Mankind struggles to build a future in the vacuum of space in the animated feature TO – 2001 NIGHTS, coming next month to DVD and Blu-ray in the UK.
Photo courtesy of The Associates. © 2009 Yukinobu Hoshino, Futabosha/ TO Committee

Source: The Associates press release
Official Site: mv.avex.jp/to (Japan), funimation.com/tomovie (US)

From Fumihiko Sori (ICHI; PING PONG), director of the groundbreaking CG animated feature VEXILLE, comes another breathtaking sci-fi spectacle, this time in the form of a two-episode OVA. Adapted from two unrelated stories from the 19 stories that make up the 2001 Nights manga written and illustrated by Yukinobu Hoshino, TO – 2001 NIGHTS (トゥー, 2009) is a beautifully envisioned homage to the golden age of literary and cinematic science fiction.

TO – 2001 NIGHTS (cert. 15) will be released on DVD (Region 2, PAL) and Blu-ray (Region B) by Manga Entertainment on 26th September 2011. Special Features include: interview with director Fumihiko Sori, Akio Ohtsuka and Romi Park; interview with director Fumihiko Sori, Jun Fukuyama and Aya Hirano; trailers; TV spots; promo videos; English 5.1 and Japanese 5.1 (with English subtitles) audio options.
Continued…

MARDOCK SCRAMBLE: THE FIRST COMPRESSION Available on September 27th
Source: Section23 Films press release
Special Thanks to Mike Bailiff

Photo courtesy of Section23 Films.

Home video distributor Section23 Films has provided details on its September slate of releases; including the spectacular new trilogy MARDOCK SCRAMBLE. The first movie will be released on DVD & Blu-Ray by Section23 client Sentai Filmworks.

Also scheduled for September are DVD editions of TO LOVE RU COMPLETE COLLECTION, AMAGAMI SS COLLECTION 1, and MM! COMPLETE COLLECTION, plus LADY DEATH on Blu-ray.

Read on for plot descriptions, DVD and Blu-ray specs, and cover art for all of these titles.
Continued…

New Website to Promote Creative Life in Japan
Author: Keith Aiken
Official Site: gaijinchannel.com
Special Thanks to JR Lipartito and Jim Ballard

Logo for the new Gaijin Channel website. © 2011

SciFi Japan would like to alert our readers to a great new website. Debuting Thursday, September 1st, Gaijin Channel has been brought together by JR Lipartito (FOX BACKSTAGE PASS, BRINGING GODZILLA DOWN TO SIZE) and a team of talented contributors in Japan to become a premiere creative community for Japanophile entertainment.

Gaijin Channel’s mission is to spread unique views on life in Japan as can only be told by those who come from or have been heavily influenced by other cultures. There is something unique about Japan that inspires the creative spirit, and Gaijin Channel is specifically designed to enable Japan-based creators to reach a global audience… not only by showing their work, but by sharing the creative process as well to connect with other creative minds in Japan.
Continued…

Source: NEW PEOPLE Entertainment, MediaLab
Official Movie Site: gantz-movie.com (Japan), gantzmovies.com (US)
Special Thanks to Shio Toyoda and Erik Jansen

Win a GANTZ Prize Pack containing the poster and DVD.
Photo courtesy of NEW PEOPLE Entertainment. © Hiroya
Oku/Shueisha © 2011 Gantz Film Partners

A SCIFI JAPAN EXCLUSIVE

On August 30th, NEW PEOPLE Entertainment is bringing the Japanese live action science fiction adventure GANTZ (前編, 2011) to DVD and Blu-ray in North America. The film is based on the hit manga series created by Hiroya Oku, which has sold over 15 million copies worldwide and was previously adapted in a 26 episode anime series. Directed by Shinsuke Sato (THE PRINCESS BLADE) and starring Kazunari Ninomiya (LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA) and Kenichi Matsuyama (DEATH NOTE, DETROIT METAL CITY), GANTZ made its world premiere in the U.S. with screenings held at over 330 theaters nationwide. The movie went on to top the Japanese box office for four consecutive weeks, grossing over $40 million.

