Animated Thoughts: Starting the year off right, pt.2

It was mid-January and All You Need is Kill was showing at the theater right down the street from my place. For those who don't know, this anime is based upon the light novel "All You Need Is Kill" by Hiroshi Sakurazaka--the light novel that also inspired the Tom Cruise movie Edge of Tomorrow.

In the anime, we're following the story of a soldier in the United Defense Force as she is trapped in an endless loop during an alien invasion. The lead character, Rita Vrataski, is part of a research unit investigating these alien plants in a region of Japan where the plants have established a beachhead. I won't spoiler the rest of the film, but if you've see the Tom Cruise movie, well, for the most part, the comparison really ends with the time loop concept. But like Edge of Tomorrow, All You Need is Kill centers itself around a very engaging series of events with characters who are easy to resonate with.

The visuals and animation are at the level of quality that you would expect from a Studio 4°C production. The character designs are reminiscent of their earlier films Genius Party and Tekkonkinkreet. It has decent character development and the story is very tight--something that is not easy to pull off with time loop stories. But Studio 4°C's production team does the job well as this film never feels stale even as we continually move through the story's "one-day" cycles.

All You Need is Kill joins a very small list of productions that tackle this concept and gets it right -- the aforementioned Tom Cruise film Edge of Tomorrow, Bill Murray's hilarious film Groundhog Day, the critically judged but skillfully executed The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya season 2 "Endless Eight" episodes, and "Window of Opportunity" found in Stargate SG-1 season 4, episode 6--and it's a very welcome addition.

As both Warner Bros Pictures and GKIDS appear to be involved in the distribution for this film here in the States, I'm hoping that it means they'll be releasing a DVD or Blu-Ray for All You Need is Kill later this year. It would be a very welcome addition to my collection.

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Animated Thoughts: What I've been watching this season

As time marches on, I've been watching more and more Anime television series. Personally, I find that a lot of the stories are more engaging for people in my “middle-age” demographic. Fortunately though, we have been seeing an uptick in animated shows geared for the more mature viewer here in the States, mostly through streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime (see: Invincible, Critical Role, and Love, Death & Robots). However, I do still see us walking a long road before we witness Brad Bird’s view of animation fully realized in the American consciousness as it appears to have already done so in Japan. As Mr. Bird so eloquently said back in 2015: “Animation is an art form and it can do any genre”--including stories for the middle-aged crowd.

Hence, my watching a lot of Anime. Of course, Anime is not immune to the overuse of certain tropes, like “the harem/reverse harem”. And everyone chases trends. Here in the States, it’s been “superheroes” for quite a while. In Japan, "the overpowered protagonist who wakes up in an alternate world" continues to be all the rage. Now don't get me wrong, some of the shows with those tropes and trends can work and can work pretty well--see: Is it Wrong to try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? (both the Familia Myth and Sword Oratoria storylines), the Sword Art Online/Gun Gale Online series and movies, or the "Certain" series: A Certain Magical Index, A Certain Scientific Railgun, and A Certain Scientific Accelerator. But from time-to-time you do get the feeling of “been-there, done-that”.

More often than not, before every season starts I'll make a list of six or seven shows that I want to take a look at and see if they're worth following through to completion. My plan allows for viewing the first two (maybe three) episodes to see if they're worth my time and the list gets culled as the season progresses.

I have to say: this past season had some pretty solid entries into the market. I ended up paring my list down from around ten to five--though of those ten, there's two that I do plan on going back and finishing later this year.

The series on my 'must see' list ended up being: Train to the End of the World, HIGHSPEED Etoile, Kaiju No. 8, and BARTENDER Glass of God (all streamed on Crunchyroll) and Delicious in Dungeon (streamed on NetFlix). The two "honorable mentions" that I plan on finishing were A Sign of Affection and Obsolete--though both of those shows were from prior seasons, streamed on Crunchyroll and YouTube respectively.

