Contrary to many anime fans’ hopes, the fanatical, totalitarian Cult that’s usurped pop culture isn’t letting a little thing like an ocean get in the way of their conquest.
Funimation, the American dubbing and distribution house that made news last year thanks to a defamation lawsuit brought against them by voice actor Vic Mignogna, now has a seat on the production committee of three anime series slated for 2020.
Funimation is listed on the production committee for three titles during the Winter 2020 season: Hatena Illusion, ID: INVADED and Plunderer. They’ve also been on the anime production committee for titles like Fruits Basket (2019), Fire Force and Dimension W.
Due to the work they’ve done and the strong relationships the company has built with Japanese partners in licensing shows from them, they were invited to participate on these committees to help fund these productions directly.
Instead of simply licensing the rights to a finished show (as companies usually do), Funimation is now able to take part ownership of some titles directly when bringing them to the rest of the world. There’s no fear about losing the rights to these shows either; they are here to stay in the Funimation library in perpetuity. Conversely, Funimation is trusted by the rest of the committee to use their international expertise to better market the show to foreign viewers and provide more detailed input to the other Japanese companies regarding what fans abroad would like to see. It’s a win-win.
For fans, this kind of access means the ability for international partners to collaborate with creators on things like key visuals, PVs and exclusive behind-the-scenes content. For example, co-productions between Funimation and KADOKAWA have led to new key visuals for titles like ID: INVADED and Plunderer. This access can also sometimes allow for faster subtitling and dubbing production, leading to an increase in the number of “day and date” simulcasts/SimulDubs which air within 24 hours of Japan’s initial TV broadcast.
Anime is no longer focused solely on the Japanese market. Japanese companies are looking to foreign fans’ interest in titles more than ever before to increase the financial return on their investment as well as allow them to reinvest that money into new productions of ever higher animation quality. This means that subscriptions to Funimation and purchases of home video releases, digital downloads, and merchandise supervised by Funimation will help creators in Japan more directly than having a finished title licensed as-is would.
And while it’s only been a handful of titles in the past, there’s a future where Funimation and companies like it are on the production committee for more and more shows. The more involved they get in helping these shows resonate around the world, the stronger these relationships grow, and the more people get to experience the brilliance of anime. That’s a future we’re here for!
It’s not exaggerating to say that anime’s fortunes are now tied to overseas markets. The industry has been stagnating in Japan as foreign markets, including the US, increasingly account for the lion’s share of anime studios’ business.
This chart pretty much means that bringing foreign collaborators in on the anime production process was inevitable. Unfortunately, the American collaborators the anime studios chose are infamous for injecting Death Cult agitprop into the series they handle. And if the Mignogna affair is any indication, they’ve got a major hate on for Christians.
Non-Cultist anime fans are well advised to learn from the fall of print sci fi, comics, movies, TV, and games. Skip the first four stages of grieving and go straight to acceptance. Dodge the nostalgia trap. Understand that the hobby you loved in your youth is gone, and it isn’t coming back anytime soon. Ripping the band-aid off will spare you the long-term pain and humiliation of getting jerked around by the Pop Cult.
There are thousands upon thousands of hours of unpozzed entertainment at your fingertips–including classic anime, plus new indie movies, music, and books. Many of them are available for free or at bargain prices.
