News
Weekly Wrapup 22/5 - 28/5
posted on by Georgia Blair
Shinichi Watanabe will be a guest at this year's Sydney Manga Anime Show (SMASH!). Shinichi Watanabe is the director of various anime series and episodes, including Excel Saga, Puni Puni Poemy, Tenchi Muyo GXP, Nerima Daikon Brothers and The Wallflower; he is also famous for appearing in anime and at real-life conventions as his alter-ego, Nabeshin. Other guests to the convention include video game music composers Hiroki Kikuta and Kenji Ito and the creator of Yu-Gi-Oh The Abridged Series, LittleKuriboh.
Former Japanese prime minister Taro Aso has become an envoy to Japan specifically to promote anime, and is attending the Beijing Movie and TV Week's Anime Festival from June 8th to June 13th in this capacity. Aso, who served as Prime Minister from 2008 to 2009 and previously acted as a foreign minister, became known for being an anime and manga fan, earning the nickname Rozen Aso due to a rumour that he reads Rozen Maiden. Aso is interested in using anime and manga to promote cultural exchange and was involved with events such as the International Manga Award and the International Cosplay Summit.
Rumours that Takeshi Miike is directing a movie based on the Ace Attorney video game series were confirmed this week. The main character will be played by Phoenix Wright (Ryuichi Naruhodo) will be played by Hiroki Narimiya (Gokusen's Noda, NANA's Nobu, Akihabara @ DEEP's Page), with Takumi Saitō (RoboGeisha, Princess Princess D) and Mirei Kiritani (Arakawa Under the Bridge's Nino) also starring. Miike said that film studio Toei will use CG effects during courtroom scenes to make them more exciting and that the game's famous catchphrases will be included. Filming will finish in June and the movie will open in Japan theaters in early 2012.
The book Kon Satoshi Anime Zen-Shigoto (Satoshi Kon's Animation Works) being released on June 15th, covering the work of deceased director Satoshi Kon (Perfect Blue, Millennium Actress, Paprika), will include a message from Black Swan director Darren Aronofsky. Kon had met Aranofsky in 2001 before the release of Millennium Actress and after the release of Aronofsky's film Pi. The book was produced by MADHOUSE and Kon's company KON'STONE with colour images, commentary from anime critic Ryūsuke Hikawa. Besides Aronofsky, messages are included from voice actors performing in his works, Jin-Roh director Hiroyuki Okiura and Production I.G producer Mitsuhisa Ishikawa who knew Kon since he was young.
Finally, "Zankoku na Tenshi no Teeze" ("Thesis of a Cruel Angel"), the opening theme for the Neon Genesis Evangelion television series, came first place in this year's JASRAC Awards held by the Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC). The song, over 15 years old, won gold prize for collecting the most royalties from online sales, pachinko games, karaoke and other venues in 2010. Additionally, in the JASRAC International Awards for songs earning the most royalties from overseas sales, nine of the ten placing awards were given to music used in anime.
