Viability of a Medium

According to this and this it is not a good time to be in the business of distributing anime in the U.S. In other news a proposed live action revamp of a fabled anime and manga from the 80s called "Akira"  has hit a snag.  Economic realities and other factors beyond the scope of the current essay have all contributed to these recent debacles and these three events have made me reassess some long held ideas I've had.

I've always responded best to anime (and a lot of Asian cinema in general) to the unapologetic way they handle the emotions in their stories.  Characters die and people react realistically.  Heartbreak is felt through the animated avatar on the screen.  Despite all the great effort various US companies have done in giving us the anime industry here on these shores it will always be a niche market.  But, like any good consumer, I want more of what I love best about animation.  And for that I wish Hollywood filmmakers would embrace "the maturity" of anime.

Now, I have to be careful here because "maturity" is a loaded word.  We have lots of "mature" animation here in the U.S.  It's mostly relegated to sitcom style shows.  Those are fine.  In the 90s Warner Bros. animation gave us Batman: The Animated Series and eventually expanded it into a universe that encompassed the Justice League and others.  Disney had "Gargoyles."  Both of those shows worked as well as anything produced across the pond.  They had smart writing, fluid action, great art, terrific voice acting and genuine emotional content.  There are others but they are exception, not the rule.

All this is to say I wish Hollywood would embrace animation as a medium that is just as viable as live action.  There's room for the animated sitcom and the 90 second Looney Toon style gag show.  But what I want is a story.  And for me, that's a set of characters that I can care about and be emotionally moved on whatever journey they happen to be on at the moment.

And in my ideal world, "Akira" would cross an executive's desk and in sheparding it to various companies for production, one of those companies specializes in animation.  And no one blinks.