Train to the End of the World. Now, you might think from the trailer that this is one of those stereotypical 'cute girls doing cute things' Anime. Well, you'd be wrong! From the opening sequences, this Anime takes a hard left turn into the surreal. The whole story follows four girls (and their dog) as they take a train from their home town all the way to Ikebukuro in order to find one of their missing friends. The catch here is that the entire world has gone crazy due to the implementation of "7G" wireless connectivity. But the girls are determined and hijinks ensue at every stop on the way. Now while the banter is entertaining, as is the trouble the girls find themselves in, it's the attention to facial expressions and body language, the "acting", that really makes the series work for me. No matter what challenges they face, they never cease to behave like teenage girls who are at that midpoint between childhood and maturity. And when faced with a bizarre landscape (which they'd been dealing with for two years by the time they decide to make their trek) that is filled with equally bizarre perils, over and over it's their friendship that carries them through to the end. It reminded me of the "Certain" series in that regard: kids that are thrust into an adult world, who have to solve more-or-less adult problems. But they solve those problems as you expect a child (or teenager) would, not in the manner that an adult would--even though they're trying their hardest to act mature at the time. All-in-all, I found it to be a fun, thoroughly quirky show. From the start, you never really doubted what would happen by the end of the last episode, but it was an enjoyable journey to take. Do be warned though, it does get a little silly and a little cheeky in some spots so I wouldn't let little kids watch it.

I don't like watching sports. Never have. Don't like playing them either, though I guess I can see the appeal of playing sports... kind of. But it holds no interest for me for various reasons not really relevant to this post. Now sports movies? Well those I find rather engaging. I thoroughly enjoyed the live-action car racing movie Gran Turismo (based upon the true story of a videogame/simulator and aspiring race car driver Jann Mardenborough)--enjoyed it so much I watched it twice. HIGHSPEED Etoile was another one of those entries. The initial premise was recycled: a ballerina who was sidelined by an injury gets involved in racing instead--same premise as in the Anime Rideback from back in 2009. The main characters from both series even have the same name. But this time it is racing in a future where a new power source allows race cars to propel themselves at a level of speed and skill never seen before. Other sci-fi tropes integrated into the show have a number of the race cars enhanced by AI as well as hologram announcers at the racetracks, a-la Vocaloids. This appears to be a 3d CGI animated show with 2d cel-shaded rendering. The character animation is pretty stiff but the racing sequences are very realistic--I mean, as realistic as they were in the live-action movie Speed Racer. Perhaps "well done" would be a better choice of words. What attracted me to this show is that Rin is not automatically good at the task she's presented with, unlike so many modern (boring) stories nowadays. No, Rin's performance behind the wheel evolves over time as it builds upon her athleticism and coordination from years of studying ballet. And while she does come off as a bit ditzy and clueless, as the show progresses, she grows as a character and loses her naivete. Some folks might not say that this is a "must watch" show, but it "is" another fun ride. If you liked the Emile Hirsch version of Speed Racer, you'll probably enjoy this series.

Kaiju No. 8 wasn't what I expected given that it was produced by Production IG, the powerhouse that brought us Ghost in the Shell. There ended up being a bit of zaniness in Kaiju No. 8 that I found a bit offputting. I went in expecting a serious look at a world beset by giant monsters hellbent on destruction and the people who stood in their way--including the para-military force that destroys them and most importantly, the crews of workers that have to clean up the aftermath (and carcasses) of the Kaiju. This show struck me as something that Studio Trigger would release as visually and performance-wise it had more in common with Kill la Kill or Gurren Lagaan than Ghost in the Shell. I almost stopped watching three episodes in, but stuck it out and Kaiju No.8 ended up being worth the time spent. This is a show with some great action sequences and the story ends up being one with a lot of heart as it follows a middle-aged Kaiju disposal worker in his attempts to live out his dream of becoming a member of the Anti-Kaiju Security Force. In the end, despite the show's occasional overexaggeration of Kafka Hibino's performance I found myself rooting for Kafka and looking forward to the second season.

