- Title: JAPAN: Japan's animation industry showcases 3-D creations at Tokyo exhibition
- Date: 26th March 2010
- Summary: TOKYO, JAPAN (MARCH 25, 2010) (REUTERS) TOKYO INTERNATIONAL ANIME FAIR 2010 SIGN ANIME BOOTHS AND ANIME CHARACTER BALLOONS AT THE TOKYO INTERNATIONAL ANIME FAIR BALLOON OF HAYAO MIYAZAKI CHARACTER "TOTORO" "DRAGON BALL Z" CHARACTER POSING TOEI ANIMATION BOOTH DISPLAYING ITS LATEST "PRETTY CURE" ANIMATION SERIES IN 3-D VISITORS WEARING 3-D GLASSES AND LOOKING AT SCREEN "PRETTY CURE" ANIMATION SEEN THROUGH 3-D GLASSES VISITOR WATCHING SCREEN WITH 3-D GLASSES TOEI ANIMATION BALLOON (SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) DIRECTOR OF CORPORATE STRATEGY AT TOEI ANIMATION, IRIYA AZUMA, SAYING: "In Avatar, the 3-D elements blended in with the actual film. But in the case of Toei Animation-- the two-dimensional characters coming to life through 3-D and jumping around -- I think that is what is attractive about our product." "3-D" SIGN (SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) DIRECTOR OF CORPORATE STRATEGY AT TOEI ANIMATION, IRIYA AZUMA, SAYING: "Converting two-dimensional material into 3-D is not as expensive as everyone thinks. Technology is continuing to improve and it's getting cheaper so I think we'll be able to create more 3-D material by continuing to create things as we have been doing and adding creative touches to it and spending a bit more money." GONZO 3-D BOOTH WOMAN IN ANIME CHARACTER COSTUME HANDING OUT PAMPHLETS "3-D CINEMA" SIGN ANIMATION DISPLAYED ON SCREEN VISITORS QUEUING UP AT "GARO - THE MOVIE - 3D" BOOTH "GARO - THE MOVIE - 3D RED REQUIEM" SIGN VISITORS WALKING INTO A MINI THEATRE TO SEE 3-D ANIME FILM DIRECTOR OF 3 DIMENSIONAL GEOMETRY APPLICATION NETWORK, TATSUYA SOMA, MOVING A DOLL WITH MOTION CAPTURE SENSORS SOMA MOVING ANIME CHARACTER ON COMPUTER SCREEN USING DOLL (SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) DIRECTOR OF 3 DIMENSIONAL GEOMETRY APPLICATION NETWORK, TATSUYA SOMA, SAYING: "I don't think the Japanese anime industry has anything to worry about. There are several reasons to this but mainly it's because Japanese anime has strong characters, a solid screenplay and story line. Whether it can be a 3-D work or not is just a matter of technology and this should not change how interesting the story is or the value of the work." VISITOR TAKING PHOTO VISITORS WALKING
- Embargoed: 10th April 2010 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Japan
- Country: Japan
- Topics: Science / Technology
- Reuters ID: LVA4G4R8E5K6LN2DICKL3RVHTGU
- Story Text: Japan's animation industry showcases 3-D creations at an exhibition in Tokyo with hopes of tapping into a growing market.
The world's largest animation fair kicked off in Tokyo on Thursday (March 25), with over 200 animation companies promoting characters spanning nearly 60 years of Japanese anime history.
Following the success of box office 3-D hits such as "Avatar" and "Alice in Wonderland", more and more Japanese animation companies are releasing their latest creations in 3-D.
Toei Animation, of "Dragon Ball" and "One Piece" fame and one of Japan's largest animation studios, showcased its latest 3-D creation based on the "Pretty Cure" series.
Visitors flocked to the booth to watch the animation through 3-D glasses.
"In Avatar, the 3-D elements blended in with the actual film. But in the case of Toei Animation-- the two-dimensional characters coming to life through 3-D and jumping around -- I think that is what is attractive about our product," said Director of Corporate Strategy at Toei Animation, Iriya Azuma.
Japan's largest film and television production company, Toei, owns Toei Animation.
"Converting two-dimentional material into 3-D is not as expensive as everyone thinks. Technology is continuing to improve and it's getting cheaper so I think we'll be able to create more 3-D material by continuing to create things as we have been doing and adding creative touches to it and spending a bit more money," he added.
Hollywood is currently leading in 3-D technology. Resources and funds are pouring in to create more 3-D works, and studios are converting big movie projects from 2-D to 3-D.
Shot in 3-D, "Avatar" has become the top-grossing movie of all-time with 2.7 billion U.S. dollars at box offices. But it also came with a hefty price tag with industry observers saying the picture, one of the few live-action movies shot in 3-D, cost at least 300 million U.S. dollars to produce.
Shooting in 3-D is expensive, but industry watchers estimate the cost of conversion could be as low as 5 million U.S. dollars per film.
The 3-D boom is not just within the movie theatre circuit. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry is planning to create a school for the country's future 3-D animators.
The school, with the latest 3-D and animation technology from some of the top Hollywood and Japanese animation studios, is expected to open in 2011.
The government hopes to boost the quality of Japanese animators so that they remain in step with the times.
But despite the 3-D boom, Japanese animation firms say they do not feel threatened.
"I don't think the Japanese anime industry has anything to worry about. There are several reasons to this but mainly it's because Japanese anime has strong characters, a solid screenplay and story line. Whether it can be a 3-D work or not is just a matter of technology and this should not change how interesting the story is or the value of the work," said Tatsuya Soma, Director of 3 Dimensional Geometry Application Network.
The week-long anime fair is expected to draw more than 100,000 visitors. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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