A new interview is up at Anime News Network with Andrew Partridge, an ongoing presence in the UK anime distribution scene where he currently represents Kaze UK. Partridge has hinted for a bit about some changes to the marketplace there, which continues to grow in different ways, with the reveal o fa new distribution company for 2013 that he’s involved in called Anime Limited. Or, that’s what they’re calling it at the moment as there isn’t a formal name set right now. With the company name not settled, it’s obvious that they’re not going to announce and titles or dates at the moment either, but there are some good quotes in the article that should please UK fans with what they may get down the line as things get rolling.
In regards to theatrical features;
“My goal is to develop a theatrical market for Japanese animation over the next five or six years,” says Partridge, “for films aside from Studio Ghibli, which already gets UK distribution. In order to build more than just event screenings, you need to be a small enough company, spending cleverly and moving quickly without too much red tape.”
On the home video side:
“But there are equally shows of such a good calibre that people will go back to them later. You’re not looking at the Galaxy Angels of this world, but you certainly are looking for some of the titles that used to be circulated by ADV or Beez, as well as those that never hit UK soil. If you can make the value proposition interesting, there is always a market. It’s just a question if the size of that market validates a release.”
Partridge continues, “The shows I’m looking at mostly are ones where either Blu-Ray is possible now, or the shows were just so good they deserve a second release in something beyond a bog-standard amaray box. (Which isn’t to say a budget version shouldn’t be available too, I add quickly!) It’s about keeping a reality-check in play.
You can find further discussion here.