To celebrate the upcoming release, NEW PEOPLE Entertainment is giving SciFi Japan readers a chance to win a GANTZ Prize Pack containing the 2-Disc DVD Edition and a poster.
Continued…

Covers for Monster Attack Team issues M8 (illustration by Kevin Grays) and M9 (art by Matt Frank).
Photos courtesy of MAT. © 2011 Monster Attack Team

Japanese SF Movie Zine to be Distributed by Diamond
Source: Monster Attack Team
Special Thanks to Michael G Keller and Edward Holland

In the 1990s, Monster Attack Team, a fanzine devoted to Japanese live action sci-fi and fantasy productions, ran for seven issues. After a fifteen year break, editors Edward Holland and Michael Keller revived MAT in 2010 with a massive, full-color 132 page eighth issue packed with informative articles covering a wide range of tokusatsu film and television programs.

And now Monster Attack Team is back in a big way. Holland and Keller are currently working with a team of top writers on MAT #9, another 100+ page, full-color special. Monster Attack Team has also been picked up for distribution by Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc., North America’s largest comic book distributor, making upcoming issues available to comic shops, book stores, and specialty shops across the country.
Continued…

From the Director of OF ALIEN VS. NINJA
Source: The Associates press release
Official Movie Site: nukenin.net (Japan)

UK DVD cover art. Photo courtesy of The Associates.
© 2009 The Klockworx Co., Ltd

Directed by Seiji Chiba (ALIEN VS. NINJA; EVIL NINJA) and starring up-and-coming Japanese action heroine Mika Hijii (ALIEN VS. NINJA), the action-packed, period-set martial arts adventure ROGUE NINJA (抜け忍, Nukenin, 2009) delivers bone crunching thrills aplenty with a classic tale of comradeship, loyalty and betrayal.

Amidst scenes of dazzling, limb-severing swordplay and brilliantly choreographed martial arts combat sequences, Mika Hijii shines as the brave heroine whose courage to rise up against her male superiors takes her on an adventurous journey towards independence and glory.

ROGUE NINJA (cert. 15) will be released on DVD (Region 2, PAL) by MVM on 5th September 2011.
Continued…

DVD and Blu-ray cover art for TROLLHUNTER. Photo courtesy of Magnet Releasing. © 2010 Filmkameratene AS

Witness The Government Conspiracy First-Hand from Magnolia Home Entertainment
Source: Magnolia Home Entertainment, Bender Helper Impact press release
Official Site: trollhunterfilm.com
Special Thanks to Lauren Alexander

Everyone will believe it when they see it! Norwegian director Andre Ovredal (FUTURE MURDER) presents an “enormously entertaining” (Variety) look at a creature thought only to exist in fairy tales when TROLLHUNTER is uncovered on Blu-ray Disc and DVD August 23 from Magnolia Home Entertainment under the Magnet label. The Blu-ray Disc and DVD are loaded with special features including deleted scenes, improv and bloopers, behind the scenes and more. The Blu-ray Disc and DVD will be available for the suggested retail price of $29.98 and $26.98, respectively.
Continued…

Final cover art for Mill Creek’s GAMERA 3: REVENGE OF IRIS Blu-ray. The disc will be released on September 27th. © 1999 Kadokawa Pictures, Inc.

Cover Art and Special Feature News; Plus a DAIMAJIN Update!
Author: Keith Aiken
Source: Mill Creek Entertainment
Special Thanks to Barrett Evans and Roy McAree

A SCIFI JAPAN EXCLUSIVE

Mill Creek Entertainment has provided new cover art and details regarding their upcoming Blu-ray release of Kadokawa Pictures’ GAMERA 3: REVENGE OF IRIS (1999) and the GAMERA TRILOGY Collector’s Edition. Both titles are scheduled for release on September 27th.
Continued…

Striking quad poster design for the upcoming UK theatrical release of the Japanese Academy Award winning thriller VILLAIN.
Photo courtesy of Third Window Films. © 2010 Toho Co., Ltd., Amuse Inc.

Source: Third Window Films, Rabbit Publicity
Official Movie Site: akunin.jp (Japan), thirdwindowfilms.com/villain (UK)
Special Thanks to Adam Torel and Davide Previti

Lovers Yuichi Shimizu (Satoshi Tsumabuki) and Mitsuyo Magome (Eri Fukatsu) are
on the run. Photo courtesy of Third Window Films. © 2010 Toho Co., Ltd., Amuse Inc.

With over twenty companies bidding for the film adaptation rights, and many of Japan’s top directors vying for the project, Lee Sang-il’s adaptation of Shuichi Yoshida’s award-winning novel Villain was one of the most hotly anticipated films of 2010. A critical hit at festivals both at home and abroad, VILLAIN swept the board at the Japan Academy Awards, receiving fifteen nominations in thirteen categories, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Score, and winning awards in all four acting categories. VILLAIN was also selected by the famous Kinema Junpo critics’ organization as best Japanese film of the year.

