Tsuburaya/TYO's "Visual Translation System"

[ryuuseipro]

Under their new parent company TYO, Tsuburaya Productions is introducing the use of the "Visual Translation System" at MIPCOM 2008. It's a form of localization, only in this procedure, the foreign actors would be refilmed, in the same exact set and wardrobe, faithfully reenacting the original Japanese actors.

http://m-78.jp/en/mip08/001.html

Here are my thoughts:

Okay, that's a blessing. Hopefully, they won't change the story or dumb it down in some way (like certain companies in the US are doing so radically). At least Tsuburaya's doing it in a way they approve of.

But you know what the "curse" part of it all is? One reason I enjoyed these shows is because of the exotica. I grew up watching movies & TV shows with Japanese actors, and have accepted them as equally as any Hollywood actor. Today, it astonishes me at how generally racist America is, and Tsuburaya finally realizes it. (Considering that, before the buyout by TYO, they had a policy to NOT localize the Ultra Series.) So I have very mixed feelings about it.

Would I prefer the VTS version of an Ultra Series or Tsuburaya Series over a badly-Americanized Toei Superhero series, and recommend the resulting product? Perhaps. But it's the exotica I will truly miss. If the original Japanese version were somehow made available, I would be delighted.

It would be a relief if this technique were not done to any of the Showa Ultra Series, at least. Considering that people remember the original shows, it wouldn't make any sense. But there would no doubt be an outrage if it were done to, say, the original 1966 Ultraman series. Lenell Bridges (if any of you know him), for example, would blow a fuse if it ever happened, given his current condition.

Right now, I feel like Rorschach at the end of Watchmen.

[Benjamin Haines]

So it's basically like American studios remaking foreign films like The Grudge, The Host, and [.REC] to placate English-speaking American audiences, except TYO/TPC themselves are doing it to their own Ultra series?


Pass.

[Baltan II]

I could have sworn that James Ballard already made a thread on this, but now it doesn't exist. From what I recall, he wasn't thrilled about the idea either.

I don't think of it to be an awesome idea, but consider the series this system is being applied towards. Ultra Galaxy doesn't strike me as a show that's going to tragically suffer from this. Applied to a proper Ultraman series or something, and that could be a different story, especially a series where the story and characters matter significantly like in Nexus (but I certainly wouldn't miss Komon).

But frankly, at this point I'm almost done caring what happens with Tsuburaya's stuff, if it means a wider audience and actual interest from the public.

[Mac]

lololololololol

...I guess it could be interesting.

[kpa]

[The Shadow]

[Jim Ballard]

While I will admit it's ingenious technology, I think it's a pretty ridiclious idea.

I'm also concerned with how this technology works. The press release claims that ULTRA GALAXY will be "the first show [TPC] are presenting with VT". Now, does this imply it will only be from shows starting from ULTRA GALAXY and onwards? If actors have to start wearing trackers or something, how is this going to effect performances? And how much freedom will directors have when they're shooting from now on? Can they still replace these actors in the middle of the fish-eye shot?

Frankly, I don't care about the output of this VT thing, because not watching something I don't like isn't really an incredible feat. I'm mainly concerned how this will start effecting the real domestic productions, and if creativity is going to go out the window due to strict shooting restrictions (if such are required for VT).

[Cookie]

Well...for a DVD release, I wouldn't mind this as long as the original version with the Japanese actors are included.

This is interesting though.