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A Summer of Anime for the UK

Date: 2005 June 23 12:53 | Posted By: Azure

Category > Anime > Film

This summer is a great time to see some big name anime at UK film festivals. There’s the Cambridge Film Festival which is showing among others; Howl’s Moving Castle, Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence and Steamboy. The NFT will also be having a Japanese animation season, no details are on the site but it’s rumoured that they are scheduling a number of Ghibli films. Neo Magazine is also running a competition in it’s current issue to win tickets to Sky Blue.

Souce: Otaku News

Kung Fu Hustle and Cat Returns at the BFI

Date: 2005 May 31 04:44 | Posted By: Azure

Category > Anime > Film

The British Film Institute will be showing Kung Fu Hustle and The Cat Returns. Kung Fu Hustle is showing on the 7th of June, whilst Cat Returns is showing on the 25th and 26th of June.

Souce: BFI

Dragon Ball Z Week on Toonami

Date: 2005 May 24 06:39 | Posted By: Azure

Category > Anime > TV

Toonami will be premiering five of the Dragon Ball Z movies half term week (30th May-Friday 3rd June) on Toonami. A new movie will show each day at 11am and 6pm. However looking at the titles I have my suspicions that some of them may be the same dubs are were released in UK and not the Ocean/FUNimation casts from the US DVDs.

Interaction to Preview Howl's Moving Castle

Date: 2005 May 12 18:47 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > Film

We've just received some very exciting news about Interaction, the 63rd World Science Fiction Convention, which will be previewing Howl's Moving Castle. It's the long awaited latest movie from Studio Ghibli director Hayao Miyazaki, who is also responsible for Spirited Away (the first anime film to have won an Oscar).

They'll also be showing anime musical Interstella 5555, with music from Daft Punk, it's directed by Leiji Matsumoto & Kazuhisa Takenôchi, and has the distinctive Matsumoto character designs, even if they are blue aliens instead of humans! The convention are even screening Appleseed, a CGI movie based on the popular manga by Masamune Shirow (who is best known for Ghost In The Shell).

It appears that the event coordinator David 'Dragon' Cotterill has been a busy man, not only has he helped to secure the film screenings, but he has also managed to get leading anime experts like Jonathan Clements (co-author of the Anime Encyclopedia and the Dorama Encyclopedia: A Guide to Japanese TV Drama since 1953), to step onboard to run panels and discussions.

The Otaku News Crew are pleased to report that this makes the convention worth while for anime fans, since the film line up is interesting, and being the first to see Howl's Moving Castle in the UK makes it worth the visit alone! It's also refreshing to see that they've got established and experienced anime experts who actually know what they are talking about, more recently we've noticed that there are quite self declared experts appearing at smaller events who have only really got into anime because it's "cool", in reality such people jumping on the bandwagon know little and often turn events into disasters. We've seen Jonathan at previous events and found him to be entertaining and informative.

Sky Blue At Raindance East

Date: 2005 April 17 16:38 | Posted By: Azure

Category > Events

Sky Blue aka Wonderful days is showing as part of the Raindance: East film festival, and will be screened on Friday 22nd April at the UGC West India Quay and Wednesday 27th April at Genesis Mile End. Also showing which may interest fans of Asian film is 'Red trousers' which stars Mortal Kombat’s Robin Shou, and ‘THREE...EXTREMES’ (24th April) which features films by Takashi Miike,Fruit Chan & Park Chan-Wook. Films can be booked independently or a pass can be bought for £25

Souce: Raindance:East

Tokyo Godfathers Charity London Screening

Date: 2005 April 16 12:46 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

The Phoenix Cinema in East Finchley, London UK, have teamed up with Hope and Homes for Children, to screen Tokyo Godfathers. Considering the movie is about three homeless people finding an abandonded baby, it could not be a more appropirate choice for the charity! This Sataoshi Kon film is a superb comedy, with great animation and one you must see at least once on the big screen.

They'll be screening the Japanese version of the film with English subtitles on Sunday April 24th, at 11am. Tickets will be £7 and £5 for concessions. The film is rated 12. If you can get to East Finchley to see it then give the box office a ring on 020 8444 6789 and mention you heard about the screening on Otaku News too! ^_-

Souce: Hope and Homes for Children

Cat Returns To Hit The UK In June

Date: 2005 March 14 17:56 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > Film

Otaku News have been sent details from Optimum Releasing for the UK release of The Cat Returns. The Ghibli film will have a theatrical run in June. The exact release date and details are still to be confirmed. They will also be releasing Hayao Miyazaki's latest masterpiece Howl's Moving Castle in UK cinemas later this year with several more Ghibli titles on DVD.

Otaku News will keep you updated with further information when we have it!

Souce: Optimum Releasing

Competition: Bondi Nami

Date: 2005 February 22 18:04 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

Here at Otaku News we love working with people to provide you with free stuff. We've teamed up with the people organising the London Australian Film Festival to give our London readers a chance of winning a pair of tickets to see the first Japanese Road Movie in Australia - Bondi Nami.

Competition: Sci-Fi-London Anime On Tour

Date: 2005 February 22 17:48 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > Film

For our lucky UK readers we've got a pair of tickets for each leg of the Sci-Fi-London Anime On Tour event around the country. They'll be showing an anime all nighter, which includes Parasite Dolls and RahXephon. Read the rest of this article for full details.

