I always like to post things related to my profession. Here’s a great instructional video from Japan on how animations are created. It’s really basic, but for those of you who know nothing about animation, this really gives some insight into how much work goes into “simple cartoons”.
Now lets animating!
Anime
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Mar 032008
Hokusai - An Animated Sketchbook (1978)
Anime, General, Software & Study Guides, Weird Japan Videos
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Feb 192008
Tommy Lee Jones does MOE
Anime, Weird Japan Videos
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Feb 062008
This just makes me feel so uncomfortable…
Feb 042008
Four evenings of classic Japanese anime, “talking” silent live-action films, and benshi performances.
The Japan Society is hosting this event as part of its 2007 centennial anniversary celebrations. Digital Meme is providing the content for the screenings and performances. The film program is divided thematically – Chambara Action & Adventure (Feb 13), Horror & Comedy (Feb 14), Propaganda (Feb 15), and Music & Dance (Feb 16) – and each evening will showcase Japan’s most sought after benshi, Ms. Midori Sawato. She narrates, interprets, and breaths new life into these rare silent films, most of which have never before been subtitled and screened overseas. The 38 animated films in the program are drawn from the Japanese Anime Classic Collection, released by Digital Meme in 2007.
Dawn of Japanese Animation
Screening Program
13 February (Wed) at 7:00 p.m.
PART 1: CHAMBARA ACTION & ADVENTURE
Featured films:
Twelve animations, including:
The Tiny One Makes It Big, The Bat,
Animal Sumo.
Fighting in Ashura Town
1938, Daito Eiga
Directed by: Takeshi Yashiro
Starring: Hideto Hayafusa, Kaido Ooka, Momoyo Okawa,
Eiichi Takamura, Mitsuo Matsumura
14 February (Thu) at 7:00 p.m.
PART 2: HORROR & COMEDY
Featured films:
Six animations, including:
Our Baseball Match, Sanko and the
Octopus: A Fight Over a Fortune, Dekobo
the Big Head’s Road Trip, Hatanosuke
and the Haunted House.
Kid Commotion
1935, Shochiku Kamata Studio
Directed by: Torajiro Saito
Starring: Shigeru Ogura,Yaeko Izumo
15 February (Fri) at 7:00 p.m.
PART 3: PROPAGANDA
Featured films:
Eleven animations, including:
TheNationalAnthemKimigayo,Momotaro’s
Sky Adventure, Private 2nd Class
Norakuro, The Animal Village in Trouble.
Mother of the Nation
1936, Godo Eiga
Directed by: Shiro Nakagawa
Starring: Namiko Kawashima,Yasuhisa Takeshita,
Kunimatsu Ogawa
16 February (Sat) at 5:00 p.m.
PART 4: MUSIC & DANCE
Featured films:
Nine animations, including:
The Black Cat, The Stolen Lump, Harvest
Festival, The Unlucky Butterfly.
Singing Lovebirds
1939, Nikkatsu
Directed by: Masahiro Makino
Starring: Chiezo Kataoka, Ryosuke Kagawa, Takashi Shimura
SPECIAL SCREENING at 7:30 p.m.
Orochi
1925, Bantsuma Production
Directed by: Buntaro Futagawa
Starring: Tsumasaburo Bando, Misao Seki, Utako Tamaki
*Live benshi performance in English by Leon Ingulsrud,
a voice actor based in New York.
Venue: Japan Society, NY
Organized by: Japan Society
Supported by: Digital Meme and Matsuda Film Productions
Japan Society http://www.japansociety.org/
The Japan Society, which commemorated its centennial anniversary in 2007, annually holds over 100 events for cultural exchange and acts as a window to Japanese culture in the US.
Naruto, Death Note, Bleach Coming to Amazon Unbox
Anime
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Jan 282008
January 28, 2008
VIZ Media has announced the availability of three of its most popular animated action series — NARUTO UNCUT, DEATH NOTE and BLEACH — for digital download from Amazon Unbox, Amazon’s digital video download service. This service can be found at www.amazon.com/unbox. NARUTO UNCUT, DEATH NOTE and BLEACH are available now with episodes costing $1.99 each. NARUTO UNCUT initially features episodes 1-25 dubbed, DEATH NOTE features the full series dubbed, and BLEACH features episodes 1-25 dubbed. One free episode from each of the available properties is being offered on www.amazon.com/unbox through Jan. 31, 2008. “VIZ Media has had a long and successful retail relationship with Amazon.com and we are excited to team with its premier digital download channel, Unbox, to make available some of the hottest animated series sweeping North America,” says Liza Coppola, SVP, Marketing, VIZ Media. “”We are committed to maximizing the ability of the dynamic medium of digital delivery to bring hot series like NARUTO UNCUT, DEATH NOTE and BLEACH to fans who want the flexibility and convenience of digital download.” For more information, visit www.VIZ.com.
The Simpsonzu by *spacecoyote on deviantART
Anime
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Jan 142008
The Simpsonzu by *spacecoyote on deviantART
Ok, so it’s not Japanese at all, but it’s a very cool anime inspired version of the Simpsons.
Jan 132008
Lately, I have been hooked on the anime called Deathnote. A very good story. Of course, when watching almost any anime, you’ll notice some Jpop culture here and there that catches your eye. This was the case the other day when I saw protagonist of the Deathnote story, Light-kun, spinning his pen in class as he thought to himself the malicious deeds that he’s always plotting during the storyline. (Those of you who watch Deathnote know what I mean when I say malicious and plotting…) Later, I saw something online about it. Apparently, pen spinning has become a craze in Japan. Wonderful. What will they think of next?
I found this short clip at youtube. Please watch it. It’s cool. And if you should decide to try this, please take care because it is not easy.