Bartender Glass of God is one of those shows that is a slow burn. The pacing is relaxed yet there is an underlying tension to the story. The characters and their motivations are revealed across the series--much like watching a slow-motion video of a flower blooming. It's honestly a very meditative show to watch. The story follows Ryū Sasakura, a bartender who is on a quest to mix the "Glass of God"--meaning: that perfect drink for each of his customers. The conflict comes from a hotel owner who wants him to work at his high-end hotel instead of at the bar that where Ryū currently resides. And there are minor conflicts among the side characters that only serve to reveal more and more about Ryū's character and history. This show is a reboot from 2006's Bartender. I'm not sure if I like this series as much as the first one from 2006, but I would definitely say I like them both, just for different reasons.

Now Delicious in Dungeon is the show I've been waiting for. I've been following the manga ever since I discovered it during a break from watching (and reading) Isekai Shokudō--or in English: Restaurant to Another World. Setting aside the fact that Isekai Shokudō is on my "must see" list of Anime, I learned about Delicious in Dungeon (Japanese title: Dungeon Meishi) when I saw it on the bookshelf while looking for the latest manga and light novel translations of Restaurant to Another World. I tried it on for size, as it looked interesting, and I was not disappointed. The story follows a number of adventurers who are trying to rescue (resurrect) one of their friends who got eaten by a red dragon at the lower levels of this magical dungeon. But with little money to work with, they are faced with the prospect of never seeing their friend again or being forced to eat the monsters they kill in order to survive the expedition. Like what the trailer suggests, this show is nice and kooky. If you're into cooking shows and Dungeons & Dragons (as I am), you'll find this a fun romp--especially when you find yourself searching out a number of YouTubers who have made recipes similar to the ones in the show. A word of warning though: while this show is very fun and looks lighthearted, as the story progresses it does get pretty deep and mysterious. There's a lot of meat there, so if you're expecting something light and fluffy from beginning to end, you might want to look elsewhere. It's a 24 episode run on Netflix and, in my opinion, is well worth the time spent. I've watched both the English sub and English dub episodes several times. I can recommend both. And if you have a minute or two to spare, I highly recommend the original animated music video made by Bump of Chicken for the song Sleep Walking Orchestra, which was used for the show's opening title sequence.

Well, the season draws to a close and there's only one episode of Bartender Glass of God left for me to watch. Then once again I'll be pawing through lists of seasonal shows on Crunchyroll, Amazon Prime, Netflix, HBO Max, and Hulu as I look for those shows that not only pique my interest but hopefully become one of the rare gems that adorn my DVD collection.

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Animated Thoughts: Annies and Accessibility

It's January and ASIFA Hollywood has has released their listing of films nominated for the 51st annual Annie Awards.

With the second season of Arcane still months away and not having seen many of the features or television series, I'm a little out of sorts on who to cheer for. 

At this point, I've seen Suzume but only have a couple of the nominees on my list of  films to watch--those being: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Boy and the Heron, Ernest & Celestine: A Trip to Gibberitia, Robot Dreams, The Inventor, and White Plastic Sky. I also need to watch Invincible: Atom Eve before the second half of Invincible, season two is released, but that's neither here-nor-there. The rest of the nominated films really don't seem to be capturing my interest. They may be good films for all I know, but when I look at the trailers, I'm just not feeling them.

I have the same problem every season when the new anime is released. I start out with a sizable list of shows that look good from the trailers, but when I get two or three episodes in, the luster fades. Out of the eight shows I've started this season, so far, only Delicious in Dungeon, The Unwanted Undead Adventurer, and Solo Leveling are holding my attention (I'm still on the fence with A Sign of Affection). And last season, I started with four and only season two of Goblin Slayer made the cut. On the bright side, it does give me enough time to go back and finish watching Frieren: Beyond Journey's End and Skeleton Knight in Another World. I discovered those a little late in the season, so fortunately all those episodes are out right now. Though I really do need to finish those two series before the Spring as Kaiju No. 8 is due out in April and Loner Life in Another World is due out "sometime" in 2024.