Directed by Lee Sang-il, whose inspirational and hugely popular HULA GIRLS (2006) won Best Picture at the Japanese Academy Awards, VILLAIN boasts a stellar cast headed by Satoshi Tsumabuki (THE MAGIC HOUR) and Eri Fukatsu (who won the Best Actress award at the 2010 Montreal World Film Festival for her stunning performance), with support from Hikari Mitsushima (LOVE EXPOSURE), Kirin Kiki (STILL WALKING), Akira Emoto (APRIL BRIDE), and Masaki Okada (CONFESSIONS). The music is composed by world-renowned Joe Hisaishi, who has scored many films by Hayao Miyazaki and Takeshi Kitano. VILLAIN will open in cinemas in the UK on August 19th through Third Window Films.
Continued…

MOTHRA 50th Anniversary Film Festival
Author: Tom Dougherty, Clawmark Toys

Actress Maya Fujisawa poses with a prop from REBIRTH OF MOTHRA.

The Ginza area of Tokyo is known as an entertainment district and it is only fitting that it was the site for a 50th anniversary celebration of the creation and release of the first ever Mothra movie in 1961. And what more fitting for a celebration of this exciting Japanese Kaiju film than an entire day devoted to Mothra films and the exciting stars that helped make the magic.

I had attended Kaiju film festivals in this Ginza Theater before and so I knew I was going to be in for a treat. The Cast Co. of Japan’s Nagata Daisuke and his wonderful hard working staff along with several other movers and shakers in the Japanese Kaiju movie fan world came together and made sure this was going to be a fitting MONSTER celebration! Since the earthquake, tsunami and related disaster, much of Tokyo is either doing without air conditioning or living with reduced air conditioning to save power. The theater was no exception and I was very glad I had worn my handy dandy light weight Clawmark Toys Tee shirt for the occasion! It was going to be warm, but lots of FUN!
Continued…

Source: Media Blasters, Inc. press release
Special Thanks to Carl Morano

Theatrical poster for the 1972 Japanese re-release of
DESTROY ALL MONSTERS. © 1968/1972 Toho Co., Ltd.

Media Blasters Inc. and their Tokyo Shock label are proud to announce the exciting extras and supplementary materials for the upcoming DESTROY ALL MONSTERS DVD and Blu-ray. Media Blasters have enlisted the renowned Godzilla scholars Steve Ryfle and Ed Godziszewski to supervise and create the definitive release for the most beloved of all rubber-suit monster movies ever made.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS (怪獣総進撃, Kaiju Soshingeki, 1968) is universally considered a strong fan favorite of the entire Godzilla series! It’s an all-star monster rally of epic proportions featuring Toho’s greatest and wildest mammoth monsters in the ultimate, all-out rubber suit rumble! See Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan, King Ghidorah, Anguirus, Minya, Spiega, Baragon, Gorosaurus, Manda and Varan in all their titanic glory! The film was directed by the famed Ishiro Honda, director of the original 1954 film and the last entry to feature the dream team of special effects supervisor Eiji Tsuburaya, music composer Akira Ifukube and producer Tomoyuki Tanaka.
Continued…

Classic Sci-Fi Action Saga Will Debut New Weekly Digital Chapters For Only $0.99!
Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases
Official Site: VIZManga.com
Special Thanks to Jane Lui and Erik Jansen

The Neon Genesis Evangelion manga is now available on VIZManga.com and the
VIZ Manga App. © 1995 Gainax. © 2011 VIZ Media, LLC

VIZ Media has announced the digital launch of the acclaimed sci-fi manga masterpiece, Neon Genesis Evangelion, on VIZManga.com and the VIZ Manga App for the Apple iPad, iPhone and iPod touch. Neon Genesis Evangelion will be available chapter-by-chapter for only $0.99 each, with a new chapter launching each week. To celebrate the series’ debut, VIZ Media will offer a free Chapter 1 preview; Chapter 2 is also now available for download for $0.99.

