WB involvement with Japanese films

Tue Feb 6 01:04:24 EST 2007

Alex,

I was somewhat exaggerating about Ireton being a one-man
band (I said "basically"), but as far as a Hollywood exec
based in Japan, he is unique. He's also worked on the L.A.
side of things, and I'm sure (as both you and Chris
mentioned) that the mandate for WB to get involved in
local production came from higher up, but in Japan it'd be
a lot more difficult to implement without someone like
Ireton who can play both sides.

As for how the Death Note films have been received here,
do you mean in terms of a Hollywood entity being involved?
>From all of my reading, nobody's blinked an eye aside from
some mentions in industry-related articles. It's based on
a Japanese manga, with Japanese talent, Japanese
everything. Earned over $80m combined with a spin-off in
the works. No "invasion" I can see, only collaboration.
Invasion would be more about Hollywood forcing lower
screen quotas in Korea etc. 

I just remembered the live action version of "Cutie Honey"
being one of the last productions under Towani, remember
them?

http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,667081,00.html

Warner Hollywood allowed their logo be used on CH, but it
was symbolic and nothing more (it never even got
distribution abroad). With Death Note, things have
changed. 

Chris,

Before Sukiyaki came together, Sony put money into Kon
Satoshi's Paprika.

About convergence, WB seems to be leading the way but
perhaps it's a long way off (especially TV). I assume
governmental limits on foreign investment in Japanese
corporations would also have an affect on where things go.