Then, in February/March, the DIA is showing the Academy Award Nominated animated films so I'll be driving down to Detroit to watch those... and my copy of the late Paul Bush's film Babeldom arrived from England... want to rewatch that film sooner rather than later... and the last two Arpeggio of Blue Steel animated features arrived from Japan earlier this month...  ah, so much animation, so little time to fit it all in. A good problem to have now that I think about it.

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Animated Thoughts: To All Things, An End

Maintaining a state of détente with
the Fleet of Fog at Shuto Con.

As Shuto Con, Lansing's only anime and Japanese-culture con has been closed for good by its owners, and they're shutting down the Facebook group that so many of us used to frequent at the end of the month, I'd like to share a little something that's been on my heart and then give a little back to the community that embraced my interest in the history of Women Animators.

So, here's an open letter to the owners, staff, and attendees of Shuto Con who may be following my blog or may come across it in the future, cross-posted on the soon-to-be-shut-down Facebook group:

"Well, all good things must come to an end, I suppose. Thank you to all who made an old anime fan feel welcome and who put up with my 'yeah, my first anime was Speed Racer and Astro Boy' comments! A special 'thank you' to the Shuto Staff for giving all of us who feel like outsiders here in the Lansing-area a place to feel like we belong, even if only for a weekend. And lastly, as this group will be shut down shortly, here's the last batch of anime movies that will be coming to the mid-Michigan area.

Remember everyone, if we want to see more anime films in Michigan, we need to support the theaters who are willing to screen them for us! Hope to see some of you around town or at some of the other Michigan cons. :)"

(links are in the titles for those who wish to buy tickets)

Whisper of the Heart
Studio Ghibli's Whisper of the Heart is showing at Celebration Cinema Lansing, the Regal Lansing Mall 12, and Flint West 14 on Monday, July 1st and Tuesday, July 2nd.

Sound! Euphonium: The Movie - Our Promise: A Brand New Day
Sound! Euphonium: The Movie - Our Promise: A Brand New Day is showing at the Regal Lansing Mall 12, Flint West 14, and Emagine Novi 18 on Thursday, July 11th and Monday, July 15th.

Is it wrong to pick up girls in a dungeon? - Arrow of the Orion
For you Danmachi Fans, the Arrow of the Orion film will be playing at the Celebration Cinema Lansing, Regal Lansing Mall 12, and Jackson 10 on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Kiki's Delivery Service
Studio Ghibli's Kiki's Delivery Service: 30th Anniversary screening will be shown at Celebration Cinema Lansing, Regal Lansing Mall 12, and Flint West 14 on July 28th, 29th, and 31st.

Millenium Actress
On Tuesday, August 13th and Monday, August 19th, the late-great Satoshi Kon's masterpiece Millenium Actress will be shown at Celebration Cinema Lansing, Regal Lansing Mall 12, and Jackson 10 theaters. As an animator, I can safely say that this is one of, if not the best animated film that Kon ever created. Every time I watch this anime, I find something new in the animation, the editing, the layout, you could spend an entire semester studying this film and only scratch the surface of Satoshi Kon's genius.

My Neighbor Totoro
Studio Ghibli Fest continues with My Neighbor Totoro on August 25th, 26th and 28th at Celebration Cinema Lansing, Regal Lansing Mall 12, and Flint West 14.

Promare
Theaters haven't been announced yet, but Studio TRIGGER's latest film Promare will be screening on September 17th and September 19th. So bookmark the and check back for locations as tickets will go on sale July 3rd.

The Secret World of Arrietty
On Sunday and Monday, September 29th and 30th, The Secret World of Arrietty will be shown at the Celebration Cinema Lansing, Regal Lansing Mall 12, and Flint West 14.