Neon Genesis Evangelion (rated ‘T+’ for Older Teens), is series co-creator Yoshiyuki Sadamoto’s personal interpretation of the Evangelion characters and story is sure to intrigue new and old fans alike.
Continued…

Cha Hae-joon (Ha Ji-won) comes face to face with a deadly deep-sea creature in the new 3D Korean monster movie SECTOR 7.
Photo courtesy of CJ E&M Pictures and JK Film. © 2010 JK Film / CJ E&M Pictures

Korean 3D Creature Feature Doesn’t Live Up to it’s Potential
Author: Kim Song-ho
Source: CJ E&M Pictures, JK Film
Official Movie Site: 2011sector7.co.kr

A SCIFI JAPAN EXCLUSIVE

SPOILER WARNING: This article contains plot details and images for a new movie.

Main theatrical poster for SECTOR 7. Photo courtesy of
CJ E&M Pictures and JK Film. © 2010 JK Film / CJ E&M
Pictures

The title of the new Korean 3D monster movie, SECTOR 7 (7광구, Chil gwanggu), refers to a real-life mining area that lies between the south of Jeju Island, Korea and the west of Kyushu, Japan. It is a continental shelf where great amounts of petroleum and natural gas are thought to be buried. Korea is not an oil-producing country, so it heavily relies on imported petroleum. To many Koreans, the real sector 7 means a dream that has not come true yet… someday, Korea could produce oil. Setting the plot against a place like that many Koreans feel strongly about, could give the movie SECTOR 7 a very realistic, emotional edge. Even the workers, who are the characters of the movie, could have eclectic sense of existence. Then, instead of petroleum, they encounter a monster— and a horrible one at that. No other monster movie from Korea has had a more promising premise than this.

But, unfortunately, SECTOR 7 could not demonstrate the full potential of its setup. There were many holes in the script and direction, and sometimes those holes were big ones. The monster shows itself quite a bit earlier than expected (though its full version would not be revealed until later in the film), but those early episodes regarding it were not brought into the central story— like oil and water, the monster and the plot did not interact well with each other.
Continued…

Author Sakyo Komatsu’s novels were adapted into several popular Japanese films. SUBMERSION OF JAPAN and ESPY © Toho Co., Ltd.
VIRUS © 1980 Haruki Kadokawa Films. SINKING OF JAPAN © 2006 “Sinking of Japan” Production Committee

Prolific Sci-Fi Author Passes Away at Age 80
Authors: Andrew Nguyen and Keith Aiken
Source: Nippon 2007, Science Fiction Studies, Mainichi Daily News, various

Sakyo Komatsu, the “King of Japanese SF”.

Japan’s science-fiction community lost one of its grand figures recently with the passing of Sakyo Komatsu on July 26, 2011 from pneumonia.

Born January 28, 1931 in Osaka, Komatsu graduated from Kyoto University with a degree in Italian Literature in 1954. In 1961 he entered the Hayakawa Science Fiction Competition, a story contest co-sponsored by Hayakawa Library, publisher of SF Magazine (SF Magajin), and the Toho Motion Picture Company. He received an Honorable Mention and 5000 yen for his entry Peace on Earth (Chi-ni Heiwa), a World War II story set in an alternate timeline where Japan did not surrender in the wake of the atomic bombings. The next year, Komatsu won the contest with his story Memoirs of an Eccentric Time Traveler (Ekisentoriki), which was published in SF Magazine.

Sakyo Komatsu soon became one of Japan’s most prolific and popular science fiction writers. His most famous novel was Japan Sinks (Nihon Chinbotsu), in which the shifting of the tectonic plates resulted in earthquakes across the entire nation and causes all of Japan to crumble into the sea. The book was published in March, 1973 and was a massive hit, selling over 4 million copies in Japan alone.
Continued…

New Novel Based on the Popular Japanese Video Game from the Acclaimed Author of Brave Story
Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases
Official Site: haikasoru.com
Special Thanks to Jane Lui and Erik Jansen

High fantasy and true love come to life in Ico: Castle in
the Mist. Photo courtesy of VIZ Media. © Miyuki Miyabe.
© 2011 Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

VIZ Media, LLC, the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, with publish author Miyuki Miyabe’s imaginative fantasy novel Ico: Castle in the Mist on August 16th. The new book will be published by the company’s Haikasoru imprint and will carry an MSRP of $15.99 U.S. / $18.99 CAN.

A boy with horns, marked for death; A girl who sleeps in a cage of iron.

The Castle of the Mist calls for its sacrifice: a horned child, born once a generation. When, on a single night in his thirteenth year, Ico’s horns grow long and curved, he knows his time has come. But why does the Castle of the Mist demand this offering, and can the castle keep Ico’s destiny from intertwining with that of the girl imprisoned within its walls?

