga medium.

• About.com posted an interview with Fantagraphics Books' President and Co-Publisher Gary Groth regarding Fantagraphics recently announced manga licenses.

• Comic Book Resources posted an interview with manga scholar, translator, and Fantagraphics editor Matt Thorn, also regarding Fantagraphics' recent manga licenses.

• Likewise, Publishers Weekly has also posted an interview with Thorn, about Fantagraphics' new manga line and the U.S. manga publishing market in general.

• About.com posted an interview with Michelle Mauk, Graphic Designer and Marketing Manager at Digital Manga Publishing, and Fred Lui, Editor in Chief at DMP, regarding DMP's recent license announcement for Ayano Yamane's Finder Series.

• ICv2 posted a three-part interview with Stu Levy, CEO of Tokyopop. In the interview Levy discussed the status of the U.S., British and German manga markets, digital distribution alternatives, and future projects and initiatives Tokyopop is currently working on.

• AnimeOnDVD's Chris Beveridge posted an interview with Nozomi Entertainment's Shawne Kleckner regarding Nozomi's recent license announcement of Dirty Pair, and about some of Nozomi Entertainment's other properties and Kelckner's opinions on the U.S. anime market in general.

• The UK Anime Network posted an interview with MangaGamer translator John, a.k.a. Kouryuu. In the interview, John discussesed how MangaGamer chooses what games to release, what goes into translating the games for English-language release, the possibility of making physical copies of its games available, and gave hints for future projects.

• Anime Vice posted an interview with co-founder Kurt Hassler of Yen Press, regarding Yen Press' recent decision to cancel the print version of its Yen Plus magazine and move it online. In the interview, Hassler revealed that the online magazine will have a dedicated browser, and Yen Press will still have giveaways to fans. Hassler also said that he hopes to expand the content of the magazine now that Yen Press does not have to worry about page count or other print-related costs.

Thanks to Andy Hanley for the MangaGamer news tip.