repost from J-ENT newsletter

[Ted Mills]

As this pertains to the Japanese film scene, I thought I'd pass it along.

>                   Data Source: Mainichi Daily News
>                         February 3, 1998
>                Written By Peter Crookes, Staff Writer
>                        (c) Mainichi Shimbun
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------
>  7   02/03 13:04 Pay-TV offers fresh stage for independent cinema
>  Director Takuo Yasuda says new outlets invigorate filmmaking scene
>
>  In the beginning, God created cinema and the motion picture.
>  Unfortunately, He later made television.
>  Time has shown that cinema has been able to overcome the onslaught
>of its younger rival. But the price has been heavy, as the great
>Hollywood film factory has increasingly sustained itself on a diet of
>action movies with spiraling budgets.
>  In recent years, however, cinema aficionadoes have benefited from
>the rise of independent moviemakers. They have filled the gaps in
>Hollywood's lineup and have become a vibrant and vital part of the
>big picture.
>  Regrettably, the health of the independent scene in Japan is not so
>assured.  First-time feature film director Takuo Yasuda, 32, knows it
>is tough for those trying to make their way outside the major studio
>system here, but he is optimistic.
>  Yasuda believes that the ongoing proliferation of cable and satellite
>television services can boost independent filmmakers in Japan.
>  "The more television stations there are, the more software (movies)
>they need," he told the MDN. "It is kind of opening up the opportunities
>for us (independents)."
>  In Japan, the big studios kept a tight grip on the movie distribution
>process and few independent films got a real chance. However, an
>independent film that had only a limited release, or even failed to
>reach the big screens at all, in Japan could still make money. This
>was because, these days, a movie can rake in more money through
>television and video sales than at the box office, Yasuda said.
>  The director is proof of his words. By his own admission his film "The
>Artful Dodgers," now screening in Japan, would never have seen the
>light of day if he had gone through the established studios here like
>Toho and Shochiku.
>  He wrote the script for the offbeat story about young Japanese
>adrift in New York while studying the art of filmmaking in the Big
>Apple. Yasuda said that he knew he had "no chance" if he offered the
>script to the big studios in Japan. So, the budding director contacted
>independent producer Takenori Sento -- and through Sento, the "The Artful
>Dodgers" finally came to fruition.
>  Sento, who is a producer for satellite television broadcaster WOWOW,
>actively encourages new talent, Yasuda said.
>  It was through the support of people like Sento and the opportunities
>provided by the likes of WOWOW that the Japanese film industry could
>prosper.
>  "We have to strive to make it happen, to keep the Japanese film industry
>alive," Yasuda said.
>  He was also hopeful that the growth of alternative avenues for showing
>films in Japan, such as pay-TV, would encourage the major movie
>distributors here to open up the system to the independents.
>  Yasuda also believed that the Japanese industry could not only
>survive but also maintain its own unique character. People the world
>over, including Japanese, wanted to watch movies in their own languages
>and stories about their own cultures. "Not everyone has to be Hollywood."
>  Considering the apparently relentless progress of video and television,
>Yasuda was not so sure that the "unique" cinema-going experience would
>endure.
>  In going to a movie, "you initiate the action," he said. You sat in a
>dark room and watched a single screen with strangers. Even hearing them
>laugh at the movie was something unique.
>  "No matter how advanced digital (broadcasting technology) will become,
>it won't entirely replace the experience of going to the movies."
>  However the movies reach the viewer, though, whether it be in a cinema
>or an individual headset in the private home, Yasuda knew that he wanted
>to be part of the magic.
>
>  "The Artful Dodgers" is now playing. See Roadshow below for details.
>[Mainichi Daily News / February 03]

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Ted Mills
Santa Barbara, CA                         "You're as strong as
Stoopid ol' USA                             your weakest link"
>>mills at rain.org<<                              - Mark E. Smith

http://www.rain.org/~mills  NOWHERELAND - the motion picture!!!!!
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Song by Song Discography - a must for all collectors!
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