“Ico: Castle in the Mist first appeared as a popular video game for the PlayStation 2 and will soon to be re-mastered in high-definition for the PlayStation 3,” says Nick Mamatas, Haikasoru’s Editor. “Award winning author Miyuki Miyabe was inspired by the game’s atmosphere and expands the story in her novel, creating a whole world for readers to explore. Delve into the mysteries of this talented author’s grand achievement of imagination in this new release from Haikasoru!”
Continued…

Post-Apocalyptic Anime Debuts this Sunday
Source: Sentai Filmworks, Anime Network press releases
Official Site: no-6.jp (Japan)
Special Thanks to David Williams and Christian Lopez

Sentai Filmworks continues its recent string of anime series acquisitions with the futuristic thriller NO. 6. The broadcast and digital distributor Anime Network will add the 11 episode series to their Online Streaming Service starting this Sunday, August 7th. The entire series will be available to watch online for free (registration is required), with new episodes released online weekly on Sundays at 12:15 PM Central.

Based on the manga written by Atsuko Asano and illustrated by Hinoki Kino, the post-apocalyptic mystery anime is the first series directed by storyboard and opening animation master Kenji Nagasaki (KIBA, MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM 00) with series script duties being handled by Seishi Minakami (HEAVEN’S MEMO PAD, LIVING FOR THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW) and character designs by Satoshi Ishino (EXCEL SAGA, PUNI PUNI POEMY).
Continued…

Director Takashi Miike presents a melee of bloody carnage in 13 ASSASSINS, coming to DVD and Blu-ray in the UK.
Photo courtesy of The Associates. © 13 Assassins Film Partners

Source: The Associates press release
Official Site: 13assassins.jp (Japan), 13assassins.com (US)

DVD cover art for the UK release. Photo courtesy of The
Associates. © 13 Assassins Film Partners

Following a hugely successful UK theatrical release that saw it garnering a Five Star review in Time Out and Four Star reviews in Loaded, The Sun, the Daily Express, the Daily Mirror, the Daily Telegraph and Nuts magazine, 13 ASSASSINS (十三人の刺客, Jusan-nin no Shikaku, 2010) comes to DVD and Blu-ray this September riding a wave of critical acclaim hailing it as “one of the greatest samurai movies ever made… stunning” (Loaded), “one of the most memorable – and shocking – action films in an absolute age… brutal, bloody, brilliant” (Daily Mirror) and “an immediate action classic… magnificent” (Mail On Sunday).

13 ASSASSINS sees director Takashi Miike, the man behind such uncompromising and unforgettable movies as AUDITION and ICHI THE KILLER, indelibly stamping his trademark style on the Samurai genre with an ultra-violent, all-action, blood-spattered epic.

Nominated for the prestigious Golden Lion award at the 2010 Venice International Film Festival, this year 13 ASSASSINS was the winner of four Japanese Academy Awards (for Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, Best Lighting and Best Sound). 13 ASSASSINS (cert. 15) will be released on DVD and Blu-ray by Artificial Eye on 5th September 2011.
Continued…

Source: FUNimation Entertainment
Official Site: kadokawa-anime.jp/soraoto (Japan), funimation.com/heavens-lost-property (US)
Special Thanks to Jackie Smith

Japanese poster art for HEAVEN’S LOST PROPERTY THE
MOVIE: THE ANGELOID OF CLOCKWORK. The anime film
will be released in North America in 2012.

FUNimation Entertainment recently announced that it has acquired the home entertainment, broadcast, digital and merchandise rights to the follow-up movie to the romantic comedy anime series HEAVEN’S LOST PROPERTY (そらのおとしもの, Sora no Otoshimono, 2009) and HEAVEN’S LOST PROPERTY: FORTE (そらのおとしもの f （フォルテ), Sora no Otoshimono: Forte, 2010) from Kadokawa.

The animated film HEAVEN’S LOST PROPERTY THE MOVIE: THE ANGELOID OF CLOCKWORK (劇場版 そらのおとしもの 時計じかけの哀女神（エンジェロイド）, Gekijoban Sora no Otoshimino: Tokei-jikake no Enjeroido, 2011) premiered June 25th in Japanese theaters and is directed by Tetsuya Yanagisawa.

THE ANGELOID OF CLOCKWORK focuses on the Hiyori arc of the manga with new stories about Tomoki and a new girl named Hiyori Kazane. However, there is also a new danger from Ikaros’ hometown that is now threatening Tomoki’s world.

FUNimation Entertainment will release the movie in 2012.
Continued…