| Neko-Con -
Scott Frazier |
| Scott Frazier no longer has to cross the Pacific Ocean to attend North
American anime conventions. The man who had been one of the few Westerners
to work in the anime industry decided this year to live and work in Los
Angeles on animation project. Why? Because the American animation industry
is going to be a better place to work than the Japanese industry, Frazier
said at a Neko-Con panel (also attended by Jeff Thompson of The Right Stuf
and Shin Kurokawa of AnimEigo) on Saturday afternoon. |
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| "The anime industry is like the toxic waste dump industry," Frazier
said. Earlier in 2000, economic forecasts of no fast business recovery
in Japan frightened away sponsors of anime projects - including a sponsor
that Frazier had lined up to spend $3 million on a show. Now, experienced
people in the anime industry have seen their potential salaries cut in
half, and many are leaving. The only bright spot for those anime production
companies is working on video games, and Frazier said that the game deals
are often "deals with the devil" which hurt the production companies more
than help them. |
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| By contrast, the U.S. anime industry is going in the right direction,
Frazier feels. "In 5-10 years, I think we are going to have independent
films that have better content. What I went to Japan for in the 1980's,
we'll have here in 2010." Frazier points to movies such as Titan AE and
Iron Giant as imperfect steps along that path toward a vital North American
supply of good animated films. He's critical of the plans to soften the
intensity and violence of the upcoming Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker
movie, but Frazier still points to that production as an example of the
potential strength of the American animation industry. |
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