welcome datacomp has translated select portions from blog posts (with the writer’s consent and involvement, I might add) by animator Osamu Yamasaki on the state of the anime industry. The excerpts cover the industry’s outdated pay scale that has lead to colorists making more than directors, and the continual talent drain. Yamasaki also briefly alludes to unsavory practices on the part of ad agencies and TV stations – which everyone seems to think are the primary source of funding for the industry, but in actuality are middlemen who take huge chunks out of the pockets of studios instead – and hopes the Japan Fair Trade Association would get involved. (If you want to know why anime studios are purposely degrading/editing the broadcast version of their shows, this is why. They *need* those DVD sales.)
Read it, then thank welcome datacomp for doing something so cool.
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I am a princess. Make way for me!
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Spotted via Robot 6… Gizmodo dispenses a few rumors and patents that suggest an impending Apple e-book device with a back-lit, full-color touch screen.
You know, specialized e-paper was positioned to replace traditional print, because the theory was people wouldn’t be used to reading on a back lit screen for extended periods of time. I don’t think that’s true anymore… that just reflected the preferences of the older generation. The kids have evolved. If Apple’s device is all it’s cracked up to be, then Kindle’s days may be numbered unless they can really drive that price down. (I certainly hope Kindle or its predecessor succeeds… Apple’s handling of iTunes and Apps show it has little desire to make its devices and stores open to all content.)
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Manga Xanadu finds age ratings used on manga are often misleading. The ideal solution for the rest of the publishing industry is simply to not have age-based ratings at all, unfortunately visual art is held to a different standard…
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Hollywood’s track record at adapting Japanese anime/manga properties hasn’t been great, but this gives me hope. I want to believe…
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I don’t really dig the level of ‘tude in this Astro Boy, but beyond that, it’s pretty clear the movie decided to embrace the militaristic angle that Tezuka was constantly at odds with. Seeing Astro Boy kick the shit out of a robot is cool and all, but the various series’ high points were the kid being forced to kill other robots against his will or robot rights activists being torn apart by mobs or his trying to fight off US Bombing raids to fail to protect a newborn. I’ll shit myself if the movie actually approahes anywhere near those levels of depth. Instead, I’m expecting a steady stream of blasting the shit out of something with his TOTALLY NOT MAGAMAN ARM BEAMS!1! followed by, ‘Whoa, I’m one totally X-treme machine!’
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