1q7s4E94-No
Here is an article I found about it.
Here’s an excerpt from the article,
What will the Japanese think of next? Pen spinning is the latest “sport” to take Japan by storm, and why not? The only equipment needed for Japanese pen spinning is, well, a pen. Even a pencil will do work in a pinch.
Pen spinning is especially popular among the “ronins,” which are recent high-school graduates who have taken a year off before starting college in order to discover who they are and what they want to do with their life. Pen spinning, like any other repetitive action, is no doubt conducive to the deep thought required at such a time in life.
What exactly is pen spinning? Pen spinning, also referred to as “pen tricks” is actually something you’ve probably done at some point in your life, perhaps when you were sitting in class bored. Consider it to be a variation on twiddling your thumbs, but with a lot more potential. Pen spinning is a form of contact juggling that simply involves moving a pen between the fingers and thumb, at an impressive rate of speed.
Before it had a name, and before it became a craze, it showed up in various movies such as Top Gun, most often as an idiosyncratic habit of one of the characters. There are the knuckle crackers, the thumb twiddlers, and yes, the pen spinners.
Very Odd Animations
Anime, Weird Japan Videos
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Jan 082008
After you immerse yourself in Japanese culture long enough, you start to just “know” when something is Japanese. Most people think of big eyes and small mouths when they think of Japanese animation. They don’t realize how much variety there is in Japanese animation.
Check out these animations. They don’t look like your typical “anime” at all, yet they scream “Japan” to me when I watch them:
USAVICH.TV
Anime Network Launches Broadband Service
Anime
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Dec 262007
Source: Anime Network – Anime News
HOUSTON, TX – December 19, 2007 – Anime Network, America’s #1 Anime Channel, today announced a new broadband service to stream high-quality anime on the Internet. This new service is free to the consumer, who can expect to find over 20 full episodes of classic and brand new anime series available at any given time. For the full range of Anime Network’s Internet offerings, visit www.theanimenetworkonline.com.
Anime Network’s online programming is ad-supported, with five or more new episodes rotating through every Thursday. The Network’s lineup includes anime classics like Rahxephon and Saiyuki as well as new, ongoing series such as Ah! My Goddess: Flights of Fancy and Kurau Phantom Memory. Anime Network Online will present these series in their entirety over the coming months. Already more than 60,000 anime episodes have streamed since the beta launch in mid-November.
Beginning today Anime Network will broadcast brand new series over the Internet, including series that have not yet been released on home video in North America. These “First Look” Internet broadcasts, which will begin running months before the DVD series is launched, will feature the Japanese language track with English subtitles.
Anime Network’s inaugural First Look program is the much-anticipated mecha series Gurren Lagann, from Studio GAINAX (Neon Genesis Evangelion). According to Anime Insider, Gurren Lagann “captures giant robot anime at its soaring, smashing, brilliantly explosive best,” and it’s one of the few series rated “Excellent” by the readers of Anime News Network. The first DVD volume of Gurren Lagann won’t hit stores until February 26, but fans can watch the first episode today at www.theanimenetworkonline.com.
“We know there’s a demand for fresh, unreleased anime on the Internet,” said ADV President and CEO John Ledford. “Through Anime Network’s First Look broadcasts, we can engage fans in a lawful way and at the same time help build the audience for our DVD releases. Everybody wins.”
Anime Network’s streaming content is free and requires only the Flash 9 player and Javascript to view. As some of the programming is rated TV-MA, however, content is restricted to viewers 18 and older. At this time Anime Network’s Internet offerings are restricted to the US and Canada.
About Anime Network
Anime Network, a subsidiary of A.D. Vision Inc. (parent company to ADV Films and Newtype USA), is America’s #1 Anime Channel, reaching more than 40 million households with thousands of hours of exciting, eye-catching serialized programming. Launched in North America in late 2002, Anime Network is the nation’s top video-on-demand (VOD) offering, and is also available as a 24/7 linear channel in several U.S. markets. The network continues to broaden its national roster of multi-system operator (MSO) agreements, bringing the elusive 18?34, tech-savvy male demographic back to television and driving demand for additional digital services offered by MSOs. For more information, visit www.theanimenetwork.com.
Tags: anime
4 New Series on the Anime Network
Anime
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Dec 192007
Kicking off the New Year with a healthy dose of anime, Anime Network has announced the VOD television premieres of four exciting new series:
Premiering Jan. 3, 2008
MAGIKANO — Produced by Studio Gonzo (WELCOME TO THE NHK, AFRO SAMURAI) and directed by Seiji Kishi (RAGNAROK THE ANIMATION), MAGIKANO is a magical comedy about a middle school student who is seemingly ordinary, with the exception of his three witch sisters and his own soon-to-be-awakened mystical powers.
Premiering Jan. 17, 2008
5 CENTIMETERS PER SECOND — The latest animated feature from Makoto Shinkai (“the new Miyazaki”), 5 CENTIMETERS PER SECOND is the dramatic three-part tale of two best friends, their hidden feelings and their attempts to reunite after being separated by fate.
WELCOME TO THE NHK — From Studio Gonzo (HELLSING, MAGIKANO, CHRONO CRUSADE) and directed by Yusuke Yamamoto (SGT. FROG) comes this dark comedy that shines a light on the inherent challenges faced by geeks and nerds, with plenty of social satire, interesting characters and crazy conspiracy theories.
Premiering Jan. 31, 2008
MOONLIGHT MILE — Another hit from Studio Hibari, this sci-fi adventure shares the adventures of two mountain climbers-turned-space explorers as they trek into outer space, discover a new source of energy, and prepare to harness it as the next-generation power supply for planet Earth.
In addition to VOD, all four series will also be released soon on DVD.
Tags: anime