> > Date:Mon, 05 Feb 2007 16:18:31 +0100
> From:"Alex Zahlten" <Alex.Zahlten at gmx.de>
> To:KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
> Subject:Re: WB involvement with Japanese films
> 
> 
> I don't actually think Warner's involvement can
> simply be reduced to one persons involvement, though
> that always figures in more than one might think.
> But Warner Brothers has been feeling out
> possiblilities for producing outside of Hollywood
> for quite a while. In 2004 they invested in a
> company that was formed to produce A Very Long
> Engagement in France. This company also applied for
> subsidies from the French government and these were
> (if I remember correctly) originally granted, but
> other French producers sued, claiming that the
> company was only a front for Hollywood and that the
> film was not really a "French" film - much to the
> chagrin of director Jeunet. The court eventually
> agreed that the film wouldn't be eligible for
> subsidies, i.e. despite a crew, staff and cast that
> consisted almost entirely of people with French
> passports working in France. Oliver Stone's
> Alexander, on the other hand, recieved subsidies
> from the French government without legal wrangling.
> 
> So the nationality of a film is at the center of a
> legal and critical discussion- Aaron (no doubt
> consciously and polemically) phrased the question by
> asking if Hollywood (whatever it may be) is
> "invading the market for Japanese films". That is
> certainly a thought that might have crossed some
> Japanese critics' and industry figures' minds as
> well, but is it an adequate way to think about
> (these) films? I remember that the Deutsche Bank
> owned a stake of somewhere between 1-2% of Toei, at
> least until two years ago. Does that make Toei films
> 1-2% German? How "American" is Death Note, and how
> "Japanese" is Takashi Shimizu's Hollywood remake of
> The Grudge?(How "American" is Hollywood, for that
> matter, which produced loads of films with hundreds
> of millions of Dollars funneled in from german tax
> shelter film funds throughout the 1990s?)
> In production and distribution, film has been pretty
> transnational from the beginning. But has that
> quality changed, or are the discourses surrounding
> it changing? Is there a specific quality this
> discourse when it turns to "Japanese" film? Jason,
> can you give some more information on how media in
> Japan reacted to Death Note?
> 
> 
> 
> Alex
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -------- Original-Nachricht --------
> Datum: Sun, 4 Feb 2007 14:30:06 +0900 (JST)
> Von: Jason Gray <loaded_films at yahoo.co.jp>
> An: KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
> CC: 
> Betreff: WB involvement with Japanese films
> 
> > I've mentioned this new development in Screen
> Int'l and it
> > basically comes down to Warner Entertainment Japan
> > president William Ireton. He's long been involved
> with WB
> > here and before that Toho-Towa (Toho's foreign
> film dist.
> > arm).
> > 
> >
>
http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,1195429,00.html
> > 
> > 
> > The Death Note series was the first in a new
> mandate to
> > get involved creatively with Japanese productions.
> The
> > franchise turned out to be WB's biggest release of
> the
> > year. 
> > 
> > Brave Story, on the other hand, was a Fuji
> TV/Gonzo
> > project that WB picked up for theatrical
> distribution.
> > Brave Story did manage to crack the Y1b watermark,
> but
> > with a $10m budget and high marketing costs it
> definitely
> > wasn't a hit compared to the other major animated
> releases
> > of the year. 
> > 
> > Ireton also helped with Eastwood's "Letters From
> Iwo Jima"
> > project by coordinating interviews with veterans,
> Gen.
> > Kuribayashi's grandson etc.
> > 
> > With UIP Japan probably dissolving as it has in
> other
> > territories, it'll be interesting to see what
> other
> > Hollywood studios follow suit and start getting
> involved
> > creatively with Japanese films here. Though Ireton
> is a
> > special case since he's lived here for decades.
> > 
> > Jason Gray
> > http://www.screendaily.com
> > http://jasongray.blogspot.com
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > --- KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu wrote:
> > 
> > > 
> > > 			    KINEJAPAN Digest 2031
> > > 
> > > Topics covered in this issue include:
> > > 
> > >   1) Re: For the first time in 21 years...
> > > 	by Mark Nornes <amnornes at umich.edu>
> > > > Date:Sat, 3 Feb 2007 17:47:09 -0500
> > > From:Mark Nornes <amnornes at umich.edu>
> > > To:KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
> > > Subject:Re: For the first time in 21 years...
> > > 
> > > 
> > > On Feb 1, 2007, at 9:01 AM, Aaron Gerow wrote:
> > > 
> > > > One other significant development is the
> > > appearance of Warner  
> > > > Brothers on the chart of Japanese film
> > > distributors, sporting major  
> > > > hits with the two Death Note films and Brave
> > > Heart. Can Hollywood  
> > > > be making up for its losses in the Japanese
> market
> > > by invading the  
> > > > market for Japanese films?
> > > 
> > > Thanks, Aaron, for writing that post. It was
> very
> > > interesting. It  
> > > sparks a question, tho:
> > > 
> > > Can anyone explain what's behind this? Warners
> has
> > > been distributing  
> > > in Japan for decades?eaning they had an office
> in
> > > Tokyo that was  
> > > deeply involved in the marketing and translation
> of
> > > its films. I  
> > > don't know the details beyond that, but the
> > > situation Aaron describes  
> > > above suggests a shift of some sort or another.
> > > Anyone know?
> > > 
> > > Markus
> > 
> > 
> > --------------------------------------
> > Start Yahoo! Auction now! Check out the cool
> campaign
> > http://pr.mail.yahoo.co.jp/auction/
> 
> -- 
> alex at nipponconnection.de
> 
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> > Date:Mon, 5 Feb 2007 19:48:21 +0000 (GMT)
> From:chris howard <fspdd at yahoo.co.uk>
> To:KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
> Subject:Re: WB involvement with Japanese films
> 
> Warner has also invested in local productions in
> Spain and Italy where again it also functions as
> exhib-distrib. In some territories Warner (with
> local partner) is developing multiplexes then
> selling up (UK, Portugal), in others it is
> developing vertically integrated film businesses. Of