Spirited Away
Just in time for the Halloween season, the Academy Award winning film Spirited Away will be shown at the Celebration Cinema Lansing, Regal Lansing Mall 12, and Flint West 14 on October 27th, 28th, and 30th. (be sure to attend in costume!)

Princess Mononoke
The visually stunning Princess Mononoke will be shown on November 17th, 18th, and 20th at the Celebration Cinema Lansing, Regal Lansing Mall 12, and Flint West 14. Great timing for those of us who need a quick pick-me-up before spending the Thanksgiving holiday with family members who just "don't get" our hobbies or our taste in film... ;)

The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
Studio Ghibli Fest 2019 comes to a close in December with the last film directed by Isao Takahata: The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. Showing on Monday, December 16th and Wednesday, December 18th at the Celebration Cinema Lansing, Regal Lansing Mall 12, and Flint West 14, come and close out the year by paying tribute to a masterwork by one of the greatest directors in the pantheon of anime and the co-founder of Studio Ghibli.

'Sumi-Jaki' Shuto Con's "imp" mascot.

Animated Thoughts: Mazinger Z on DVD

Mazinger Z - Discotek Media

So a year ago at ShutoCon, Lansing's anime and Japanese culture con, I asked the Funimation rep about the possibility of collectors like me seeing some of the old giant robot series from the 1970s being released on DVD in the future.

She said she doubted it due to the fact that the licenses were tied up in production committees with companies--many of which weren't in business anymore and had been absorbed by other companies--so figuring out who owns what rights would be a nightmare that would scare away most companies who could do DVD releases.

Well, thankfully, someone somewhere was listening to my pleas as it looks like on April 29th, Discotek Media will be releasing the first season (46 episodes) of Mazinger Z on DVD with the original Japanese language but with English subtitles. (1)

While many of us here in the States may remember this as the "Tranzor Z" cartoon from the 1980s or the Mazinga toy from Mattel's Shogun Warrior line of toys in the 1970s, in actuality, Mazinger Z had its origins in a manga created by Japanese comic artist Go Nagai--a manga which was released in Weekly Shonen Jump magazine and turned into an anime series by Toei Doga in 1972. (2)


Shogun Warriors by Marvel Comics
(yes, I have the entire series in my collection,
and no I don't lend them out!)

The first in the giant robot genre, "Mazinger Z" ran for 92 episodes and was broadcast from December 1972 until September 1974. This was followed by 56 episodes of the series "Great Mazinger", also produced by Toei Doga, which ran from September 1974 until September 1975 and spawned several movies (3) including "Mazinkaizer" which eschews the first anime series and instead takes its cues from the events in the original manga. (4)

Toei Robot Girls Z

Most recently, Toei has released a series of animated shorts using the Mazinger robots (and their ilk) re-imagined as moe-styled girls--called "Toei Robot Girls Z". Fortunately, for me, while initially this Winter 2014 series had not been picked up by any legitimate streaming service for English sub and rebroadcast to the North American market, last month, Crunchyroll picked up the short form series and has streamed the first two (of three) half-hour episodes. While keeping pretty close to the usual tropes that are in vogue today--moe schoolgirl characters, lots of explosions, a cross-dressing boy, and the requisite pervy girl character--the show is light, fluffy and relatively fun (if you can overlook the ecchi elements that play to the more hardline otaku viewers).


Hopefully, if the Mazinger Z DVD release does well, we'll see the rest of the 46 Mazinger Z episodes released along with some of the other classic giant robot shows like Great Mazinger, Yusha Raydeen, Wakusei Robot Dangard Ace, and Chodenji Robot Combattler V--all of which up until now appear to have only been available in the United States via bittorrented, fan-subbed downloads and bootleg DVDs. While the collector in me is ecstatic that this series will be released on DVD in all it's campy goodness, and in a format that I can proudly display on my shelf, I must admit that after waiting over twenty-five years, I would've been just as happy to see these available for digital download from iTunes.