Sci-Fi-London Anime On Tour

Date: 2005 February 14 18:57 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

Following on from the successful Sci-Fi-London Festival at the beginning of this month, the UK's only international sci-fi and fantasy film festival will be on tour throughout February and March.

Lucky otaku in Edinburgh, Liverpool, York and Exeter will get a chance to see the anime all nighter which includes Parasite Dolls and the RahXephon Movie.

More Ghibli Theatrical Releases

Date: 2005 February 03 14:04 | Posted By: Azure

Category > Production > Studio Ghibli

Optimum Releasing has released further information on the UK theatrical releases of the Ghibli films " The Cat Returns" and "Howl’s moving Castle". The Cat Returns will be released in May as both dub and sub. Six other films will then be released culminating with the latest Ghibli film Howl’s Moving Castle in autumn. These films were designed to be big screen, so we recommended you take the chance to catch a few if you can!

Souce: Neo Magazine

Extra Steamboy Showing In London

Date: 2005 January 24 02:59 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > Film

London tickets sales for Steamboy at the Curzon Cinema on February 5th have sold out already! So the organisers have arranged for an extra screening on Thursday 3rd February at 11pm. Steamboy is being screened as part of the Sci-Fi-London Festival. The Otaku News crew hope that more screenings of the film will be scheduled for London soon, lots of people really want to see Steamboy and since the film is set in London it deserves a bigger screening in it's home city.

Souce: Sci-Fi-London

Anime All Nighter In London

Date: 2005 January 19 18:03 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > Film

Lucky otaku who can get to London in the first weekend of February are in for a real treat. The Sci-Fi-London event will be running an anime all nighter with support from Redbull and Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream (make mine Chocolate Fudge Brownie) and with free Tea and Coffee everyone's sure to stay awake from the midnight starting time until 9:30 am the next day!
They'll be screening:

- Lady Death
- Parasite Dolls
- Sky Blue (a Korean animation also known as Wonderful Days)
- RahXephon The Movie.

We suggest that hardcore otaku go to the London Anime Club afterwards for a total weekend of anime!

Steamboy At Sci-Fi-London

Date: 2004 December 04 13:21 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > Film

The keen eyed people at Anime-Europe have noticed that Sci-Fi-London will be screening Katsuhiro Otomo's latest anime film Steamboy. The festival will run in February 2005 and has screened anime with great success in previous years.

The folks over at Anime UK News have also discovered that the latest issue (December 2004) of Impact Magazine has a Steamboy Cover, along with features on Steamboy and Ghost In The Shell 2: Innocence.

Every otaku should already know Katsuhiro Otomo wrote the classic manga Akira and directed the huge smash hit anime version. Steamboy is a steampunk movie set in London just before the First World Expo in 1851.

Apart from being very high quality anime, it is noted for having authentic looking locations around London, with British bobbies on the beat and other landmarks, which makes a change from seeing Tokyo landmarks all the time in anime! ^_-

Souce: Sci-Fi-London

Howl Confirmed for UK

Date: 2004 November 27 06:31 | Posted By: Azure

Category > Production > Studio Ghibli

Yet more Howl news as a UK release is announced . Optimum Releasing have confirmed they have the rights to distribute Howl in the UK. An exact date has yet to be confirmed, as they have to wait for the English soundtrack to be finished.

UK Sci-Fi channel Japanese Horror Weekend 6-7 November 2004

Date: 2004 October 25 17:14 | Posted By: Azure

Category > Anime > TV

The UK Sci-Fi channel is having a Japanese horror weekend 6-7th November to celebrate the release of 'The Grudge' a remake of cult Japanese horror film Ju-on. Fans of the Ring series of horror films will be pleased to know that three of the Japanese Ring films are to be screened one after the other.

Leeds International Film Festival Has Anime and Live Action Treats

Date: 2004 October 09 13:21 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

Anime-Europe has brought to our attention the Leeds International Film Festival. They mention the official UK premier of Ghost In the Shell 2: Innocence (Sat 6th Nov - 8.30pm, Sun 7th Nov - 6.15pm) and Steamboy (Sat 6th Nov - 6.15pm, Sun 7th Nov - 8.15pm), both of these films are hotly anticipated by anime fans, myself included.

Also recomended is the Fanomenon Film Strand, with some other top notch cult live action Japanese cinema.

The Otaku News crew suggest you check out:
- Electric Dragon 80,000V
- The Live Action version of Cutie Honey (directed by Hideaki Anno of Evangelion fame).
- Doppleganger
- Izo
- Ju-on: The Grudge 2

Then there's Otakus In Love the film title explains what it's about, I'll have to put that on my to watch list for the title alone! ^_-

Also if you liked Hero, you will really want to see House of Flying Daggers.

Souce: Leeds International Film Festival

Mamoru Oshii to Answer Fan's Questions On-line

Date: 2004 September 03 13:57 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > Film

We've just had details in from the folks at Dreamworks.
Mamoru Oshii the director of Ghost In the Shell 2: Innocence will be answering questions posted to the offical Ghost In the Shell 2 Site's forum. Sign up and Join this thread - http://www.ghost2.com/board/showthread.php?t=62.

Fans will already know that Oshii was behind the original Ghost in the Shell Movie, and the first two Mobile Police Patlabor Movies.

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