> course Warner also dist'd Hero, House of Flying
> Daggers and Windstruck in Japan and possibly(?)
> looked like it had Pan-Asian (JP, Taiwan, China)
> ambitions before it was forced (???) to sell up in
> China.
>    
>   Does Warner actually have a strategy for 'media
> convergence' in Japan? If it doesn't have access to
> certain distribution windows (various forms of TV +
> VOD) it seems likely that at best it will always
> remain a co-prod partner with local companies (e.g.
> with NTV on Death Note).
>    
>   Adding to the national/transnational confusion
> 'Hollywood subsidiary' Sony Pictures Entertainment
> Japan is also down as co-financier and distrib on
> Sukiyaki Django Western on imdb which seems like a
> new move.
>    
>   Chris Howard
>   SOAS, U of London
> 
> 
> Alex Zahlten <Alex.Zahlten at gmx.de> wrote:
>   
> I don't actually think Warner's involvement can
> simply be reduced to one persons involvement, though
> that always figures in more than one might think.
> But Warner Brothers has been feeling out
> possiblilities for producing outside of Hollywood
> for quite a while. In 2004 they invested in a
> company that was formed to produce A Very Long
> Engagement in France. This company also applied for
> subsidies from the French government and these were
> (if I remember correctly) originally granted, but
> other French producers sued, claiming that the
> company was only a front for Hollywood and that the
> film was not really a "French" film - much to the
> chagrin of director Jeunet. The court eventually
> agreed that the film wouldn't be eligible for
> subsidies, i.e. despite a crew, staff and cast that
> consisted almost entirely of people with French
> passports working in France. Oliver Stone's
> Alexander, on the other hand, recieved subsidies
> from the French government without legal wrangling.
> 
> So the nationality of a film is at the center of a
> legal and critical discussion- Aaron (no doubt
> consciously and polemically) phrased the question by
> asking if Hollywood (whatever it may be) is
> "invading the market for Japanese films". That is
> certainly a thought that might have crossed some
> Japanese critics' and industry figures' minds as
> well, but is it an adequate way to think about
> (these) films? I remember that the Deutsche Bank
> owned a stake of somewhere between 1-2% of Toei, at
> least until two years ago. Does that make Toei films
> 1-2% German? How "American" is Death Note, and how
> "Japanese" is Takashi Shimizu's Hollywood remake of
> The Grudge?(How "American" is Hollywood, for that
> matter, which produced loads of films with hundreds
> of millions of Dollars funneled in from german tax
> shelter film funds throughout the 1990s?)
> In production and distribution, film has been pretty
> transnational from the beginning. But has that
> quality changed, or are the discourses surrounding
> it changing? Is there a specific quality this
> discourse when it turns to "Japanese" film? Jason,
> can you give some more information on how media in
> Japan reacted to Death Note?
> 
> 
> 
> Alex
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -------- Original-Nachricht --------
> Datum: Sun, 4 Feb 2007 14:30:06 +0900 (JST)
> Von: Jason Gray 
> An: KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
> CC: 
> Betreff: WB involvement with Japanese films
> 
> > I've mentioned this new development in Screen
> Int'l and it
> > basically comes down to Warner Entertainment Japan
> > president William Ireton. He's long been involved
> with WB
> > here and before that Toho-Towa (Toho's foreign
> film dist.
> > arm).
> > 
> >
>
http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,1195429,00.html
> > 
> > 
> > The Death Note series was the first in a new
> mandate to
> > get involved creatively with Japanese productions.
> The
> > franchise turned out to be WB's biggest release of
> the
> > year. 
> > 
> > Brave Story, on the other hand, was a Fuji
> TV/Gonzo
> > project that WB picked up for theatrical
> distribution.
> > Brave Story did manage to crack the Y1b watermark,
> but
> > with a $10m budget and high marketing costs it
> definitely
> > wasn't a hit compared to the other major animated
> releases
> > of the year. 
> > 
> > Ireton also helped with Eastwood's "Letters From
> Iwo Jima"
> > project by coordinating interviews with veterans,
> Gen.
> > Kuribayashi's grandson etc.
> > 
> > With UIP Japan probably dissolving as it has in
> other
> > territories, it'll be interesting to see what
> other
> > Hollywood studios follow suit and start getting
> involved
> > creatively with Japanese films here. Though Ireton
> is a
> > special case since he's lived here for decades.
> > 
> > Jason Gray
> > http://www.screendaily.com
> > http://jasongray.blogspot.com
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > --- KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu wrote:
> > 
> > > 
> > > KINEJAPAN Digest 2031
> > > 
> > > Topics covered in this issue include:
> > > 
> > > 1) Re: For the first time in 21 years...
> > > by Mark Nornes 
> > > > Date:Sat, 3 Feb 2007 17:47:09 -0500
> > > From:Mark Nornes 
> > > To:KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu
> > > Subject:Re: For the first time in 21 years...
> > > 
> > > 
> > > On Feb 1, 2007, at 9:01 AM, Aaron Gerow wrote:
> > > 
> > > > One other significant development is the
> > > appearance of Warner 
> > > > Brothers on the chart of Japanese film
> > > distributors, sporting major 
> > > > hits with the two Death Note films and Brave
> > > Heart. Can Hollywood 
> > > > be making up for its losses in the Japanese
> market
> > > by invading the 
> > > > market for Japanese films?
> > > 
> > > Thanks, Aaron, for writing that post. It was
> very
> > > interesting. It 
> > > sparks a question, tho:
> > > 
> > > Can anyone explain what's behind this? Warners
> has
> > > been distributing 
> > > in Japan for decades??aning they had an office
> in
> > > Tokyo that was 
> > > deeply involved in the marketing and translation
> of
> > > its films. I 
> > > don't know the details beyond that, but the
> > > situation Aaron describes 
> > > above suggests a shift of some sort or another.
> > > Anyone know?
> > > 
> > > Markus
> > 
> > 
> > --------------------------------------
> > Start Yahoo! Auction now! Check out the cool
> campaign
> 
=== ???????????????? ===

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