Footnotes:
1. Crunchyroll news article, January 14, 2014
2. Wikipedia Entry for Mazinger Z
3. PROTOCULTURE ADDICTS - The Anime & Manga Magazine, Issue #41, pp33-38, July-August 1996
4. Wikipedia Entry for Mazinkaizer 

Animated Reviews: Crispin Freeman's "Anime Mythology"

So there I was, braving the cold Michigan winter weather (with a transmission that was having problems), on my way to Ann Arbor where Crispin Freeman was presenting a lecture on anime at the University of Michigan Anime Club's annual 'Con Ja Nai' meeting. For those of you who don't watch much anime, Crispin Freeman is an American voice actor best known for playing Section 9's non-cyberized detective "Togusa" in the anime series 'Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex' as well as the constantly beleaguered "Kyon" from 'the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzimiya'.

While I freely admit that one of the reasons I was driving to Ann Arbor was to have Mr. Freeman autograph a poster from Sony's North American DVD release of 'Ghost in the Shell: Innocence', I was very interested in hearing him discuss his theories on anime story/genre development through his Anime Mythology series. In this case it was his presentation: "Giant Robots and Superheroes." Basically, Mr. Freeman's presentation detailed his theories of why the American and Japanese mythos have developed on parallel yet radically different paths--his theory being that the core religious beliefs of the region have shaped the cultural outlook reflected in their media. For example:

Region: United States of America
Major Religions: Christianity/Judiaism/Islam
Mindset: Good vs. Evil
Result: Superheroes

Region: Japan
Major Religions: Shinto/Buddhism
Mindset: Restoring Balance to the world
Result: Robotic Avatars

After presenting the premise, he then delved into the core beliefs that mark each religion, followed by examples from each region's media which illustrate how the core beliefs have shaped and influenced the development of storytelling within said media.

Rather than try to paraphrase Mr. Freeman's lecture further and risk misstating his ideas, I present the following video which explains Mr. Freeman's background and expounds upon his lecture series and the ideas within.


This was one of those presentations where you feel like you're a very thirsty man drinking from a firehose--there was so much information being presented it was hard to take it all in. On the one hand, you're dealing with the disconnect of seeing a person whose voice you have associated with another face(s). On the other hand, you're sitting through a lecture that fascinates you and is presented by someone who not only knows his material backwards and forwards but also is a polished speaker. I've never been able to copy notes and pay attention to a speaker. Maybe it's because dyslexia runs in my family, maybe I just never learned the skill. Fortunately, I had an acquaintance with me who is very skilled in note-taking which allowed me to focus all of my attention on Mr. Freeman's lecture and still have the benefit of material to review later on while I'm waiting for him to finish writing and publishing the book he is currently composing on this subject.

There are currently five lectures in his Anime Mythology series. If you're at all interested in anime, and more importantly the multi-faceted thought processes and cultural idiosyncrasies that compose their engaging stories, then I highly recommend taking an afternoon out of your schedule to listen to Crispin Freeman. After hearing the first lecture in his series, I'm already keeping an eye out for his next local appearance so I can hear the rest.

Animated Inspiration: Redline

'The Illusionist' may have been the best animated film I saw last year, but 'Redline' was both the most creative and the most insane! Screened at the Waterloo Festival for Animated Cinema, 'Redline' is the story of an intergalactic race to determine who is the best driver in the known universe!

'Redline' was like the Wachowski Brothers' movie 'Speed Racer'... if it was on enough adrenaline to kill an elephant! Seriously, the visuals during the frequent and frenetic action sequences were enough to cause seizures. Add to that the creative use of camera work that I rarely see in anime.

I remember being a child, watching Saturday morning cartoons with wide-eyed enthusiasm after ingesting several bowls of cereal infused with sugar, preservatives, and artificial colors and flavors. Back then I didn't know anything about ADHD, all I knew was that I could barely sit still while imaginary characters danced across the screen in a ballet of color and cartoon violence--all for my viewing pleasure. 'Redline' brought back all those memories and feelings in a tidal wave of adrenaline and endorphins!

