MonkeyFunk
04-01-2005, 05:33 AM
Reported in the anime magazine "Neo":
It has been speculated for some time that anime sales are headed for a slump. However, the decline appears to be hitting sooner than previously expected; the "otaku" population isn't just losing interest in anime, it's found something new. In their searches for more obscure titles that are not readily available in America, a group of anime enthusiasts made an ordering mistake and ended up with a series of British Film Institute videos containing experimental UK animation.
"Well, it's not what we thought we were getting", one of them was quoted as saying. "But it's better than Pilot Candidate."
News of the discovery spread like wildfire through anime fandom, and in a matter of days Brit animation was the biggest thing since the Beatles. Phil Mulloy's cartoons were billed as "the next South Park", and there were vague rumours of anime-esque Nickelodeon series Avatar adopting his visual style. Elsewhere, a group of well-known personalities in the cosplaying community decided to dress as characters from Aardman's short film Ident.
However, the excitement was shortlived when the Anime News Network reported that British animation was already dead; the short films that had caused a frenzy were mostly artifacts from Channel 4's abandoned experimental animation funding project.
Otaku were forced to look elsewhere for animation. Soon, they found it - in Czechoslovakia.
"Well, we got a video of animations by this guy called Jan Svankmajer", commented one of the anime fans who started the short-lived trend. "We ignored him at first 'cause we couldn't pronounce his name, but we really liked the Brothers Quay's stuff, and apparently he was the one who inspired them..."
Several major anime sites are already planning to focus on Czech animation. Jan Svankmajer was unavailable for comment, but his face was reported to have contorted into a twisted parody of a smile upon hearing the news.
Pretty unexpected stuff...
It has been speculated for some time that anime sales are headed for a slump. However, the decline appears to be hitting sooner than previously expected; the "otaku" population isn't just losing interest in anime, it's found something new. In their searches for more obscure titles that are not readily available in America, a group of anime enthusiasts made an ordering mistake and ended up with a series of British Film Institute videos containing experimental UK animation.
"Well, it's not what we thought we were getting", one of them was quoted as saying. "But it's better than Pilot Candidate."
News of the discovery spread like wildfire through anime fandom, and in a matter of days Brit animation was the biggest thing since the Beatles. Phil Mulloy's cartoons were billed as "the next South Park", and there were vague rumours of anime-esque Nickelodeon series Avatar adopting his visual style. Elsewhere, a group of well-known personalities in the cosplaying community decided to dress as characters from Aardman's short film Ident.
However, the excitement was shortlived when the Anime News Network reported that British animation was already dead; the short films that had caused a frenzy were mostly artifacts from Channel 4's abandoned experimental animation funding project.
Otaku were forced to look elsewhere for animation. Soon, they found it - in Czechoslovakia.
"Well, we got a video of animations by this guy called Jan Svankmajer", commented one of the anime fans who started the short-lived trend. "We ignored him at first 'cause we couldn't pronounce his name, but we really liked the Brothers Quay's stuff, and apparently he was the one who inspired them..."
Several major anime sites are already planning to focus on Czech animation. Jan Svankmajer was unavailable for comment, but his face was reported to have contorted into a twisted parody of a smile upon hearing the news.
Pretty unexpected stuff...