Complete Anime Expo 2008 Convention Report

The convention season for fans of Japanese animation has traditionally been a time unlike any other in the calendar year: new product acquisition announcements, potential film screenings, year-to-year release comparisons, studio executives extolling their continued adoration for anime. But here in 2008, things are a bit different. In 2008, the business of buying and selling anime in the States is showing cracks; and with the recent conclusion of Anime Expo, one of the industry's most prominent summer get-togethers, fortunately or unfortunately, it has only become much clearer how deep and far-reaching these cracks happen to be. While some distributors are rightfully learning to adapt to an ailing market, others are slowly purging, cutting off unnecessary limbs in order to survive.

For years the west coast's most dominant and interactive anime convention, Anime Expo (AX 2008) returned this year, providing a great deal of what con-goers adore about the summer months: a time for charity auctions, industry panels, concerts, meeting guests of honor, and much more. Perhaps with all of the anxiety over the future of the western anime business, it's refreshing to consider that the spirit of the fans remains at a fever pitch. Convention representatives cite roughly 43,000 different attendees as having traversed the floors of the Los Angeles Convention Center this past Fourth of July weekend.

The anime industry is evolving; as some argue, is the best way to put it. Since the previous year's Expo -- [past A.I. news: "Complete AX 2007 Con Report"], product releases have dramatically slowed, licensing and distribution groups have closed their doors, DVD sales have slumped, and the landscape for TV animation has changed. The business has since moved into a hurting-period where companies without flagship titles are blindly looking for support and companies traditionally low on the totem pole are at risk of fading into complete obscurity. While it remains true that there is always something to be excited about when it comes to collecting anime, ignoring the industry's painful teenage years could result in further misfortune.

The biggest news thus far in the year, and further cemented at AX 2008, is undoubtedly FUNimation Entertainment's continued rise to the top, and subsequent if not anticipated usurpation of A.D. Vision, Inc.'s spot as the most prolific distributor of Japanese animation in the west. Details of their announcements regarding title acquisition from the company formerly known as Geneon and title acquisitions from ADV Films' now defunct agreement with the Sojitz Corporation, are published later in this article. Elsewhere; program licenses and updates from other areas of the industry are available as well--Bandai Entertainment, Nozomi Entertainment, and cable's Sci Fi Channel.

SKU output this year is currently on schedule to be the lowest in a decade's time, but that shouldn't discourage fans from searching out and purchasing legitimate releases of quality Japanese animation whose narrative ingenuity, production design, and great voice-over work remain unique to their creators.

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(Sources: AnimeNewsNetwork.com, AnimeOnDVD.com, ICv2.com, Variety, TVweek.com, FUNimation Entertainment, Home Media Magazine, Robert's Anime Corner Store, & The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation) -- For more news on Japanese animation here or abroad, try the search-function here at AnimationInsider.net, for more news, reviews, highlights, and insights.