You see, 'Redline' is more than just your standard high octane anime--through it's creative use of color, distortion and camera lens effects, it becomes a cinematic treat that pushes the traditional visual conventions and stylings of anime into the realm of arthouse films and Hollywood blockbusters. The most exciting thing is that Anchor Bay Entertainment has just announced that they've acquired the North American rights from auteur animation studio Madhouse in Japan! So we'll be seeing 'Redline' available on DVD this Fall.

On Wednesday nights, several friends and I gather together to watch anime. 'Redline' will be added to the lineup this Fall and my friends will be introduced to the seizure-inducing experience that is Madhouse!

Animated Thoughts: Outsourcing

Fellow ASIFA member, Gordon Peterson, posted this link to a news article on the L.A. Times' website. While the full one-page article is worth reading, it basically says that outsourcing is one of the main factors that is killing Japan's anime industry. Lets set aside the fact that rampant piracy of anime properties is one of the other main contributors adding to the worldwide decline of anime (especially shows broadcast in Japan, where a show can be on television one night and be subtitled and streamed over the internet by the next day... y'know, now that I think about it, is it any wonder that the creators of "Cat Shit One" have blocked audiences in the U.S.A. from watching this series on YouTube--a series which they themselves uploaded!). Anyways, it would appear that the Japanese are suffering from the same effects of globalization that we American animators have been suffering from for years. Namely that production houses are going out-of-country to take advantage of cheap labor in an effort to increase profits through lowering costs, rather than coming up with better and fairer methods of generating revenue from their animated properties.

Now I freely admit, as an independent animator, I work outside of "the industry." So I have not experienced first-hand the trials and tribulations of working in either broadcast animation production or theatrical animation production. However, as someone who has lived and worked in Michigan for the better part of my life, I have experienced first-hand the economic downturn of the outsourcing that is rampant in both the automotive industry and the computer programming industry. I actually left computer programming for good when the industry shifted major assets to India in the late-90's/early-2000's. Having seen what outsourcing did to manufacturing in Michigan, seeing call-centers shutting down, and watching contracts for computer programming dry up, well, I saw the writing on the wall and shifted into another career while I could do so on my terms (for the most part).

Pundits on NPR are constantly saying that once manufacturing leaves America, those jobs won't come back. I don't know if that's true or not since we're seeing some call-center and computer programming jobs (two staples of the Indian service economy) start the long exodus back to America. Could we then expect to see a return of animation jobs to America and Japan? Well, I'd be willing to bet we'll see it in Japan long before we see it in the United States. Reason being: Japan has a history of protecting their cultural 'treasures' through their Cultural Property Preservation Act. There are currently a number of artisans in Japan (for example: potters, sword-forgers, and paper-makers) that preserve the historical Japanese techniques of producing said items of cultural value. These so-called 'living treasures' are really artisan-curators of the techniques that Japan wishes to preserve. Given the rich history of Anime, I can easily see Japan taking the  necessary steps to preserve the history of their animation industry--whether it will cause a rebirth in the industry or just turn it into another niche market in the historical sector, only time will tell, but I'm cautiously optimistic.

As for here in the United States, where oftentimes profit is seen as preferable to preservation, it looks like private funding of historical and cultural preservation is far more prevalent than using public funds to save our history. While most of it wasn't directly related to animation, I did do a lot of travel this year--mainly to museums and locations of historical interest like the Smithsonian, Gettysburg, Stonehenge, the Royal Ontario Museum and the Musee d'Orsee (places that revive those creative juices and offer people like me opportunities to drum up some future business). I would encourage people to take time out to visit museums, particularly ones where you can see men and women practice production techniques that have historial and cultural value, much like those seen at Plimoth Plantation, a not-for-profit, living museum, which houses blacksmiths, embroiders, furniture makers and other artisans who preserve manufacturing techniques from the American colonial times.